Painting of the Week

Painting of the Week – Charleston Light

Painting of the Week – Charleston Light by Fargo Artist Ellen Jean Diederich

A Cool Palette is Refreshing

Isn’t it amazing how suddenly the weather changes from cool to hot? Summer is finally here! Yah! Now we may be actively looking for shade. It is so nice to be outside, watch nature and be able to visit with our neighbors if we like. This beautiful porch is in Charleston, South Carolina.

As artists we can promote the coolness of the shade by using a cool dominant palette, such as this one which is focused on violets accented with yellow green. It was fun to color the crisp whites of the architecture with shadows and vary the black wrought iron fence with an ever changing yet repetitive rhythmic of rotating colors. Notice all warmth wasn’t taken out; there is a touch of peach here and there. The architecture that seems complicated was painted simply by varying the color patterns.

 

Sign up online for my Beginning Watercolor workshop July 23-26 at the Fargo Holiday Inn. We will practice simple fun ways to see shapes and color them and bring them out. You will be able to apply those skills to more complicated shapes & subjects later. Learning to see is a big part of the course and many students tell me I have helped them look at things differently so they can paint. This will be a fun class that counters fear and excites learning.

 

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