AUGUST 2016 £3.99

Summer is here!Celebrate with colour

T H E U K ’ S B E S T - S E L L I N G A R T M A G A Z I N E

PICTURE PERFECTCreative ideas forartists out & about

Paint quickly withthe 3-wash method

Paint acrylic still lifes

STEP-BY-STEP watercolourbird in detail

HOW DO I... use the purples in my palette?

Draw a tree in graphite

FLEETING LIGHTHow to capturesummer scenes

Your challenge!Paint an oilin 30 minutes

TRY THIS!Colouredpencilflowerproject

LP08 Cover_3.99_Layout 1 05/07/2016 10:45 Page 1

4 AUGUST 2016 www.painters-online.co.uk

IN EVERY ISSUE

7 DiaryThings to do this month

8 ExhibitionsSome of the best shows around the country

10 LettersYour tips, suggestions, ideas and questions

20 Painting projectPart 1 Follow Jem Bowden as heintroduces this month’s project from a photograph, a Welsh landscape, and discusses the preparation he goes through to paint the scene in watercolour next month

22 Step outsidePart 2 David Webb describes a simplethree-wash process in watercolour that will help you paint quickly andefficiently outdoors

25 Understanding colourPart 9 Warm purples. Tony Paul discussesthe properties and mixing abilities of twopopular warm purples: cobalt violet andpermanent magenta

29 A day at the beachPaul Alcock demonstrates the use of arange of acrylic and drawing techniquesand the colour mixes he uses to paint an iconic summer beach scene

33 Colourful parks and gardensPart 1 Julie King describes her workingprocess to create the perfect compositionfor garden scenes and sets you a projectfrom a photograph. Follow her next monthas she paints the scene in watercolour

58 Art clubsNews, profiles and exhibitionlistings

61 Books Some of the best practical artbooks and DVDs are reviewed

66 Online galleryJane Stroud choses twopaintings from PaintersOnline

FEATURES12 The summer landscape

Learn techniques to capturefleeting light and the beautifulcolours of summer landscapeswith oil painter, Christine Pybus

16 Painting projectPart 2 Linda Hampson completeslast month’s coloured-pencil project by first demonstratinghow to create trompe l’oeileffects then working through the drawing of three pansies

ContentsAUGUST 2016

54

22

On the coverPaul Alcock Beach Huts in Summer,acrylic, 16x20in. (40.5x51cm). Learnacrylic techniques on pages 29 to 31

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www.painters-online.co.uk

36 Still-life successPractise three acrylic techniques to paint still lifes – glazing,sgraffito and wax resist – with Marylin Scott

42 KingfisherFollow Paul Hopkinson step by step as you learn to paintlayers and add detail to a study of a bird in watercolour

46 Weeping willowEstablish form and realism as you draw a detailed tree from a black-and-white photograph with Denis John-Naylor

53 30-minute studyHow to paint quick oil studies by Linda Matthews

54 What shall I paint?Seasonal ideas and inspiration from Linda Birch

AUGUST 2016 5

Tim Fisher Poppy Fields, Amsterdam acrylics, 12x16in. (30.5x40.5cm)t

David Wilkinson Rachel, oil, 231⁄2x16in. (60x40.5cm) wasawarded the Batsford Books Award at the Leisure Painter opencompetition 2016. LP will beshowcasing the winning paintingsover the next two month.

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ON SALE 12 AUGUST

n Paint fast and loose in watercolour

n Prepare to paint a study of a stag in pastel

n Develop a sketchbookhabit by drawingfigures from life

n Be inspired by themethods and coloursused by Turner

n How to paint a stilllife using water-mixable oils

n Follow garden andlandscape demos in watercolour

n How to use popularwarm purples

n Backgrounds forpastel portraits

n Tested: AmsterdamAcrylics from Talens

n On show: the winners of this year’s opencompetition atPatchings Art Centre

LEISURE PAINTER ON-SALE DATESIssue On saleSeptember 12 AugustOctober 9 SeptemberNovember 7 OctoberDecember 4 November

NEWS, HOLIDAYS & WORKSHOPS2 Receive a free set of Sennelier watercolours,

worth £29.95, when you subscribe to Leisure Painter

28 Join botanical artist and tutor, Helen Campbell on a half-day watercolour workshop this November

50 Develop your painting in Morocco with Glyn Macey

50 Read about Leicester Sketch Club, winner of thisyear’s Art Club of the Year competition

65 Join Hazel Soan on a wildlife painting safari in Zambia

67 Win paper from Canson, worth over £80

Coming next monthContinue your summer of painting with

Leisure Painter. Here are just some of thehighlights to be found in the September issue

