Textures in painting

Textures

Surfaces do make a difference to the end result of your painting. As you discover your preferences and style, you'll find that certain surfaces are easier to make those expressions than others. Light bounces to a certain degree with pastels applied to a heavier textured surface. The pastel sticks to the ridges and the colors in the valleys typically don't receive the pastel. This causes a unique blending of colors and luminosity that pastels are known for. This affect can also be accomplished with dry brushing on an oil or acrylic textured surface. 

Ariel Perspective 

Ariel Perspective in distant landscapes are usually hazy, muted or weak colors with soft edges. Blue or purple are largely dominant. In the cascades this is very apparent. The distant mountains take on a lighter blue-green color and the feeling is misty with soft edges. Many artist explain this atmospheric phenomenon as Ariel perspective. Depending where you live, your atmosphere can be heavy with moisture or dry like the desert. 

Using a light surface which may have a moderate amount of texture can help with the feeling of Ariel perspective. Some rubbing in of color and creating soft edges with a small amount of scumbling on those edges can cause the light of the colors to shimmer and recede further back in the painting. There is no formula for this, but experience will help to portray your vision. 

Mark Making

The suggestion of movement is made by the marks or strokes you place on your canvas or paper. This mark making is your unique style. As you learn more about the business of painting your marks become a reflection of expression of your feelings on the subject at hand. Copying other artists has always been how one learns to make art. You tend to gravitate to artist works that you love. As you are learning how to make the effects of light on the subject you develop your own style. This is based on how you learn. Every one of us learns at different speeds and how we interpret what we see. We also learn in different styles. Most of us learn by watching, reading and doing. During this learning process we eventually start making marks that are distinctive to us. Ask yourself as you are learning; How did that artist do that? Copying the artists is how we figure these things out. Guidelines are what the masters are teaching us. Take the lesson and experiment on your own subjects daily. Little by little you will take something new away from the study to apply to your work. 

Lines that are thin suggest softness, while thicker lines in a drawing suggest movement and energy. Your brushstrokes will suggest the same thing. Just like thin and thick paint direct the eye through the painting you will learn to do the same. Your visions are unique to you. We all see things different. We can call it an orange but to each of us it is slightly different. Some will see this in light with blues on the surface and some with yellows and even some will see it with the textures as dominant. 

If you have a subject you want to explore, paint it multiple ways. Use different color schemes, different textures, different strokes of painting. Emphasize different parts of the painting, ask yourself where are my main lines of this design leading the eye? Are my values reading right? Am I excited about this subject? There will be times when a failed painting is revisited and letting loose to paint with your arm and not draw the subject help you with expression.  Don't be afraid to ask yourself "What if?

Del Puerto Canyon #1 Private Collection

This painting was exactly that. I had tried several time to get this painting to work. I was so frustrated that I reverted to pointillism. I don't know why, I just wanted to fix it. This painting won a second place at the Gallo Spring Show in my home town. As I worked on this piece it became more interesting to place the marks. Perseverance is key to success, keep trying.