The A-Z of Landscape Painting (Part One)

I thought I'd start an A-Z of landscape painting as a way of talking more about what it means to me and how I approach it. This will by no means be a comprehensive A-Z, but more of a window into my art practice.

Landscape and nature inspire both my studio and on-location work. I have a profound connection with these subjects, and this three-part blog will present my personal perspective on the A-Z project.

A is for Atmosphere

The Woodpecker ©Deborah Burrow

Generally atmosphere relates to the mood of a painting which is created by the combination of light, colour and form. Getting a good composition with these three elements is the goal for me, and I spend a lot of time working them together to get the best effect. A painting has no impact without atmosphere.

One of my favourite aspects of creating atmosphere in a landscape is depicting the way distance and atmospheric conditions affect the light. The light is scattered over distance in the scene, and it lowers contrast and clarity. It also shifts colours towards the cooler side of the spectrum. I love using the more neutral, less saturated colours for distant trees and horizons, and contrast it with vibrant colours in the foreground. It gives a painting both depth and perspective.

B is for Brushes and Brushwork

Penyghent ©Deborah Burrow

Brushwork is a bit like the handwriting of an artist. It is more than simply the way the paint was applied, and describes the physical character of the artist's approach. The way the brush is held, the pressure applied, the amount of paint used, and whether the brushmarks are visible or blended, all tell the viewer about the artist's expression and level of conscious control of the brush

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I work in acrylic and I use a mixture of hog hair and synthetic brushes each one for a specific area of a painting.

For skies I use a large synthetic flat brush for laying down large areas of colour, and a large hog hair for clouds. (Sometimes I use a painting knife to finish off clouds as it creates random marks and lovely wisps).

The rest of the painting is achieved with different sizes of round hog hair brushes, and for details I use a small synthetic round or rigger brush.

C is for Colour

The Edge of Wildwood ©Deborah Burrow

As mentioned above in the 'atmosphere' section, colour and composition are key to the successful outcome of a painting.

I love colour, and I enjoy choosing colour combinations that work for a new painting. There are many ways to choose colours and combining two methods is my favourite. Firstly I choose a main colour, then I choose analogous or complementary colours to go with it. Once I have the combination I want, I look at how I will use them by choosing the proportion of each that feature in the painting. There is a really good 70/30 rule that I base my process on.

The 70% makes up the dominant colour, main subject, light and simplified areas, whereas 30% contains the accent colours, supporting elements, shadows and detail. Using this process helps me to create a painting that is eye-catching and engaging. The result isn't always strictly 70/30, but bearing this principle in mind as I plan my painting certainly pays off.

D is for Depth

The Wildwood Awakens ©Deborah Burrow

Depth in a painting is what helps both myself and a viewer to relate to a painting. The elements that create depth are not just about perspective, but more about the narrative being conveyed.

For instance, painting a barn in a field with some trees can be pleasant, but without a narrative, the painting might appear rather flat. I used to encounter this issue frequently, but through experimentation and deliberate reflection, I have managed to overcome this challenge.

To enhance this scene, I might depict a scorching summer day with a hazy horizon, golden sunlight, and fields turned a golden hue from the sun's heat. The barn takes on more importance as it could be used for storing harvesting equipment or providing animals with shelter from the heat. By adding a sky filled with distant storm clouds and trees laden with rich dark green foliage, an additional layer of meaning emerges. Now the painting begins to convey a story.

E is for Edges

Six for Gold ©Deborah Burrow

The physical edge of a painting acts as a frame to hold a scene within it, but it can also suggest the ongoing of a scene beyond the edge. Rather than viewing it as a boundary, we can think of it as a crop of a larger vista, and this particular view holds great interest. However, I do have to consider the edges carefully - something interesting at the edge can be disruptive to the eye and look as though I may have run out of space! Some artists use this to create tension in a painting when painting other styles of art like still life and abstract art.

In my own paintings I allow a gentle imagining of what lies beyond the edge, and I keep the eye within the painting and hold focus using the rule of thirds.

Edges of objects within the painting are also a key area of consideration. I use high contrast areas to describe a clear focus on the sunny side of a tree for example. Hard and soft areas are created through the use of colour, different brushstrokes, blending and contrast changes. Good edgework guides the eye around a painting in a pleasing way.

H is for Hue and Harmony

Peaceful Loweswater ©Deborah Burrow

Hue is the term used to describe the actual colour of something. Being an artist there is always a lot of scrutiny over colour, and landscape is a particular challenge.

A quick focus on green! It is a colour that causes a lot of issues for landscape painters, partly to do with getting familiar with mixing a variety of good greens, and partly to do with the abundance of green in a landscape.

Imagine a verdant Spring view of rolling hills, trees, grass and new crops. The majority of this scene is green, albeit a variety of greens, and beautiful. The issue lies with how to represent this in a painting. If I painted it exactly as I see it the result will look unreal and overwhelming. As an artist I will spend a lot of time working out how to paint it harmoniously with the saturation reduced to make it easier on the eye.

I have a painting by my father entitled, "Forty Shades of Green", based on a valley with mountains in the background, in Northern Ireland. There are indeed forty shades of green in it, and it has been done well. He says it took him a long time to get the mixes just right.

Harmony is managed by using a limited palette where the colours mix well into secondary and tertiary colours that complement the pure hues. Landscapes generally lends itself to a harmony of colour, but the rendering of it has to be sensitively approached with a good knowledge of colour. The resulting unity helps to bring the elements together to give a visual balance.

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That's all for now. If any of this resonates with you, or you have more to add to what I have explored so far, feel free to comment below.

Join me next month for part two where I go through the letters I-P.

Deborah x