Paint betterpastels

JUNE 2016 £3.99

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

Detail in watercolourmade easy

BUILD YOURCONFIDENCEStep-by-stepacrylics with texture mediums

How to make yourpaintings sparkle

Choose the rightpaper to enhanceyour work

YOUR CHALLENGE How to producethree paintingsfrom one photo

770024 0711579

06>

HOW DO I…Use the splattermethod?

PAINTREFLECTIONSand STILL

WATER usingwatercolourtechniques

TRY THIS!Exercises,tips andideas todevelopyour skills

LP06 1 Cover_3.99_Layout 1 08/04/2016 16:05 Page 1

4 JUNE 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

23 All about paperPart 2 Tony Paul discusses four top-quality watercolour papers byHahnemühle and explains what they can do for your work

27 Accurate renditionsFrom tips on photographing yoursubject to adding the final detail, Sarah Jane Humphrey takes you through the stages of painting abotanical subject

31 Summer at lastFollow Graham Cox as he captures a tree in the landscape step by step using pastels

34 Water in the landscapePart 2 Carole Massey discusses thematerials and techniques she uses topaint still water and reflections

36 Understanding colourPart 6 How to make the most of coolreds in your paintings, and how to mixand choose the right reds for you, with Tony Paul

40 Product reportBecky Samuelson puts a set of Jackson’sStudio synthetic watercolour brushesthrough its paces

56 Art clubsNews, profiles, exhibition listingsand ‘best in show’ gallery

65 Books Some of the best practical artbooks are reviewed

66 Online galleryJane Stroud choses twopaintings from PaintersOnline

FEATURES12 The spring landscape

Join Christine Pybus as she paintsa variety of landscapes thatcapture fleeting spring light

16 Painting projectPart 2 Tony Underhill takes youthrough three approaches topainting from one photograph

20 Painting projectPart 1 Bob Elcock introduces you to this month’s project: awhite tiger

ContentsJUNE 2016

34

12

On the coverGraham Cox Summer at Last, pastel,81⁄4x91⁄2in. (21x24cm). Follow Grahamstep by step as he paints a tree in a summer landscape on pages 31 to 33

54

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www.painters-online.co.uk

43 Free and easy watercolourDevelop your splattering technique as you paint a bluebellwood in watercolour with Ian Pethers

46 Three steps to successPart 3 Anne Kerr discusses the difference between warm and cool colours and how to use them in the landscape

51 Movement and textureTony Hogan demonstrates how to use gesso primer andmodelling paste to create impasto effects with acrylics

54 What shall I paint?June Try different media, ideas and effects to paint detailsand the wider picture, with Linda Birch this month

JUNE 2016 5

David Bellamy Moody Day, Abereiddi, collage and watercolour,6x11in. (15x28cm)

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Gwen Scott Tulips at HidcoteGarden, watercolour, 131⁄2x10in.(31.5x25.5cm)

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ON SALE 20 MAY

n Try textural collagetechniques usingoriental papers with David Bellamy

n Step-by-step gardenscene in watercolour

n Water and reflectionsusing water-solublemedia

n Understanding colour:how to mix and usewarm blues in yourpalette

n Step-by-step estuaryscene in watercolour

n How to paint fromphotographs

n Arnold Lowrey’ssecrets of success:flowers in watercolour

n Tips and techniques to paint with pastelpencils

n Tested! Reports onwatercolour paperand new brushmarkers

LEISURE PAINTER ON-SALE DATESIssue On saleJuly 20 MaySummer 17 JuneAugust 15 JulySeptember 12 AugustOctober 9 SeptemberNovember 7 October

NEWS, WORKSHOPS & OFFERS11 Receive a free set of Sennelier watercolours, worth

£29.95, when you take advantage of a Direct Debitsubscription offer to Leisure Painter this month

48 The latest news from Patchings Art, Craft & Photography Festival in June

50 Win paper from Canson worth £55, plus how to make a subscription to Leisure Painter’s digital issues

67 Master stormy skies in pastel with Les Darlowon a Leisure Painter workshop in Lancashire this July

Coming next monthLandscapes, water, boats, flowers, gardens and wildlife are all covered in the July issue.

