Lake Våmb

På Svenska

This exercise is from a watercolor course I conducted in 1998. The image was photographed on slide film and then digitized. I mention this to excuse the questionable image quality. I painted the picture using Burnt Sienna (W&N), Phthalo Blue, and Raw Sienna. Because the Burnt Sienna from W&N is distinctly orange, the mix with Phthalo Blue clearly results in a green hue. The Raw Sienna is used when I need a greener mixture than what Burnt Sienna and Phthalo Blue can provide.

You can choose other colors; the picture can be painted with any combination of colors. However, it’s best to select colors that do not granulate and that blend into rather muted tones. The image should have a gray, subdued atmosphere, not a bright and sunny one.

Step 1

Start with the background of the painting, that is, the sky. Only paint down to the water’s surface of the lake, leaving the lake itself unpainted for now. Mix a light gray color; mine turned out rather greenish because I mixed Burnt Sienna with Phthalo Blue. I don’t mind the greenish tint in the landscape’s gray colors; I actually find it quite nice.

Once the sky is dry, paint the distant shores. Begin with the lightest parts, which are furthest away. Paint these down to the water’s edge, and once they are dry, use the same color to paint the next layer, which will appear darker because the same color is being applied over a dry layer.

Also, apply the same gray color over the largest bush in the foreground. Finally, the darkest shore on the right side of the painting should be painted. For this, you’ll need to make a slightly darker mixture using the same colors you used earlier.

Step 2

Start by painting the lake, using the same color you used for the sky. The water should be very light. Let the lake dry before continuing.

According to the principle of working from the back to the front, the plants are next. I still only used Burnt Sienna and Phthalo Blue (which can turn dark green when mixed). Here’s what I did: I mixed two greenish colors, one very dark and one even darker. Then, I painted one of the bushes with the first color and immediately, while the paint was still wet, dabbed the very dark color at the bottom of the bush so that the color spreads upward, becoming somewhat lighter towards the top of the bush. Use a small brush for this, as a large one will result in too much paint.

Also, paint the two (or three) posts that might be remnants of a dock or a setup for net fishing in the water on the right side.

The dark green color you use for the bushes should not be too green. It should be very dark with a hint towards green. I mixed Burnt Sienna and Phthalo Blue for this, which gives a sufficiently greenish color.

Keep in mind that there is grass growing in front of the bushes, so make sure that each bush is painted a little “jagged” at the bottom to represent the grass blades.

Step 3

Now, only a bit of grass in the foreground remains to be painted. I used a few different colors and let them blend on the paper. The base consists of blue paint plus Raw Sienna, but Burnt Sienna is also used. Try to follow the slope of the ground so that the brushstrokes create the impression of a gentle hill, with the highest point at the large bushes.