Did you Nail the Darks in Your Painting?- Painting & Drawing Tips

Are you busy preparing your flower garden for the summer?

Thinking about shade and sunlight; perennials and annuals; blues or reds; levels of upkeep; length of bloom.  So much to consider.  

ROCKY ROAD IN THE CREEK BED - WIP - layout drawing with study 

I must admit, some years I get so caught up in the choices I end up with a hodge-podge. Each plant on its own looks great, but when I stand back. . .  Well let's just say it is a mass of colour but no real focal point.   Or there is a focal point, but it is lost in the mix.  

I know all about that, loosing a Focal Point is easy to do!!

How do you lose a Focal Point?  Yes, it is possible.  A Focal Point, is the highest contrasting area.  A place where your lightest light meets your darkest dark.  On a Value Scale that would be your Darkest Dark, a 10 meets your Lightest Light, a 1.  

You would think that working with black permenant ink, like I do, that setting up a strong Focal Point would be easy.  But it's not.

Drawing the layout for Rocky Road in the Creek Bed with my pen, means there is lots of sharp contrast, black lines with white paper. Each time my pen touches the paper, it seems soooooo dark. When I do a bit of cross hatching or restate a line, it is reallllllly dark.  It's like OMG! I think I over did in that spot. I really have to steal myself to not react that way.    

Close Up of  Drawing Layout - Lots of really sharp darks in this area 

Take for example this close up area in my layout Drawing of Rocky Road in the Creek Bed.  It looks quite dark when working/looking at it.  However, when you stand back and look at the whole picture that is not the case.  It settles into the picture and really doesn't draw the eye too much.  Which is a good thing.  That wasn't suppose to be my focal point, just an interesting place in the picture.  (Side note, still it is darker than it should be but I don't panic.  I know with my watercolour I can settle it in.)

So stand back . . . .   

Look at your painting. . . .  

Does the Focal Point catch your eye. . .

Or does it blend in? . . .   Is it lost??

If it's lost, don't despair.  There are ways to deal with it.  If you are dealing with pencil or pen, like I often am, you can go in and darken an area and lighten another.  If you are dealing with colour consider the value of the colours you used.  Looking at this chart you can see that some colours (hues) have darker values than others. So chose a different hue.  Or note that changing the tone can change the value.  Another option. 

Notice how colours have a value in a similar manner as the grayscale on the left

Another way to bring your Focal Point back into view is to look at the Visual Complements of a colour.  This is different from the regular complements of a colour that we usually talk about.  I find this a very interesting phenomena and certainly useful.   Take for example the Yellow on the chart.  You know that purple is its complement and will gray it down.  But look how the Cobalt Blue really pops it on the chart below.  

Visual Complements that will make your Focal Point Pop 

Not confident that your Focal Point is there?  Take a picture of your piece and change it to grayscales in a photo editing program. It is often easier to see when colour is not in the mix.  These tools are useful in your tool kit to make the fix you want. 

For more information see:

Values and Colour in Action 

Getting Values Working for You 

Wendy is on Youtube:
Wendy has FREE Tips & Techniques on Video now, many with supporting blog posts and FREE download PDF's.  

See a full linked listing here - artbywendy.com - workshop - Videos by Wendy

OUTDOOR SKETCHING SEASON  is HERE!!

Next Sessions:  Saturday, May 22 (Forecast Sunny & 20°) 

Wednesday, May 26
10am - 12:30pm 

Upcoming Dates: Wednesday  June 2 & June 9
Saturday, May 22,  June 5 & June 12 

Twice a week, Wednesday and Saturday mornings, I will take small groups out for Outdoor Sketching.  Get Tips and Techniques for Sketching in Nature.  Beginners to Advanced Welcome. Max. 3 per class. (Other times available upon request) 

Mediums supported: pencil, pen, watercolour, watercolour pencils and coloured pencils 

Location: Parks in North Surrey and Langley

Cost: $50 per session

Supplies: Bring your own supplies, don't hesitate to contact me about your supplies

Rainy Days: Not fun to plein air in the rain.  You can defer to another available day or join me in my studio and work with me. (when Covid rules allow small inside gatherings) 

Contact Wendy to Book Your Spot!! 

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Many find this post helpful: Turn your Inner Critic into your BFF

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Have a great Artful Day,

Wendy