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Frequently Asked Questions
Technical I
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1. When I am leafing a tree or flowering a subject it does not turn out like you demonstrate on the show. It looks like blobs of paint. What am I doing wrong? | |
More than likely your canvas is too loose. You need a tight canvas. To tighten a canvas you can mist the back of it with water. When it dries it will be tight as a drum.
You could also have too much paint on your brush and/or be applying too much pressure to your canvas. Your brush should be dry with small amounts of paint on the tip of the bristles. |
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2. When birds are flying over water, will they always have a reflection in the water? | |
If they are flying far above the reflective range, you will not paint a reflection. Most likely you are standing above eye level from the horizon or they are flying from above eye level of the horizon. If your birds were closer to the water, or just taking off from the water, there would be a reflection. |
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3. How do you mix flesh tones? | |
You begin with the same two basic colors, alizarin crimson and thalo yellow green. You will add white to these two colors to create a Caucasian skin tone. To create darker skin tones you will add Prussian blue, burnt sienna, and dioxazine purple. All flesh tones vary so you will need to experiment with the various mixtures of paints. For a redder skin tone, you will add more burnt sienna. If you need a lighter skin tone, add white. |
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4. Can you mix different brands of paint together? | |
You can mix different brands of paint. The difference between brands is the strength of the pigment. A different pigment may change the color. It does not hurt to mix as long as they are both water-based or oil-based. You cannot mix oil and acrylics together. |
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5. Can I use Masonite board to paint acrylics or oils on? | |
Yes, Masonite boards can be used with these two mediums. It can be more affordable than canvas and you may prefer the surface to canvas. Most importantly, use untempered Masonite board and you must apply at least two coats of gesso to prime the surface. Sand between each coat with fine sandpaper. |
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6. I have a hard time painting on Masonite boards. My paint streaks and appears to dry very rapidly. What am I doing wrong? | |
Keep in mind that panels do not have a tooth like canvas. The paint cannot adhere the same way. When you work on a smooth surface, you have to build up the painting in layers (glazing). You may have to go over an area 4 or 5 times before you get good coverage. Also, be sure the paint has had time to cure, about 30 minutes between coats. I have done some of my best work on Masonite, but you have to be patient. The paint tends to dry fast and that is why putting one thin layer on top of another is the best approach. |
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7. What colors are in the color wheel? | |
Primary colors - red, yellow, blue; Secondary colors - orange (red & yellow), violet (red & blue), green (blue & yellow).
If you mix every color on your color wheel together, you get a rich brown color. This becomes your base color. If you add red to your base color (brown), you create a sienna color. By adding red or orange to your base color, you create the fall colors. Add yellow to your base color & you create an ochre color.
Remember we are not changing the value of color. Value is what you do to change the intensity of your color, or the lightness and darkness of a color.
Add green to your base color, which makes a nice olive color. Add blue to your base color and you create a stronger intense brown. Add purple to your base color and you create a nice burgundy color. This is very important in creating shadow areas.
You use the color wheel to create the mood of your painting. If you want to have a warm mood to your painting, add the warm colors red, orange, and yellow.For a cooler mood, add the cool colors purple, blue, and green. The more blue you add, the cooler it becomes; and the more green you add, the more spring-like it becomes.
Color Ranges: If you mix blue & green = blue-green, mix green & yellow = yellow-green or thalo yellow green, yellow & orange = yellow-orange, orange & red = red-orange, red & violet = red-violet. By mixing these colors, you create your different shades of color.
You always go to the opposite color on your color wheel to find its compliment. For example: green's compliment is red, blue-green's compliment is red-orange,yellow-green's compliment is red-violet. This is how you compose a painting correctly by using the compliments of color.
