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 Lonesome Line

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Janet
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Jim
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Jim


Posts : 171
Join date : 2009-12-28
Location Location : Cody, Wyoming

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PostSubject: Re: Lonesome Line   Lonesome Line - Page 2 EmptyMon Aug 30, 2010 7:27 pm

Finally a little breather to make some overdue comments on your comments. First, a big thanks to everyone; you guys are really inspiring me!

There were five color mixtures that I have been keeping available for the entire painting. These include the "base blue" that I chose. It's a mixture of Ultramarine Blue and Cobalt Blue that has been "grayed down" by applying a bit of orange complement (that orange in turn is a mixture of Pyrrole red and Cadmium Yellow Medium). Just a bit of Alizarin Crimson was added to warm it and, of course, a bunch of Titanium White. Two variants of this have also been kept on the palette, both with a lot less White so they are much darker in value. One has more orange and just a pinch of Yellow Ochre, the other with more Ultramarine and Alizarin. The next mixture is Titanium White with just the smallest trace of Duo Aqua Vermillion (as opposed to the oranger Cobra Vermillion). The last is White with a trace of Yellow Ochre. These have gotten added throughout the painting.

For instance, the base blue was added to the tree colors in diminishing amounts as the trees got closer. It's also in the shadows, the reds of the buildings, etc. The white-vermillion is in the background mountains and hills and also worked into the fields.

Of course, I had to make new batches of these colors as I went along. I always started doing this while there was still a good amount of the previous batch on the palette. And then I would mix what was left into the new batch. This minimized differences from one batch to another. I'm almost ready to mix the old batch of base blue into the new batch being mixed in the lower right corner of the palette in the illustration below.

Lonesome Line - Page 2 Palette

The palette really looks messy (and it is Smile). As greens, Ochres and browns were mixed for the hills, they were also kept going and brought down into the fields. Of course most areas were further adjusted with touches of the pure tube colors being added as needed to the existing "piles" of palette colors.

For the sky the underpainting was allowed to dry then the next layer was painted wet-on-wet, working in the pre-mixed colors modified by tube colors as needed. It was done section by section, trying to finish one section before going on to the next. For a few areas it was necessary to go back and touch them up again (especially that main cloud), but I'd say 70-80% of it didn't get reworked. Laughing I have to admit this was one of those times when things went well (I love it). SOMEtimes it seems like I'm holding a brush for the very first time Crying or Very sad! Anyway, this approach is what works the best for me.

Clouds are such very interesting critters. Looking at parts of some of them they appear to have very hard edges. But I haven't yet managed to realistically portray them that way. Soft, softer and blended seems to work better for me. At times they look motionless -even when in an airliner and flying between thunderheads. But boy, just let the airliner go through one! WHUMP, BUMP, FLUMP!!!

And at the time the clouds of the painting didn't seem so motionless as my wife and I drove under them towards Canon City, Colorado. There was lots of wind, rain, lightening and some hail as we timidly wound our way onwards. We definitely needed that glass of wine and the great pasta at the Italian restaurant we found when we finally got there!

There is a story behind the railroad. From Googling, it appears that this standard gauge Colorado Midland Railroad was incorporated in 1883 and went into regular service from Colorado Springs to Leadville in 1887 (and later on to Grand Junction, CO). It was abandoned in 1918 after it was determined that other railroads were better able to handle the traffic resulting from World War I. I'd guess the rails were torn up during the World War II scrap drives if not sold much earlier for use on other lines. Abandoned for almost 100 years and so little has changed. I think if one listens carefully the ghosts of the old 2-8-0 Consolidated steam engines still can still be heard chuffing their way through the valley.
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Dale

Dale


Posts : 573
Join date : 2009-11-17
Location Location : Near Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada

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PostSubject: Re: Lonesome Line   Lonesome Line - Page 2 EmptyMon Aug 30, 2010 8:12 pm

Jim. Thanks so much for taking the time to explain all that. I know I will refer to your palette again and again
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judyfilarecki
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judyfilarecki


Posts : 2685
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Location Location : Northern NY and Southern Arizona

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PostSubject: Re: Lonesome Line   Lonesome Line - Page 2 EmptyMon Aug 30, 2010 9:10 pm

Great summary, Jim. Thanks.
Judy
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watermixableguy
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watermixableguy


Posts : 972
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Location Location : New Brunswick, Atlantic Canada

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PostSubject: Re: Lonesome Line   Lonesome Line - Page 2 EmptyTue Aug 31, 2010 9:10 am

Thanks for the information about keeping a consistency in colour throughout a painting by A: mixing a colour that you can choose to add to all elements of the scene (in this case, blue), and B: keeping a little of an existing palette colour to blend with a newly mixed colour. Very helpful!
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Dana C

Dana C


Posts : 379
Join date : 2010-06-02
Location Location : Seattle/Snohomish, WA

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PostSubject: Re: Lonesome Line   Lonesome Line - Page 2 EmptyTue Aug 31, 2010 12:00 pm

Jim,

Thank you for your overview -- and how you work a painting....I just love your sky/clouds. I have so many pictures of clouds, but have not yet been able to perfect as I would like, lots more working with them before I could ever get to yours -- they are magnificant!

