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Landscape painters
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Message
Posted
I have a couple of questions to landscape painters, as I might aspire to be one some day.
Have you always been doing landscape work or was this something you progressed to from doing other types of art? Have your style changed over the years or did you find your "voice" early on?
I come from a background of photographing landscapes and mountain sports. After a few years I got more and more bored of the "realism" and doing yet another sunset over the alps. A went back to old analog cameras and my darkroom, exploring new ways of seeing and documenting the world around me. After a while I got a frustrated, both with the chemicals in the darkroom, and by the limitations of the camera.
Now I find myself struggling a bit with landscape work (watercolour in my case). I know I like to get started doing more, but I'm struggling a bit to find my voice so to speak. I do like looser work and have been watching Alan Owen and Andrew Pitt work. I like their work very much. But I think I would like to move in a slightly more abstract or naive direction. Not sure where I'm going with this. I suppose this all ended up a bit of a ramble? Maybe I just need to get cracking and sling some paint.
Any thoughts are appreciated
Edited
by Rikard Lindby
Posted
That’s a good question, Rikard. I’m sure quite a few people on here can answer your question far better than me. However, your last paragraph referring to abstract caught my attention. I paint abstract landscapes/seascapes.
I sold this one recently. It’s a take on Exmoor National Park to give you some idea.
I sold this one recently. It’s a take on Exmoor National Park to give you some idea.
Posted
Sling paint indeed Ricardo and find your voice....you make me speechless....lol
The best way to do any painting ,drawing ,whatever is to sit in front of your subject....look and look again and paint it. Alan Owens work is lovely but so is Van Gogh ,
Both landscape painters both quite different . Maybe use a different method...Chuck away the Watercolour get out the Oils,pastels pen and ink...just try different medium... I don't understand getting bored with any arty thing at all. It's always different. Whatever you do enjoy it.
Just seen Ellen's pic....now that is a GOOD idea.
Edited
by Sylvia Evans
Posted
We all get paralysed at times. You just have to go for it. Get some inspiration by going to galleries, exhibitions etc. Look at things around you as Sylvia says, set up something, use colours or media you’ve never used before….You said it yourself ‘Get Cracking!’ That’s not meant to sound unsympathetic, we’ve all been there but the answer lies with ourselves.
Posted
I agree wholeheartedly with Sylvia and Marjorie it within you to make the decision and to move forward. I’ve just had a bad patch and decided to concentrate on maritime paintings instead of jumping from subject to subject buy not achieving what I wanted or needed . I started with watercolour and still use watercolour only, landscape was my first attempts and then I tried other things like wet in wet and add details after , using rock salt in my landscapes etc. I lead beginner and intermediate art group for the National Trust at Hughenden Manor for inspiration we look around the grounds and at parts of the buildings, it might be a window with ivy around it and old bricks that catch the eye or a view across the valley but it’s all there to be observed and painted. Get out of a comfort zone and try doing something different, it’s so easy to get into a rut , how about a nice big old tree with some dead branches with the rest of the background in a haze/mist it can have detailed bark or just show the different colours of the trunk they are not just brown . Do a work in progress on the forum and ask advice as you go along if that would help . Get the brushes out and go for it , what happens , happens as you go along just have a vague idea to start with.
Posted
Definitely ditch the watercolours as Sylvia has mentioned… get creative and I do like Ellen’s take on Exmoor NP very much. Try oils or acrylics, it will open up a whole new dimension…
Or, if you want to keep on with watercolours, go for some exciting wet in wet landscapes - you get mainly unpredictable results, but great fun…
Posted
That is some great advice from all of you. To be fair, I haven't really given watercolour a chance when it comes to the landscape. The unpredictability of the medium is something I like. And I know I really enjoy the later work of Turner, Hockney's take on Yorkshire and some of the work by the American John Marin for instance. So the medium is not the issue.
I do have a pretty good idea on how I like to use watercolours while doing figure studies of the human form. This subject sort of speaks to me in a way that makes translating my idea to a drawing/painting fairly straightforward. But so far I lack that sort of connection with the landscape. It would probably be easier if I was able to paint the landscape in which I grew up in. The hills, lakes and forests which I have an emotional bond to.
I will get going nevertheless :)
Edited
by Rikard Lindby