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36

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Summer is the season when logicsuggests that those precious, jewel-like flashes of light are most

prevalent. Conversely, however, it’s often when they are the hardest to find. With the harsh overhead light, few

shadows and little backlighting, themiddle of the day is best reserved forwhat nature intended – lunch. Rise earlyor wait until a balmy summer’s eveningand what treasures there are to be found:saturated colours, long shadows and rich

12 AUGUST 2016 www.painters-online.co.uk

Capture fleeting light and the beautiful colours of summer landscapes with confident brushstrokes, by Christine Pybus

The summer landscapeAfter Early Morning Practice, Henley Regatta, oil on board, 81⁄2x111⁄2in. (22x29cm). Henley Royal Regatta is a great mid-summer spectacle.

This was painted early in the morning. Within an hour the soft light, the almost silhouetted figures and the sparkle would all be gone,everything harshly lit and the water a strong, strident blue.

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Summer Cloud Shadows from Blakey Ridge,oil on board, 11x14in. (28x36cm). The heatherwas in full bloom, but up on the top of the moorthere was a strong and blustery wind. Hencethose ever-changing flashes of light had to beestablished quickly and with large brushstrokes.The background trees and hedges were used tosuggest the contours of the amphitheatre-likevalley, with one small white mark suggesting acottage to give scale to the entire picture. Thesecond small white mark indicates a boat out at sea, which also acts as a focal point.

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contrast, all of which create a sparklethat’s unique to only those months of the year. These few brief hours are someof my favourite painting times, with veryfew people about, incredible light andcolour and yet always that sense ofurgency to capture the scene before itchanges. With no time to wait for washesto dry, this is a job for my oil paints.

Summer’s fleeting lightAs the term ‘fleeting light’ suggests, you need to work quickly to capture it. However to paint all the tones andcolours right first time is nigh onimpossible. An area ‘finished’ at this stagewill almost certainly require revisitingand altering later, because it will appearto change in tone as the rest of thepicture gradually surrounds it. The wayaround this is to cover the entire boardor canvas quickly and loosely; initiallywith approximations of the dark and midtones. It’s only then that you can both

AUGUST 2016 13www.painters-online.co.uk

A Summer Evening Study, Russell Square Gardens, oil on board, 6x8in. (15x20cm). This was painted using my small, portable pochade box on my way back to Kings Cross for the 6.30pm train with just half an hour to spare. The tower of University College London glowed softpurple against the near complementary ochre sky. Much of the foreground is, in fact, the unpainted ground colour showing through andthere’s also use of scratching out using the brush handle. These lively, uninhibited, urgent sketches are often some of my better works.

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Towel on the Line, oil on board, 10x11in.(25x28cm). This summer afternoon studycomprises a series of geometric shapes all of which lead to the green V-shape at thirds.The sky and background building shapes aresubdued so as not to compete. This subjectcould easily be reduced and abstracted to just that series of shapes.

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Watercolour

42 AUGUST 2016 www.painters-online.co.uk

Follow Paul Hopkinson step by step as you learn to paint layers and add detail in watercolour

Kingfisher

You will needn Surfacel Bockingford 300gsm

NOT paper 111⁄2x81⁄4in.(30x21cm)

n WatercolourSee colours (below)

n Gouachel White

n Watercolour brushesl Nos. 00, 1 and 6l Large wash brush

n Miscellaneousl Paper towell 2 water potsl Ceramic mixing palette l Masking tapel Masking fluidl Mechanical pencill Putty rubber

Step 1 DrawingUsing your preferred method draw the kingfisher. Keep your drawinglighter than the one shown left, whichwas darkened for tutorial purposes.When drawing, remember to place a sheet of paper under your hand toavoid transferring natural oils fromyour hand to the paper. This will act as a resist and may cause problems in the long run when you apply washes of colour.

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Step 2 Masking fluid Add masking fluid to the inside of the drawing to an approximate 1in.width. Masking fluid can very quicklyruin a brush so use an old one, lightlystroked through a damp bar of soapbefore loading. Once finished leave it to dry. Wash out your brushthoroughly afterwards.