Enjoy your summer of painting!

16

46

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0711

57

02

Paint from

photographs with

Terry Harrison

FEBRUARY 2016 £3.99

Be more creative

with composition

WATERCOLOUR

Colour mixing

ideas for flowers

and seascapes

Back to basics

with perspective

How to paint your

best outdoors

OILS MADE EASY

Have fun with oils

and mixed media

Problem solved!

How to blend and

correct pastels

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

24-page art courses& holidaysguide 2016

Inspirational

FREE

STEP-BY-STEP PROJECTS for you to try

this month

20 TOP TIPS to

boost your skills

& confidenceHow are

modern media

made today?

TESTED!Watercolour

and the latestacrylics

Paint betterpastels

JUNE 2016 £3.99

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

Detail in watercolour

made easy

BUILD YOUR

CONFIDENCE

Step-by-stepacrylics with

texture mediums

How to make your

paintings sparkle

Choose the right

paper to enhance

your work

YOUR CHALLENGE

How to produce

three paintings

from one photo

770024 0711579

06>

HOW DO I…Use the splatt

er

method?PAINT

REFLECTIONSand STILLWATER using

watercolourtechniques

TRY THIS!Exercises,tips andideas todevelopyour skills

Order online at www.painters-online.co.uk/store and enter code LP0616Call 01580 763315 and quote code LP0616

This is a direct debit offer only. For other offers visit our website. Offer ends 30 June 2016. Gift will be posted out within 28 days of receipt of order.

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Take up this offer and enjoyl 13 issues for only £37 by annual Direct Debit

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Try pen & wash with Anthony Nield

HOW DO I…Add depth to my landscapes?STEP UP THE HEATPaint a sunset in watercolourBUILD YOURPASTEL SKILLSBackgrounds for portraits

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

Paint animals,clouds, flowersand more!

Creative ideas to fillyour sketchbook

MARCH 2016 £3.99

DAVID BELLAMYHow to paintsuccessfulwatercolours

How to mix anduse cool yellows

STEP-BY-STEP LANDSCAPES in watercolour, oils and acrylics

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How to paint

simple landscapes

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

EXPLORE� Spray paints

and acrylics

� Working on

tinted paper

� Simplifyingthe details

APRIL 2016 £3.99

WHAT’S INSIDE

PAMELA KAY’S

SKETCHBOOKS?

STEP-BY-STEP

spring blossom

FROM LIFE OR

PHOTOGRAPHS

How to keep

your paintings

fresh

Build confidence

with pen & wash

HOW DO I PAINT…

the effects of

light and heat?

Develop your

colour-mixing

skills

How to draw

an owl froma photograph

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Use red to bringdrama to your work

MAY 2016 £3.99

PAMELA KAYPAINTS SKIES INWATERCOLOUR

How to paint waterin watercolour

NEW SERIESMake the bestpaper choices for youHOW DO I...Glaze acryliclandscapes? PAINT VENICE and build yourmixed-media skills

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

How toadd lightto yourlandscapes

3 APPROACHES to painting from one photograph Draw & paintspringsubjects

BEGINNERS Quick ways with oils

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Paint along with LP

Your subjectEverything about this tiger appeals to me: the blue eyes, the subtle lightchanges across the face, and the almostethereal grasses around its body. Thiswill be a real challenge; it will be veryeasy to make the picture muddy sodelicacy at all stages will be important.As usual, I will be using my favourite

Cretacolor Fine Art Pastel Pencils on aDaler-Rowney Ingres mountboard in thecolour sea breeze. This board is perfectfor pastel pencils and usually found atyour local picture framers, but Daler-Rowney Murano Ingres paper is goodalso and this can be purchased at anyart supplies shop.

