Home Forums Explore Subjects Landscapes Capitol Reef National Park

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  • #468810

    This has been a cumbersome project for me with one start over. There are so many elements to keep in balance with one another. I will give it a couple days and then make adjustments. I used Golden Open Acrylics which have a little drying time. C&C Welcome. Gary

    8×10 Acrylics on Gessobord
    [ATTACH]863646[/ATTACH]

    "Painting is a verb"

    #778272
    ntl
    Default

        What a challenging perspective! I’ve lived pretty much in flatlands with no tall buildings. I don’t often get a chance to look DOWN. Looks like a great start. I wonder if a slight change in the horizon line would do anything to help.
        Good coloring, I think.

        #778260

        Thanks Ntl. From this level, the viewer is looking both down and up. It is like two separate scenes. Plus the colors in the rocks are all over the map. I actually left out a lot of rock details to make it less of a jumble. I am uncertain if I can get it to hang together. There is nothing in the scene to give human scale. Gary

        "Painting is a verb"

        #778256
        kentiessen
        Default

            A challenging project! Was it done from life or reference? As I paint lots of mountain scenes, capturing rocks/mountains with conviction is always in the mix.

            Ken Tiessen

            www.KenTiessenArt.com
            Comments or Critiques welcomed...always!

            #778261

            Thanks Ken. This was done from photo made on a spring visit by my wife and I a few years ago. Outside the park, there was fresh snow from the night before. We drove down into the park and it warmed up considerably. Capitol Reef is larger than Zions National Park and much larger than Bryce Canyon. Nearer its entrance the canyon is more red rock. This area is better know for “Navajo Capstone” that looks like lightly tinted putty.

            I started my first attempt with a black/white acrylic sketch. There was too much happening out at the edges of the painting.

            [ATTACH]863653[/ATTACH]

            "Painting is a verb"

            #778281
            Bizzibee
            Default

                Gary, I get the feeling this is a different project for you, and it has left you a little out of your comfort zone. I am probably wrong though.😊 I think your palette is beautiful and your light and shadows are also. There is a clear sense of the enormity of the mountains. If it helps, my interpretation of the foreground is that the water is a fairly small stream, and the greenery at each side are bushes, not trees. Is that correct I wonder?

                'One must still have chaos in oneself to be able to give birth to a dancing star': Friedrich Nietzsche

                #778254
                Skyenorth
                Default

                    Hi Gary, it looks a very difficult subject to paint! I like the perspective on the left side of the painting, the flatter area that you could walk across. Those big boulders are good too. I would vary the blue of the water though if it was my work just to give it some perspective.

                    [URL=http://www.simmillarts.co.uk
                    http://simmill-arts.blogspot.com/
                    Success is never found. Failure never fatal. Courage is the only thing.
                    Winston Churchill.

                    #778262

                    Thanks Bizzibee. It is a small river with bushes.

                    Thanks Caroline. I think the both the shape and the color of the river are issues. The boulders are enormous mountains. It is the problem with scale that I mentioned.

                    Here is another shot of Capitol Reef with the car for scale. Maybe there are too many issues to resolve. Thanks again, Gary

                    [ATTACH]863656[/ATTACH]

                    "Painting is a verb"

                    #778258
                    Dcam
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                        Gary; the strengths: Contrast, color, texture and brushwork, composition.
                        It mostly has it all.
                        That waterway has a wee bit of a perspective problem? Can’t put my finger on it. I also really like the black and white version….nice.

                        #778271
                        Aussiesrus
                        Default

                            The rocks are well designed & well rendered – Very Nice !

                            If the waterway is considered an issue, perhaps soften that hard edge where it exits the picture or break the curved lines & make an ”S” shape. Everything else looks great – Well Painted Gary !

                            Michael

                            michaelcartwrightart.com.au
                            https://bluethumb.com.au/michael-cartwright
                            I'M NOT AS THINK AS YOU DRUNK I AM

                            #778263

                            Thanks Derek. I will experiment with the river. I think it needs to be shortened, which would flatten it.

                            Thanks Michael, I will experiment. I am not that there is room for an ess. It is something to think about.

                            Gary

                            "Painting is a verb"

                            #778282
                            Dorrart
                            Default

                                Wonderful. I like the richness of tones, the play of shadows and light, the solid structures, and the painterly execution. Very nice.

                                - David

                                "Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working." --Picasso

                                #778274
                                Ohiohawk97
                                Default

                                    Beautiful work Gary! You really did an incredible job on those cliffs and rocks. The detail is impressive and love your palette. I think your creek looks good. If you just extended the creek a touch more where the shadows are under the bushes (probably 1-2 inches) with atmosphere, it would take the eye all the way back. I think it would then vanish into the distance. Overall beautiful painting and well executed.

                                    Wes

                                    #778279
                                    TomMather
                                    Default

                                        Lovely scene. Capital Reef is an incredible park that I want to revisit.

                                        A few suggestions for your painting, since you asked. The sky seems too monotone. Usually blue sky will lighten as it approaches the horizon. The perspective on the small creek seems off to me as well, or perhaps it is just too uniform. Also, the values seem to need toning down in the distance to enhance the aerial perspective. Darkest values should be in the foreground with lighter values and contrast further away. The cedar trees to the left of the stream seem to need lightening on the left side, where the light is coming from.

                                        You’re off to a good start and I think the painting will pop with a few tweaks. That’s what I love about oils and acrylics— seeing it all come together as you add more layers and refinement.

                                        #778264

                                        Thanks Dorrart for your kind remarks.

                                        Thanks Wes. I appreciate your comments about the stream..

                                        Thanks Tom for your suggestions and i am working with them.

                                        Thanks again, Gary

                                        "Painting is a verb"

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