Ghost Town

I like painting different parts of the country - each has its own special charm. The painting above is of an old abandoned store in the Southwest. This is another painting from the book I mentioned in my blog that was a present from my son.

Painting the Southwest gives you opportunity to paint deserts and barren land; however, there are still touches of color in the desert with bushes and trees as well as mountains.

The sagebrush in the lower left is done with a brush with missing bristles to give spiky textures. You can purchase a special brush made specifically for that purpose or put to use an old brush that you have given a "haircut." The small branches in the tree and in the shrubs were "painted" by using a small palette knife loaded with painted and pulled across the painting.

In desert scenes, don't overpaint the ground....let some white paper show through and add a little spatter here and there.

If you have not painted the desert yet - give it a try!