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Burntumber

Gambogehue

Vandykebrown

Sapgreen

Yellowochre

Lampblack

Winsororange

Frenchultramarine

Alizarincrimson

Hooker’sgreen

Gouachewhite

Scarletlake

Colours usedt

Your reference photograph for this demonstration

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togr

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AUGUST 2016 43www.painters-online.co.uk

Watercolour

Step 4 1 I always start with the eye

of a bird; this is where the lifeof the portrait lies so gettingthis right at the beginningmakes the painting comealive within the early stages.Using a No. 1 brush wet theeye and drop in a thin wash of French ultramarine in thetop half then Frenchultramarine and ivory blackmix for the lower half. Becareful not to add too muchpaint in one go. Dab yourbrush on kitchen paper oncejust to take off surplus paint.Once dry using the samecolours but a thicker mix anda No. 00 brush, carefully paintthe fine outline to the eyeand strengthen the innercolours.

2 Let it dry again then addthe detail of the eye with yourdark colour. Once this is dry,use a little white gouache toadd the highlight within the eye.

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Step 5 1 Now we need to put down a couple of washes onto the body. Start by mixing a weak wash of French ultramarine with a touch of Hooker’s green and anotherwash of Winsor orange with a small amount of burnt umber.2 Wet the head and back feathers first then drop in the blue-green mix. Let thisdry and do the same with the orange mix for the eye stripe and chest. Let it dry.

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Step 3 The background1 Make up four separate weak washes of gamboge (hue), burnt umber, sap green and Vandyke brown.2 Wet the background of the paper withclean water two or three times; be carefulto avoid the non-masked internal areas ofthe kingfisher. Using a No. 6 brush, begindropping colours onto the wet paper, usingthe lightest colour first. The backgroundwill dry quickly so drop in the colours and leave it to dry. Don’t fiddle!3 Using a ‘shaky hand’ and skipping areas,drop other colours in the gaps whilst

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everything is wet and let them blendtogether by themselves, as the paint will do the work for you.4 Once the paper begins to dry and loses its shine, leave it to dry completely toavoid streaks and blemishes. Leave thepainting for a few hours to dry thoroughly.Do not use a hair dryer; this can cause themasking fluid to harden within the paperand could tear the painting when removed.5 When everything is dry, carefully removethe masking fluid using a clean, dry finger,from the outside in.

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Detail in watercolourmade easyBUILD YOURCONFIDENCEStep-by-stepacrylics with texture mediumsHow to make yourpaintings sparkle

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HOW DO I…Use the splattermethod?

PAINTREFLECTIONSand STILLWATER usingwatercolourtechniques

TRY THIS!Exercises,tips andideas todevelopyour skills

Add texture to your

watercolours with

DAVID BELLAMY

SUMMER’S COMING!

A colourful garden

scene step by step

How to use warm

blues in your work

PASTEL PENCIL

Inspired by wildlife

Paper choices

to transform

your paintings

T H E U K ’ S B E S T - S E L L I N G A R T M A G A Z I N E

TRY PASTEL for

animal studies

Paint water in

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TRY THIS!Great results

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Take on boats,

buildings, water

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Be creative

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Confident watercolour

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COLOUR MIXINGHow to choose anduse the cool bluesin your palette

Draw animals in colour

WATER-MIXABLEOILS Easy-to-follow tips &techniques Step-by-stepJapanese inkpainting

Paint in the gardenwith Pamela Kay

ADD FIGURES TOYOUR LANDSCAPESHow to make allthe right marks!Paint nature using gouacheWORK OUTSIDEWhat to pack &where to goMake the most of photographs

WATER IN THELANDSCAPEin watercolour,acrylics & pastelHow to bringwatercoloursback to life

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AUGUST 2016 £3.99

Summer is here!

Celebrate with colour

T H E U K ’ S B E S T - S E L L I N G A R T M A G A Z I N E

PICTURE PERFECT

Creative ideas for

artists out & about

Paint quickly with

the 3-wash method

Paint acrylic still lifes

STEP-BY-STEP

watercolour

bird in detail

HOW DO I...

use the purples

in my palette?

Draw a tree

in graphite

FLEETING LIGHT

How to capture

summer scenes

Your challenge!

Paint an oil

in 30 minutes

TRY THIS!Colouredpencilflowerproject

LP08 2 Subs_Layout 1 01/07/2016 10:54 Page 1