Making of the forest

[KarinPavlic]

I shall attempt to paint a forest and I will post it 'step-by-step'. Please keep in mind that I don't find myself to be an expert and this shall be challenging for me.
I usualy finish my paintings in one or two days because in majority I use the 'wet-in-wet' technicque. This one will be different tho, so it shall take longer.
Anyhow, here we go:

Size: 45x60 cm
Medium: oil

Making of the underpainting -part 1

I decided to completly cover the white of the canvas with a solid, (almost) neutrual color. It's easier on my eyes and it makes it easier to judge the values.

Colors used: titanium white, cadmium red deep and ivory black

[KarinPavlic]

Edit: ups, accidentaly double posted. If a moderator see this please delete this one. Thanks.

[KarinPavlic]

Making of the underpainting - part 2

Painted objects that will later become trees. At this point my main priority is composition and perspective. I don't care to bother with details because they shall be added later.

Colors used: titanium white and burnt umber (mixed together gave
ownish-gray)

[KarinPavlic]

Making of the underpainting-part 3

In the middle I painted what shall be the dark 'void' of the forest. I still don't bother with detailing.

Colors used: mixure of sap green, naples yellow and cadmium orange

[KarinPavlic]

Making of the underpainting- part 4

Painted what shall be the grass/forest flor area. I still don't want to do details.

Colors used: took the leftover of the color that was used for 'void area' and added naples yellow, yellow ochre and raw sienna

[KarinPavlic]

Making the underpainting- part 5

Painted the remaining upper area where the leaves shall be.

Colors used : a mix of english deep green and cadmium yellow lemon.

With this the underpainting is complete. I will continue to work on this painting after it drys up a bit.

[Airspun]

It is really wonderful to see the steps in your creations. Thanks for sharing. Oh and by the way. love your profile portrait.

[aushi]

You're doing such an amazing job logging your process. I can't wait to see the detail develope!

[KarinPavlic]

Thank you, Airspun! Showing my work in a 'step-by-step' actualy 'forces' me to work on my 'idea' untill I finish it even if frustration occurs, meaning that I find it helpful. And on second note it helps me to focus on diferent stages instead 'rushing in' so to speak. If anybody finds it interesting or/and helpful, it adds to my 'pleasure' of doing it.
And thanks on the comment of my profile picture. It's actualy the photography of me to wich I added green light in photoshop.

Hey there aushi and thank you! I hope you will do 'step-by-step' also one day. I would love to see your process. As for details, it will take some time before I realy start to work on them but I can already tell you that I plan to 'go deeply into' detailing.

Making of the middle-painting: part 1

I didn't wait until the underpainting would be completly dry because at this point it is not realy neceseraly.

At this point I will do the 'middle-painting' that will almost completly cover the 'underpainting'.

The meaning of underpainting was to do a composition of objects and doing the very basic values and nothing more.

The middle-painting objective is to do basic patterens in 4 sections of the painting (forest flor, mass of leaves, the void and tree-trunks) while still avoiding the detailing.

In this first part of middle-painting I worked on the 'leaves section'. At this point my whole concrn is on the mass of leaves as a whole and forming the patterens.

Colors used: added english light green to the mix of colors that were left-over from underpainting part 5 (english deep green and cadmium yellow lemon), pernament sap green

I mixed the colors with heavy gel and mineral spirit so that I got more transparent colors.

[KarinPavlic]

Making of the middle-painting: part 2

This time I worked on the 'void'. Even if this shall be the darkest part of the painting it still has some 'light' and it can't be painted in solid one color.

So I added dark colors to it and shaped some subtle, almost undefined pines and trees.

Colors used: yellow ochre, pernament sap green, burnt umber and dioxazine purple

[KarinPavlic]

Making of the middle-painting: part 3

This time I focused on the forest floor. There are already 'faint' details forming with color and
ush strokes. Basicaly these are just patterens that will be seeable amist the detailing that shall be done later.