This basic color wheel is used for landscape and wildlife artists. Remember color composition is the key to a good painting. |
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8. How do you paint a chrome look, such as bumpers on a car? | |
Chrome is similar to painting water. It picks up the colors that surround it. Begin with a dark gray color and gradually add lighter colors to the area, such as, whitish green, bluish white, tan, rust, etc. Your highlight color depends on your color scheme. Use horizontal and vertical strokes and gradually work your way to a bright yellowish white for the accents. This takes practice and is difficult to explain so you will need to experiment. |
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9. I would like to put animals into my paintings, but I get them all wrong. Is there a quick way to determine if my proportions are right? | |
There is a way to check you animals for proportions and it is called the negative space rule. It is difficult to explain without demonstrating. I suggest the #9940 Composition and/or #0023 Perspective videos. They would help in explaining the negative space rule. |
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10. I am having a difficult time creating graceful naked or dead trees. The more trees I attempt the worse they look. How can I master simple trees? | |
This problem is solved with practice, practice, and more practice. Of course you must use the correct brush (#4 script liner brush), the right amount of paint and water (inky substance), and with a light touch you can create beautiful trees. Remember, always start from the bottom, go up from the trunk of the tree, then go out to attach branches and always retrace your steps. |
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11. How do I make rain in a painting? | |
Put a light coat of water over the entire surface; mix in a small amount of white to create a light soft transparent glaze. While the surface is wet, take your script liner brush and load it with white paint. Make quick angled vertical strokes all through the painting of various lengths. They will blur a little into the wet background creating a soft rain like effect. It looks beautiful when done properly. |
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12. What are the true colors of the rainbow and how do I blend them into each other on my painting? | |
Begin with alizarin crimson, then overlap the crimson with cobalt blue; overlap the cobalt with cadmium yellow light. If using acrylics you will use a dry brush stroke with thin washes. You may have to use two or three washes to get the colors to work. |
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13. I want to paint a mural on the back of our travel trailer. It is fiberglass, and I don't know what I need to do or if there is anything to do to prime the surface. | |
First, lightly sand the area you are painting to get rid of any glossy surface, wax, etc. You will paint directly onto that sanded surface. Make sure you use the correct paint, Exterior Oil-Base Enamels. In my early years as a sign painter, I used Sign Painters Exterior Enamels. You can get these paints at most paint stores. You will want to use large brushes from a #6 bristle on up. However, if you know how to use an airbrush that would be the best way to paint on this surface. Airbrushes are quick, easy to use and you can get detail. |
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14.I am red-green colorblind. I would like to paint but how would I manage color values and color choices. Have you any suggestions? | |
You may want to consider working with pen and ink, ink washes, charcoal pencils, or use sepia tones for monochromatic paintings. These paintings can be done in oil, acrylic, or watercolors or even sepia-toned ink. Using these mediums, you do not have to worry about color mixing. |
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15. Can I apply the techniques of acrylic painting to other media using your instructional videos and classes on PBS? | |
Absolutely, although the shows, videos and books are in acrylic, you would apply the same techniques (composition, design, perspective, color mixing, values, etc.) to all mediums. The application is different, but the concept, from a technical point, of view is the same. |
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16.Is it all right to jump back and forth between two mediums, or should one stay with one until you develop some skills? | |
It is all right to jump from one medium to another as long as you do not get frustrated. If you start later in life, I recommend that you master the acrylics. They dry quickly, are non-toxic and are less expensive. They are very fun to work with once you get used to them. |
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17. I need help with shadows. Do I mix the complementary color with the color of the object casting the shadow, or what mixture do I use when casting a shadow? | |
First, you do not have to use the complement to create a shadow color. A complement may work in some cases, but the best rule to follow is to always add a little purple (dioxazine purple) to the shadow being cast. For example, if you have green grass, mix purple with that green grass mixture to be your shadow color. If you used an earth tone for dirt add a little purple to the dirt mixture and that will be your shadow color. All shadows have purple. This is a better formula than trying to use complements. It will work every time. |
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18. What is the difference between reflections and shadows? | |
Reflections and shadows are two completely different subjects. Shadows change with the direction of the sun and always follow the contour of the land. Shadows have nothing to do with where the reflections are located in a painting. Reflections, on the other hand, are constant. They have nothing to do with the direction of the sun or the contour of the land. This is why you may see a reflection in a painting in one direction and a shadow laying in another direction. They are in no way connected to each other. |
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19. It has been my belief that objects reflected in water should appear darker than their source. I have noticed that you seem to paint them lighter, why? | |
The answer to your first question is that there is no hard and fast rule as to the intensity of a reflection -- it is relative to the situation. Water conditions, such as rough, rippled or murky water, will cause the reflection to be less intense. Calm, clear water will create a more intense and possibly darker reflection depending on the atmospheric conditions (cloudy, sunlit, foggy, rainy, windy, etc). All reflections change when any of the above change. Nature is our best teacher, so spend some time on location and you will see what I mean. |