Sizing the subjectWe will start as usual with a drawingusing zinc white pastel pencil and thetried-and-trusted grid method, whichshould give you an accurate start to the picture.This photograph is approximately

8x8in. (20.5x20.5cm) so I will attach a1in. acetate grid to the picture and drawa grid on my board 11⁄4in. each square,making my picture a quarter as largeagain as the photograph. Use the sameformula to enlarge your painting to yourpreferred size. If you decide you wouldlike to keep the picture the same sizeyou should draw a 1in. grid on yourboard or paper using the zinc white

pastel pencil.The whole of the tiger

has now been drawn (below right). I altered thephotograph to black andwhite (above right) to showthe drawing in more detail.The stripes are shown and I have used a single linethrough the middle of thestripe to avoid cluttering the drawing too much. It isuseful to note the tiger’s headis turned very slightly to theleft of the picture. LP

What I find particularlyinteresting about this tiger(below) is that it lives in

South Africa at an extraordinary tigersanctuary in a place called TigerCanyons. The conservationist andfilmmaker, John Varty, who has apassion for big cats, established anAfrican sanctuary for them at TigerCanyons, which is outside the littleKaroo town of Philippolis in the Free State. I would give so much to be able

to visit this place, but will have to make do with reading about it instead – and painting one of its amazinginhabitants.

20 JUNE 2016 www.painters-online.co.uk

Part 1 Bob Elcock introduces a portrait of a white tiger as this month’s painting project from a photograph and helps you to prepare for painting it

Painting project

You will needn Surfacel Daler-Rowney Ingresmountboard, sea breezeNo. 15213, 101⁄4x10in.(26x25.5cm)

n Cretacolor Fine Art Pastel Pencils

l Zinc white 102l Black 250l Van Dyke brown 220l Sanguine light 207l Blue grey 237l Light grey 230l Glacier blue 151l Dark grey 235l Old rose dark 136

This month’s subject from a photograph: a white tigert

Prin

ted

cour

tesy

of G

etty

Imag

es

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Bob ElcockMeet Bob at Patchings Art, Craft & Photography Festival in June (see pages 48 and 49 for details), where you will also be able to seehis finished portrait of this project. See right for details of Cretacolor.

The finished drawing, ready for colour next montht

Clip the acetate grid to the photograph to stop it moving whendrawing. At this stage, I am concentrating on the tiger only.

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www.elcockpastelpencils.com

0 1 9 0 2 3 3 9 1 6 0

Order your set today from

or telephone

Pastel Pencil Sets List Price Bob’s PriceCR-470-12 12 x Assorted £17.95 £12.95CR-470-24 24 x Assorted £34.95 £25.99CR-470-36 36 x Assorted £49.95 £39.99CR-470-72 72 x Assorted £99.95 £79.99

Bob Elcock, professionalpastel pencil artist

“ Having worked with many differentbrands of pencil, in my opinion these are

the best pastel pencils on the market ”

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Mixed media

The inspiration for the botanicalillustration, Hydrangea (right), came from a lovely late summer

walk around one of the National Trust Estate Gardens in Cornwall. Thereason to visit this garden was to takephotographs of its collection ofhydrangeas and I was fortunate to haveprofessional photographer, Tom Benn,with me. Tom taught me how to usenatural backlighting when photographingflowers and plants for my referencematerial (see page 28). Natural sunlight behind the subject

creates a delicate glow and transparencythrough the flowers or foliage. It is also a powerful way to separate the subjectmatter from the background, whichmakes the reproduction of the artwork so much easier back in the studio. Byisolating the plant, it becomes far quickerto make the initial line drawing, withoutlots of foliage and potentially other plants confusing the final illustration.I always like to work from a

combination of photographs and life

From tips on photographing your subject to adding the final touches, here’s how to illustrate a true likeness in mixed media

