painting dark backgrounds

[juliet45]

Has anyone got any advice on painting dark backgrounds please? Would you put them in first or last? I am thinking of a mixture of phtalo green and alizarin.

[claude j greengrass]

Here are a couple of threads that discuss dark backgrounds. Thread 1 Thread 2

[juliet45]

Thanks Claude. I don't tend to paint very dark usually so it is all new to me. It seems that the best way is to build the darks up with quite a few washes.

[virgil carter]

Hi Irena! There may be at least a couple of challenges for painting dark backgrounds. First may be the fact that any dark-valued application will likely leave hard edges, unless care is taken during application to soften the edges. Said differently, if the dark background is to be laid behind, say a still-life subject, all of the subject will have hard edges where the background is located. Hard edges may or may not be desirable, as they attract and hold the viewer's eye. Thus, some planning for edges is likely needed in order to have the desirable contrast in the painting.

Second challenge is to obtain the type of wash application that is desired, ie, uniform wash, varigated, transparent, etc. Darks can easily become opaque and mottled, particularly when built up from multiple washes. Thus, one needs to carefully plan and execute the application in order to achieve one's goal for it.

Generally speaking, since watercolor is normally painted from light to dark, I'd consider painting the dark washes last, or towards the end of the painting. Some painters, however, perfer to put their darks in first so as to know how to balance and harmonize the rest of their painting values as they proceed with a painting. Different strokes...!

Hope this helps. Sling paint!
Virgil

[Yorky]

You may have to apply more than one wash to get the background dark enough. I used 2 coats of Quin Violet + Hookers Green to get a black background in this painting.

When applying the second wash I painted the edge where I would finish with clean water first and stopped short of the edge. That way the wash went on smoothly and left no tide marks.

Doug

[juliet45]

Hi Virgil, you have given me something to think about (as usual) I want some hard edges and some soft edges so I will plan for that. And hope that it works.

Doug, I will be working on Arches so I usually wet the paper first before putting on a wash. I will heed your advice to stop short of the edge. Thanks.

[Yorky]

If you trying for a dark background best not to wet the paper (extra water) but just where you finish each brushfull to avoid a sharp edge forming.

Doug

[Mayberry]

In the painting I did of a white flower on a black background (in my signature line), here's what I did. I worked on the flower for a while, getting the basics of the petals in. Then I painted the background in a few glazes, letting each glaze dry thoroughly so it wouldn't lift. Using multiple glazes helped make the final background very uniformly black because any glitch in one layer was covered up in the next. Also, I after each glaze I re-evaluated the painting to see if I wanted to keep going darker or stop at that level. I used mostly Bloodstone Genuine (a Daniel Smith color) for the black, and used some of the same color in the flower too. I kept all the edges sharp except for where the black meets some leaves, where there is a gradual fadeout and mixing with the green, not hard to do. After the black was in place, I went back and finished the flower. It was then easier to know how dark I wanted the shadow parts of my flower to be once I got the background in.

In my painting of yellow flowers on a dark, leafy background (also in my signature line), I did pretty much all the leaves first, starting with them rather light, and gradually glazing them darker and darker until the ones in the distance became very, very dark. That way I was able to keep track of each leaf without them getting lost in big, dark washes. Sometimes I glazed them individually, sometimes I glazed whole groups of them together to soften edges and unify them. I forget what colors I used - various blues, greens, purples. Then I put in the flowers, working from the darkest, farthest flower to the lightest one in front.

There are lots of different ways to approach a dark background. I decide what I want to do with each painting, depending on what I think will help me the most with that particular painting.

[hblenkle]

Juliet45:

You mentioned Alizarin. In a thread recently I thought they said Alizarin is fugitive? Maybe Someother pigment would work better.

http://www.wetcanvas.com/forums/show....php?t=1106202

[RuiFromUK]

Hi Irena,

Tom Lynch paints very dark backgrounds in watercolour. He has some advice here in the Workshope Lesson of May 2011.

I hope this helps.

[juliet45]

Catherine, thank you for that very comprehensive information. I intend painting a macro flower so it has been most helpful. Can I ask why you used a granulating colour for the background of your white flower?

Harold, I have permanent alizarin which I believe is better then alizarin for lightfastness. But I can use any combination of colours as long as I end up with a black leaning towards green.

Rui, I will look up that workshop. I want to gather as much information as I can before I start as it is a new venture for me.

[pjartwc]

I usually tend to put a final dark background until last - as I don't know the colors or how dark I want it to be until I'm finished with the subject.

[RuiFromUK]

Oops I forgot to insert the link:

http://www.tomlynch.com/workshop_lessons.cfm

[Mayberry]

Originally Posted by juliet45

Catherine, thank you for that very comprehensive information. I intend painting a macro flower so it has been most helpful. Can I ask why you used a granulating colour for the background of your white flower?

Irena, I used the Bloodstone in the background partly because I intended to use it in the flower. The petals are mostly Cobalt blue mixed with Bloodstone (bits of mineral violet and quin gold here and there), and I liked the granulating effect as well as the soft gray it gave, making the petals look like they have a fine bumpy texture. Then I found I really liked the particular shade of black the Bloodstone gave me when painted on heavily. I found the slightly red undertone to be a pleasant contrast with the cool flower. Combine that with the fact that it was a new tube of paint for me and I just wanted to use it for something!

Sure, it was a bit harder to glaze over than another choice would have been. I used mostly a sable flat to keep it from lifting. A squirrel or goat flat would have been even better. However, I didn't have to worry about accidentally getting some on a petal, as I could lift it right off. (I didn't use masking.) I can see myself someday painting the flower again, using different colors, and liking it too. But I'd probably approach the painting in the same order. My family really liked the painting when I had gotten the background about 1/3 of the way to black. I may do another painting where I finish it at that level of darkness.

[CharM]

Hiya... I like the look of dark backgrounds on macro florals... and I sometimes paint them first or sometimes paint them last... it doesn't much matter because I'll soften my edges with a clean bead of water, regardless. Arletta Pech's book Painting Fresh Florals in Watercolor might be of interest and help... I learned a lot from it.

Also, if you scroll down to post #37 in This Thread, I illustrate a variety of mixes that create rich looking darks.