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20. When painting white subjects you are apparently using straight white paint. It is my understanding that using pure white will tend to become featureless. Shouldn't you add color to the white? | |
As far as using white paint, you are absolutely right. In fact, I instruct all of my students to use a tinted white as opposed to pure white. What you may see me do from time to time is use pure white as a semi-transparent glaze. This allows some of the underpainting to filter through which, in effect, tints the white. However, if I use white in an opaque form, I always tint it with the appropriate color. |
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21. How do you paint twisted, heavy fringe approximately 8 or 9 inches long and where each strand is the thickness of a pencil? The color is medium green. I don't want to show the fringe in great detail; but due to the thickness of the strands, I need to paint each strand separately. I am having trouble achieving the right look, which I want to be subtle. | |
Here are the basics; use a #4 round sable brush and underpaint the fringe in a dark color. Highlight the fringe with successive, thin layers of whatever highlight color you are working in using a very light, feather stroke following the contour of the twists. This is very much like painting hair or fur - it does take practice. You probably should have a fairly decent sketch of each fringe unless you are very skilled at drawing with your brush. |
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22. I am having problems with values. I understand it but am confused how light and dark to make each value. At times I just use my own idea but it is difficult. | |
Values almost always begin with the first layer of subjects that are against the sky such as mountains, trees, hills, etc. That first layer should be about 1 or 2 values darker than the sky. Then as you come forward into the middle background, middleground, middle foreground and foreground you continue to change the value so it is slightly darker than the previous value. Just remember there are numerous variables based on time-of-day, season, color-scheme, etc. |
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23. I am having problems with blending. I get all the colors and the when it comes to the final touch to blend, I find my hake brush and my hand leave brush strokes on the canvas. I blend and then it leaves a light or dark color even though I dry it and clean it. | |
Blending is a common problem and it sounds like you are having the same basic problem that everyone else has. This is fairly easy to fix. Your highlight mixture must be very creamy. Use a softer bristle brush. Load only a small amount of paint on the brush then use a very light feather stroke. This takes practice and patience. Practice different brush pressures and creamy mixtures. This will usually eliminate the problems you said you were having. |
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24. I have some turkey feathers that I would like to try to paint, but I don't know how to prepare them. Could you help me? Could I use acrylics after they are prepared and what would I use to preserve them? | |
First, seal these feathers with a clear acrylic sealer. It comes in a spray and is available in most art-supply stores (Grumbacher, Krylon or Winsor & Newton brands). Be sure you buy a matte finish. Hang the feathers and lightly spray them one or two times. Next, apply the acrylic paint. After you paint on the feathers' surface you can spray them again with the acrylic sealer, but it isn't necessary. Acrylics are self-sealing. |
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25. What combination of colors do I use to make beach sand, both wet and dry? | |
The best beach color is burnt sienna with a touch of cadmium yellow light with a touch of white. Depending on what hue you want you can add a touch of dioxazine purple and/or burnt umber. Some artists even put a little ultramarine blue in the mixture. There can be many different shades of sand so you will have to experiment. The more white you add the lighter the sand color.
For wet sand, it is not about mixing a color as much as it is about reflecting small objects onto the sand, such as, sea shells, pebbles, etc. After you add these objects you apply a thin transparent glaze of white with a little yellow. This technique will make the sand look wet. |
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26. How do I mix a bronze color? | |
You can mix various hues and shades of bronze by mixing burnt sienna, cadmium yellow light, with touches of cadmium orange. Bronze has green in it as well, so you can add a touch of burnt umber which has green in it and/or a touch of hooker's green. You will need to experiment with the mixture to get the desired effect. |
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27. How would you mix Prussian blue from your palette? | |
The basic mixture is: Ultramarine Blue + 50% of Hooker's Green and a small amount of Dioxazine Purple. If you want a warmer tone, add a touch of burnt sienna. Be careful not to add too much purple. |
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28. What are your thoughts or views of Dynamic composition? | |
I have studied this concept and find it very interesting. However, in terms of it being used as a teaching method, especially with beginners, it is a bit too complicated to incorporate into the traditional fine art compositional rules. Even though it is not that complicated, it is not complete enough to deal with the wide range of compositional possibilities. Adding this to our standard composition does complicate matters for most students. I have spoken to several professional artists about this concept, and most agree that it can be a useful tool. |
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29. I want to create the effect of twinkling stars in a night sky. How would I do this? | |
The best way to create twinkling stars is to take a stiff toothbrush and load it with a very creamy mixture of white with a touch of Cadmium Yellow Light. Then carefully, with your finger, flick the paint in the sky area. Be very careful not to make it look like snow. Have a wet paper towel handy to wipe off any excess splatters. This takes practice to get the right mixture, so I recommend practicing on a scrap canvas first. |
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30. When painting on art board, do you use a different technique than on canvas? Washes perhaps? | |
There is absolutely no difference in painting on board as opposed to canvas. Just be sure the board is gessoed 2 or 3 times before you paint on it - you can get a smoother effect. Many wildlife artists use board because they can get more detail. Also, sable brushes work great on board. |
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