by botanical illustrator, Sarah Jane Humphrey

Accurate renditions

You will needn Surfacel Hot-pressed 300gsmwatercolour paper (Arches and Fabriano are both good)22x15in. (56x38cm)

n Gouache or watercolourl Cadmium yellowl Sap greenl Indanthrene bluel Payne’s greyl Permanent whitel Burnt umberl Quinacridone magenta

n Tombow Irojiten coloured pencils

l Maroon, chestnut brown, lapislazuli, verd’gris, olive yellow,maple sugar, moss green,lettuce green, chartreus green, cactus green

n Miscellaneousl Round brushes, Nos. 0 and 6 l SLR camera to takephotographs or a high-qualitysmartphone

l Low-tack masking tapel Lightbox

The finished illustration Hydrangea, mixed media, 22x15in. (56x38cm)t

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Mixed media

28 JUNE 2016 www.painters-online.co.uk

where possible, although it’s not alwayseasy to find my chosen specimen inbloom or with suitable foliage. Whenthis is the case, I refer to reference books and research online.

Your subjectFor this botanical illustration, thephotograph (above) was my mainreference since the chosen flower was growing in a private estate and I was unable to take a cutting. I chose to illustrate this specimen, as it is a stunning example of a lace capmacrophylla. With so many diversetextures and colours, it makes a trulywonderful study. Whether you choose a perfect

specimen to illustrate or one with slightdefects is up to you. I love the wayleaves and petals deteriorate and changecolour, and these effects add moreinteresting marks and character to thefinished artwork. It also is welcomedparticularly if you have a larger numberof leaves and petals to focus on.

Reference materialsWhen a photograph is the main pointof reference, I either work from imagesthat I have uploaded onto mycomputer and draw straight from thescreen, or I work from a print of thephotograph. Most printers will enlargeyour photos to the desired size. I likemy photographs enlarged to the exactproportions of my final artwork. It makes measuring and transferringvarious points of the subject a lotquicker without having to worry aboutrescaling the image. To save time I use a lightbox for

almost all of my illustrations. It’s anabsolute asset to have in the studio,giving me an accurate start to the initialline drawings from which I work.

Using a lightboxIf you are fortunate enough to have a lightbox or want to give it a try, thisis how I use mine. 1 Print the reference photograph to the size of your finished artwork.

2 Lay the print on top of the lightbox. I usually use a low-tack masking tapeto hold both the print and drawingpaper in place. If you don’t have yourdrawing paper held securely in place,it tends to slide around and it’s thenhard to get the image drawnaccurately. 3 Place your paper on top of the print,turn on the lightbox and the imageshould be clearly visible.

Line drawingBefore you begin tracing, you need a sharp neutral-coloured pencil that is fairly pale in colour. I use a colouredpencil rather than regular graphite, asit’s far easier to blend the colours andit will certainly achieve a cleaner result.At the tracing stage, I don’t go intoevery detail, as it is far too time-consuming. I will include all theoutlines of my subject, in the case of the leaves, all the prominent veinsand perhaps the details of the stemsconnecting to the stalks.I find this is a useful way to create

clear points of reference on thedrawing when you begin filling in the tone and details.

Underpainting1 Once the line drawing is complete,transfer it to your drawing board and you’re ready to begin theunderpainting. For this, I use gouacheas I prefer the opacity, but watercolourwill also work with this technique.Carefully study the paler colours on the photograph and observe the tone.For this leaf, other than the areas ofshine, the lightest colours are limegreen. 2 Lay down a fairly translucent lime

Step 1 Be cautious in keeping exactlywithin the lines you have drawn and coverthe whole illustration gently with the wash,taking care to observe all the lightest colours.My preference is to mix my own colours; Iused here cadmium yellow and sap greenwith a touch of titanium white.

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By carefully pulling your chosen flower away from the main plant, you can takea good photograph of your subject in isolation without any need to take cuttings.

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