The CD contains the following information for viewing and/or printing for each of the projects:
- 85 pages of instructions
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20 Full-Color images; Color Swatch Reference Guides (displayed in color on user's computer monitor for easy reference; requires a color printer to print in color)
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Line Drawings included for the user to print and enlarge to the painting size of their choice.
PROJECTS INCLUDED: English LandscapeSIZE:8" x 16"
TECHNIQUE: Tonal Wash, Glazing, Opaque Overpainting.
CONTENTS: 11 Pages, 4 Color Images, Color Swatches, Cartoon Line Drawing.
NOTE: Easy project for beginners.
This scene is typical of the 18th Century landscape paintings of the English countryside. Lush green meadows and carefully tended wooded areas stand in dark relief against cloud-filled skies over the Misty Isles.
The painting procedure is also typical of the way in which the early English landscape painters approached their subjects. Look at any of Gainsborough's or Constable's works and you will see evidence of the three stages this painting will proceed through to its completion.
HayfieldsSIZE: 20" x 24"
TECHNIQUE: Tonal Underpainting, Opaque Overpainting.
CONTENTS: 15 Pages, 5 Color Images, Color Swatches, Cartoon Line Drawing.
After the painting by Joshua Anderson Hague (1850-1916).
The painting uses both brush and palette knife techniques to create the textural effects. The force of the composition lies within the tonal value range of the painting, rather than depending on brilliant color, and the application of thick paint in the final stages provides an interesting surface texture.
I have chosen to study this painting for these reasons, to explore the impact of subtle value contrasts, as well as brush and knife technique. The color scheme is typically "old master" in that it relies on earth colors of brown, red and yellow and eliminates any blue hues that would provide more modern color combinations.
Although the original painting by Hague does have some blue hues in the sky and distant hills, I elected to eliminate them in the exploration of tonal qualities within a monochromatic color scheme.
The Olive GroveSIZE: 12" x 16"
TECHNIQUE: Direct Painting
CONTENTS: 18 Pages, 1 Color Image, Color Swatches, Cartoon Line Drawing.
The subject of this painting is San Martino monastery, outside the hilltown of Trevi in Umbria, Italy. It was painted on location on the edge of a shaded park overlooking this hillside covered with ancient olive trees. Because painting on location must be done quickly to take advantage of a specific lighting situation, this piece was treated as a very loose sketch. Attention was paid to the edges, shapes and values of the buildings, while the trees on the hillside were merely suggested by loose applications of paint.
To see how quickly and loosely I work on location, view my Video V-5, "Hilltowns of Italy." It was filmed during a two-week workshop for painting-on-location that I taught in this region of Italy in 1995. While the instructions are complete in this package, a visual presentation is always useful, especially if you have never attended a class with me or used any of my other instructional materials.
This painting follows the procedures demonstrated in Video V-5, Hilltowns of Italy. Viewing this video will be helpful in understanding the painting process, as it was painted on location in Italy.
Spello TerraceSIZE: 12" x 16"
TECHNIQUE: Direct Painting
CONTENTS: 27 Written Pages, 1 Color Image, Color Swatches, Cartoon Line Drawing.
This scene was painted on location in the central part of the Umbrian region of Italy. It was the site of an outdoor cafe whose tables and chairs were placed under the shade of a grove of large trees, overlooking a beautiful valley.
The techniques used to paint on location are fully demonstrated and explained in my video V-5, "Hilltowns of Italy." Three painting demonstrations show how I approached other subjects that I painted in the same area in Umbria. While it is not necessary to have the video to paint this project, viewing it would be beneficial to visually explain the terms and techniques I use in all my painting projects.
Via FlaminiaSIZE: 16" x 20"
TECHNIQUE: On-Location.
CONTENTS: 15 Pages, 2 Color Images, Color Swatches, Cartoon Line Drawing.
This scene was painted on location in the central part of Umbria in Italy, and is on the site of the ancient Roman city of Carsulae. This arched stone structure was the support for a gate which was opened at dawn and closed at sunset to seal the city within its massive stone walls for protection against marauders.
The road passing through the arch is the Via Flaminia and is over two thousand years old. In the height of the Roman Empire, this road was one of several which connected Rome to the extremities of its far-flung possessions. It runs the length of the upper half of Italy from Rome toward the western provinces.
This painting was executed on location and follows the procedures illustrated and explained in my Video V-5, "Hilltowns of Italy," a documentary of a two-week workshop I conducted in Italy in 1995. While purchase of this video is not necessary to execute this project, it would be very instructive to see exactly how I approach painting on location and apply the paint. It is highly recommended as a companion to this set of instructions.
