On Solid Ground

Well, the last section that worried me a lot is done. The river which was roughed in for so long finally got detailed and finished and I've finally reached the point where I don't need the scaffolding to reach what I need to paint. I was lucky enough to be able to work short days this past week and so paint every day. That enabled me to work out how to do the water of the river, thru trial and error. I studied my reference and realized how complicated water can be to paint. The reflections have several layers and getting them in order is important if you want realistic water. The first part was already done...the graduation in tone. Opposite of the sky's graduation from dark at the top to light at the horizon- the water is lightest at the top (furthest distance) and grows darker as it nears the viewer. Thank goodness I over mixed the sky colors and had extra when I roughed in the blue. I'm also glad I did it quite awhile ago and the base was nice and dry. It was easier to wipe my mistakes off without disturbing the base color. In studying the references, I realized the next reflection I needed to add was of the clouds in the sky, although muted in value and blurred. Once those were done, over that went the reflection of the islands and shorelines of the peninsulas. Only after those were in could I finally start adding ripples. Ripples were varied as well, depending on how far away they were and what part of a reflection they landed in. Overall, I'd have to say this week has been quite an education for me!

Then came the weekend....I was determined to be able to get off the scaffolding and paint from the floor, which meant finishing up the rock cliff down to that point. Here is a closeup of the water and cliff.

I am happy to say I can see the end in sight; at least the end of the mural!