Demonstrations

Landscape with Chateau de La Hulpe, Belgium
The sequence of photos below shows the development of a landscape painting of the beautiful and historic Chateau de La Hulpe in Belgium, just  few minutes outside of of Brussels. Albert Einstein, Madame Curie, and Ernest Solvay are just a few of the notable personalties who met here to discuss cures and health issues. Besides the beautiful architecture , the nature part contains many rare species.  It is painted both on location and in indoor studio using classical technique and nature or prism palette. The photos herein although not top quality,  give an  idea of the progression.

GETTING STARTED
 

The support is Belgian linen canvas, fine weave, tripled oil primed on wood stretchers. (not shown).The initial sketch is done in charcoal which is easily 'erased' with chamois. Shape it over fingertip, end of the brush or cardboard you can custom shape and place the chamois over it to get a nice point for small corrections. If the composition is not placed well one can wipe it off quickly to perfect it.  It's much faster to refine, make corrections or indeed start all over in this beginning stage, so a good check  and decisive action can save lots of time later.

The MENTAL WORK
 

Although no strokes are made during the mental planning and contemplation, it is a vital part of the painting's creation. Visualization and trying out different scenarios are necessary, whether with the aid of experience, healthy imagination, quick value thumbnails or photoshop.  If the outcome is intended to be very accurate and realistic, it is easier and faster to 'chamois down' the charcoal and to re-draw part or all of the subject to avoid making corrections during the painting stage, which takes much longer. Don't waste time starting out with a bad composition refine first and finish faster.

GRISAILLE

After the drawing is done, pondered over and any corrections are made, the charcoal is 'sealed' with a painterly dilution of any brownish pigment with a bit of turpentine and a tiny brush.  Then by squinting and placing 'darks' for shadows or landmark spots the placement of other subordinate shapes is facilitated with more painterly application. This process can be described as grisaille or monotone painting. Gris in french means gray. The surface is now ready to add a primatura in respective colors. 

 

THE COLOR  TEMPLATE

Before starting the first serious pass or real painting, cover the canvas without being too fussy with details. Use a larger brush with diluted color to get a general idea of the masses of color. This thin layer will (1) get the surface of the canvas to receive paint more readily  serving as an imprimatura to hold the following 'fat'; or thicker layers and (2) dry quickly, (3) conserve the paint layers over a long term and give the work a chance to age without cracking the painted surface .

LIGHT

I establish the light direction early on as close to reality as possible. This is indicated in the grass and sky area of the top left mid-and background. Although creative license can be taken, following the actual trajectory of the sun, recording the light at a particular time on a particular day is my goal. The patrons of this commission regularly walked the grounds so  I made an effort to keep the illumination of this landmark as natural and familiar as possible to my client's experience . 





MIRROR IMAGE AND REFLECTIONS

As there is a mirror image, notice the bottom has been painted simultaneously to assure similar colors.  Light logic dictates the reflection colors are slightly darker, achieved in later stages.  I contemplate if the castle should be reflected in the water surface in the foreground. The 'angle of incidence' rule applies which means that it depends on the viewers position. Light bounces out at the same angles it flows in. Since the chateau is on a hill the viewer must also be elevated for the reflection to appear.

 PLUMB LINES & TECHNICAL GADGET

The next phase is spent with T-squares, plumb line and palette knife and rigger brushes to make sure the verticals and correction on the architecture. Then I 'turn' the turrets by paying attention to the light and shadow side of the structure underneath the botanicals. This is a 'raking' side ward light.
Zoom buttons on the Archos 705 and Epson 5000 prove helpful for observing details, but I take care not to include too much of it.

DETAIL OF GRISAILLE

The initial drawing is lost as the painting progresses. Here is a close up of details on the right side of the chateau. Below you can see how the grisaille has been painted over or lost as the painting progresses.





 

FIRST PASS DETAIL

... in advanced in-progress stages of the right side of the castle, the first color pass begins to cover the underpainting.

The full composition is worked over in the same manner and in sections, after the sky is filled-in.  The order is arbitrary except for the sky and water area where colors need to be similar. Another very important reason is that all the subsequent values in the elements in the foreground run the risk of being off value, if the sky is painted in during a later stage. The refinement comes later but the value needs to be established early.

FIRST COLOR PASS IN FOLIAGE

I take note of the kinds of trees as my client asked for the setting to be in fall. Iin reality there are mainly conifer trees surrounding the chateau, so I use artistic license to better meet the client's expectation and also not to be a slave to photos which do not do justice to this landscape.
SECOND PASS MIDDLE GROUND GRASS gives this flat area more form and balances the busier areas on the periphery.
FIRST PASS FOREGROUND reflects the sky and I decide if the water will be flat or have movement with ripples or concentric circular brush strokes. I opt for calm water since I'm adding water lilies which will attract enough attention.



COLOR PASSES AND  REFINEMENT

In the foreground the  reflections and foliage from contrast around the swans which vie for attention. I must take care to keep 'the story' focused on the chateau. I am consciously creating lower key of light in the foreground and orchestrating a spotlight effect on the left grassy knoll to carry the eye to the architecture and star of the show. The movement withing the painting is problematic in this stage. The grass, turreted roof and staccato verticals of the windows,  all, carry the eyes  upward and out the composition. This is an undesirable trait, so I create more activity in the clouds to keep a racetrack pattern in play.

The last pass is a continuation of refining or adding small touches and thin layers or glazes --working on  the foliage,details on the architectural facade and 'sculpting' the greenery, planters, highlighting  furniture on the chateau terrace, accentuating the light on the waterlilies and foliage. I stop when the movement seems to stay inside the canvas and the eye rests on the main subject--the chateau.

In reality the chateau is further away than is depicted in the painting. The purpose is to  bring the architecture forward in order to show more detail.  I make a last check for details and feel satisfied with the decisions  I made on the foliage colors and size of the chateau. I send an image to the client for  pre-approval before arranging delivery. The client replies favorably and I prepare it for  delivery with a routine procedure. This includes recording basic information about the artwork including a photograph,  size and description, brief artist bio and care instructions for personal records. As a special surprise I create a book of the painting in progress and a brief history and present it at the unveiling. The clients were very pleased and have a wonderful memory of their life for ten years in Belgium living in the neighborhood of this historic landmark associated with Albert Einstein, Madame Curie, Ernest Solvay with some of the most unique botanical species in it nature park.

Giclees of  this beautiful and historic chateau are available from the artist and a companion coffee table book can be ordered directly on Blurb.com.