Virke – a watercolor exercise

This painting is from Virke, a small village which is centrally located in the western part of Skåne. About 60 people live in Virke, making it a very small village, but with a magnificent church from the 19th century, built on the site of an original church from the 12th century.

The painting is made using the following colors:
- French Ultramarine. Cobalt Blue can also work, though it will result in a significantly lighter outcome.
- Burnt Sienna. If you don’t own it, buy it—it is the most important brown color.
- Quinacridone Rose. Most cool red shades should work, but avoid any unclear (blackish) colors.
- Nickel Dioxin Yellow. This color is no longer produced, but any warm yellow will do.
Step 1

Start by painting the sky using Burnt Sienna and French Ultramarine. Mix them separately in two different mixing cups, making both mixtures quite light and gray—one slightly bluish and the other slightly brownish. Apply generous amounts of paint to avoid blooms and stains. Use the different mixtures alternately—some blue-gray, then some brownish—so that the sky doesn’t end up flat and dull. You can also use clean water to create lighter areas, but remember that the entire surface must remain wet at all times. The further down towards the horizon you paint, the more water you should add to the mix, making the sky slightly lighter at the bottom.
Once the sky is finished, you should paint the snow on the ground. You might still have a light blue-gray color from before; otherwise, mix a new one using blue and brown. Apply brushstrokes that follow the direction of the wheel tracks in the snow. Don’t cover the entire surface with paint—leave some unpainted areas here and there to make the direction of the tracks more distinct.
Take the opportunity to add some darker color next to and underneath the houses on the right side of the image while the paper is still wet. This way, the paint will spread nicely.
Step 2

Now it’s time to paint the trees in the background. To avoid overly sharp contours on the treetops, it is advisable to Dry brush them. This means applying just a little paint to the brush and “rubbing” it onto the paper with a strongly tilted brush. (Read more about “Dry brush.”) Use colors that vary between brown and blue—sometimes mixed to create gray, but also separately. If all the trees are gray, they might end up looking a bit dull.
Once the trees have dried, you can paint the church with a light gray color mix. Leave the roof unpainted and save some details here and there, such as the sides of the stepped gable and some of the windows. When the church has dried, you can paint the trees in front of it, as well as the low hedges and the church’s black roof.
The color of the red-painted houses on the right side of the painting can be tricky to mix. I used Ultramarine, Burnt Sienna, and a cool red. You need all three to achieve the right shade—brown and red to create the correct tone, and blue to darken it. Apply the paint generously to the gables and facades, as it can otherwise be difficult to achieve a deep color that doesn’t look flat and dull. Leave out the poles and snow in front of the red houses, as well as all the windows.
In addition to the red houses, there are two with different colors: the one in the back is slightly grayish, and in front of it, there is one with red-painted wood on the upper facade—though I chose to omit this to avoid too much red in the painting. When painting the houses, be sure to leave out any objects in front of them—not just poles but also small details like grass and the tops of little piles of debris. Before the house facades dry, you can add a very dark shadow to make them slightly darker just under the roofs.
Step 3

Now it’s time to paint the streetlights and all the small details. Use a dark, slightly brownish color for the poles. Don’t paint too precisely—a slightly rough look works well. If you can leave some unpainted snow specks here and there, that’s a plus.
Paint the windows on the church with a dark color. Some small objects in front of the church can also be painted now. Also, add all the bushes, grass tufts, and other small elements on the left side of the road. Emphasize the snowbanks and wheel tracks on the road if necessary.
The traffic sign should be painted using yellow and red—you will likely need to mix these colors to get the right shade for the sign.