Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Visiting Northern England: Landscape Painting #3

I painted in the lines of this landscape Sunday night and then forgot to photograph it before I started blocking it in; I remembered soon after.

As you can see I started with a deep green.

And then worked in an even deeper shade of purple for the darkest shadows.

This is when the fun started! I began squinting my eyes to see the major shapes which then helped me know where to place the blocks of colors.

The light cream colored trees and their branches added the needed contrast to the deeper shades of green. This color also ties in well with the fencing, path and rocks.

And then it was time to start adding texture, detail and light. The palette knife, once again, became very useful as I applied thicker paint.

Beckoning
10x8", Oil on canvas
Rita Salazar Dickerson

It was another gorgeous day in North Yorkshire. We had just climbed up to Guise Cliff where we were rewarded with a beautiful view of the valley. (At the top it is enjoyable to sit on the bench and overlook the villages, Glasshouses and Pateley Bridge.)

I was fortunate to be hiking with someone who knew this area well; our new found friend and guide, Ken, suggested a less common way down and I eagerly agreed to the adventure. I wanted to experience as much of this area as possible - so why go down the same way we hiked up? As we passed sheep in pastures and crossed through stiles, we came upon a gate which led down a grassy hill. We climbed over this gate and headed down. I paused when we reached the bottom; the entry into this wooded area was beguiling  to me. This path seemed as though it was beckoning me forward. It was cool and quiet. As we walked, the ground crunched with thin layers of ice on the wooded floor. My walking stick became very useful at this point and kept me from slipping. Bits of light filtered in and at that moment I felt so blessed to be there experiencing this precious part of England on a cold February day.

P.S. I was always amazed at how green everything was during the winter months in North Yorkshire. Many of the trees dropped their leaves and yet there were others that held theirs. This added charm to an already charming place.

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