Colors used: all left-overs from previous stages (even the dioxazine purple)

[KarinPavlic]

Making of the middle-painting: part 4

I painted the 'trees' and gave them the first coat of shading.

Colors used: raw sienna, burnt umber, ivory black

I also noticed few perspective mistakes that I made, but nothing 2 serious and it shall be an easy fix.

In any case, I need to wait until it almost completly drys up before I can continue.

[KarinPavlic]

Detailing : part 1

It is established that underpainting is for making composition of simple objects and covering the canvas with compatible color. The porpuse of middle-painting is, simply said, for providing the background that will be spoted between the details. Details could also be 'named' as the upper-painting or over-painting.

Usualy is good to wait until other layers of colors dry up before starting the tedious work of adding the details. It makes the whole process much easier that way regardless the fact that you wish to just go on until finished. It takes patience to wait but it also takes patience to add all those little things that make the difference.

The layers of my painting are not yet dry but I establish that the film become thic enaugh to start the first details to it (thanks to Coutrai siccative).

So... I added the very first layer of leaves and started to fix the 'perspective mistake' that I have done.

Colors used: permament sap green and cadmium yellow lemon

[KarinPavlic]

Detailing : part 2

I totaly changed the 'color' of the trees-to-be.
What I did was I added diferent shades in stripes, then when that was done I took round 12
ush and 'smudged' the transitions with bottom-to-top long soft strokes. With that I achieved roundness and more importanly totaly 'flat' surface. Why I wanted that it will be 'explaind' in next step when I will be adding the crust.

Colors used: titanium white, burnt umber, raw sienna and ivory black

[KarinPavlic]

Detailing: part 3

I have done this part when to colors were still wet.

Before I wanted flatness on the trees and now that will change.

For this I used the dark
own color that was left from the shading and I added a drop of colourless painting medium to it to gain just a bit of transparency.

I draw random lines of random size on all the 'bark' surface. Then I took soft round
ush 2 and 'smeared' the surface.

It's not seeable on the taken picture but with doing that I made the actual imitation of bark texture.

Why I didn't textured all trees? Becouse the perspective: the more far the object is less detaild is for our eyes.

Later on when color drys I will do even more detailing on the trees.

Colors used: a mixture of titanium white, ivoy black, raw sienna, burnt umber

[Singular]

I absolutely love what you have done here. This is a wonderful tutorial on the steps you have made in creating this painting.

Excellent job.
Joe

[KarinPavlic]

Thank you very much, Joe. I'm glad that you like what I'm doing here.

Details : part 4

I started to form the grass and added few simple patches of dirt. The
ownish and green color used are left-overs from leaves&bark stages.

This is only the first layer of detailing on forest flor and about 2 to 4 additional stages shall be done. This time I established where the 'high' grass shall be and where more baren patches. In next stages of work upon this area I will put my attention to light and dark.

With this I came to the part when things get tedious and time consuming. Now I realy need to take it slow and let the paint to dry more than before.

Colors used: leftovers from 'detailing part 1' and 'detailing part 3'.

[KarinPavlic]

Details : part 5

Painted the very front leaves this time and added some highligts to more distant ones indicating the penetrating light.

The front leaves need two or three more layers on them to present the play of light.

From this point until the finished painting there will be no more published steps since I will be just adding the grass and leaves bathing in light, and I will just 'enchant' the crust on some trees.

I'm two or 3 days before the completition of this painting. The mayority of that time will be dedicated to waiting for paint to dry.

Colors used: light english green mixed with heavy gel

[KarinPavlic]

Making painting 'alive' 1

And I said to myself (what a wonderful world) if I was doing it so far I can do it for a bit longer, so here we are.

Painting is NOT finished yet. I painted some leaves (3 layers to be precise) and added some highlights.

Now I will work on forest flor.

Colors used: titanium white, cadmium yellow lemon and light english green

[Carmelo]

Karin, I have enjoyed the step by step sequence of your forest painting. It is the kind of place one may want to explore further.