Step One
I always work with my reference photo ‘Blu-tacked’ to the easel as a guide. Firstly, I block in the sky and significant areas like foliage and rock. I’m trying to pick up the general tone and weight to create an undercoat and a sense of where I want to go. I’m using very thinned paints, (turps or stand oil and turps 1:3), and throwing colour down very much like a watercolour wash. Like water colours, I lay in light tones, such as Naples Yellow, Burnt Sienna and Yellow Ochre with White, then dark. That may be a thicker paste, but also includes Viridian, Prussian Blue and Van Dyke Brown. I use pointed Taklon brushes to sketch in my rock shadows, and allow drips and runs, as they will allow character if they peek through at the end. What is most important to me, is to not mix too much. I’ll do quick mixes on the palette, but leave streaky paint, and pick up little bits of my colours raw. I let the brush mix them on the canvas, only tickling the edges to meld tones where absolutely necessary.
I want a warm autumnal feel here, so I’m pushing a lot of Naples Yellow and Yellow Ochre into the sky, with Magenta and Prussian dark tones, tickling them together and laying a Whiter mix for the cloud peaks. I stick to