Great Job and Thank you again for sharing Lonesome Line - Page 2 Artist12
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Crystal1




Posts : 639
Join date : 2010-02-05
Location Location : Ft Worth, TX

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PostSubject: Re: Lonesome Line   Lonesome Line - Page 2 EmptyTue Aug 31, 2010 8:58 pm

Beautiful painting. And thanks for all the information on how you work your palette. I am definitely learning a lot from you. I can't say enough about how amazing your work is.
Dayle
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Janet
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Janet


Posts : 2050
Join date : 2009-11-15
Location Location : North Bay, Ontario Canada

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PostSubject: Re: Lonesome Line   Lonesome Line - Page 2 EmptyTue Sep 07, 2010 6:10 pm

"ODS" lol I like that one. Wow love the depth I'm seeing. Smile
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Jim
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Jim


Posts : 171
Join date : 2009-12-28
Location Location : Cody, Wyoming

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PostSubject: Re: Lonesome Line   Lonesome Line - Page 2 EmptySun Jan 02, 2011 2:22 pm

Lonesome Line Lives cheers

Some temporary track was laid down and a work train loaded with brush, grass, a few bricks, etc. Lots more ODS, but finally everything was unloaded and placed. The track was torn up again and the little 0-4-0 switcher chugged back to the museum whence it came. So now begins the Final Contemplation Phase where one agonizes over if the painting is really done Rolling Eyes pale Evil or Very Mad Twisted Evil Laughing ?

Lonesome Line - Page 2 Lonesome-Line-Lives
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judyfilarecki
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judyfilarecki


Posts : 2685
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Location Location : Northern NY and Southern Arizona

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PostSubject: Re: Lonesome Line   Lonesome Line - Page 2 EmptyMon Jan 03, 2011 1:19 am

Jim,

It is gorgeous.

Judy
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Janet
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Janet


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PostSubject: Re: Lonesome Line   Lonesome Line - Page 2 EmptyMon Jan 03, 2011 9:04 am

Jim, Beautiful painting! Love the details and I feel like taking a walk through this beautiful scene. Smile
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Jim
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Jim


Posts : 171
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PostSubject: Re: Lonesome Line   Lonesome Line - Page 2 EmptyMon Jan 03, 2011 1:01 pm

Thanks for your kind comments Judy and Janet.   I am pretty happy with most of it too.   As I am drawing the guidelines for the next painting I keep glancing over at Lonesome Line.   That old road coming in from the lower left bothers me some.   While I like the idea of having a way to get to the station (even though none shows in the reference photo), it seems a little "harsh" to me (for lack of a better word).   Maybe I need to tone it down so one has to look hard to realize it is there.   Of course, then something else would catch my eye and I would dither about that.   Hmmmmm.
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judyfilarecki
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judyfilarecki


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PostSubject: Re: Lonesome Line   Lonesome Line - Page 2 EmptyMon Jan 03, 2011 8:34 pm

I like the road. It adds a light touch of detail in an area where there is none compared to t he rest of the painting. it helps balance out the right and left side of the painting.

judy
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Janet
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Janet


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PostSubject: Re: Lonesome Line   Lonesome Line - Page 2 EmptyTue Jan 04, 2011 8:36 am

I like the road as well. I hope you decide to leave it in. Smile
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watermixableguy
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watermixableguy


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Location Location : New Brunswick, Atlantic Canada

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PostSubject: Re: Lonesome Line   Lonesome Line - Page 2 EmptyTue Jan 04, 2011 9:22 am

Jim, I think the road works fine as it is. The rest of the painting is sharply focused, with lots of detail, and the road just looks like a normal part of it, fitting right in. (Maybe you are done with this one!) Very Happy
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Sofie
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Sofie


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Location Location : Courtenay, BC, Canada

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PostSubject: Re: Lonesome Line   Lonesome Line - Page 2 EmptyThu Jan 06, 2011 6:33 pm

Back away from the painting, Jim. Smile It looks just great the way it is.
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Jim
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Jim


Posts : 171
Join date : 2009-12-28
Location Location : Cody, Wyoming

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PostSubject: Re: Lonesome Line   Lonesome Line - Page 2 EmptyThu Jan 06, 2011 8:03 pm

Hey, thanks for reigning in my Final Contemplation Overload! I've put the painting up and won't look at it again for awhile.
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