Grand Canyon-revised

oil on canvas panel 11" by 14". Thought I was done, but needed more atmospheric perspective. Accomplished this with glazing with titanium white, ultramarine blue and dioxazine purple to make background recede further. Too late to fix it anymore; this is it!

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Albums: Workshop9 (2nd Album)

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Comment by Dorian Aronson on May 25, 2012 at 15:51: Hi Stu

You have your own style and maybe here in this beautiful painting you have mastered it. Sit back, relax, and enjoy what you have accomplished.........lots of smiles to you...............dor:)).

Comment by Stuart J. Gourlay on May 25, 2012 at 13:05: Thanks, Richard. Stu

Comment by Richard Robinson on May 25, 2012 at 11:15: Great stuff Stu! Lovely depth to this and more variation than I could poke a stick at. Would love to see it in a good frame.

Comment by Stuart J. Gourlay on May 24, 2012 at 14:52: Li, thanks. I hope you visit the Grand Canyon some day. It is way out in the middle of the Arizona Desert, but it is quite beautiful. I have not been there in the last 25 years but have been there several times. Equally beautiful in different ways are the Yellowstone and Yosemite national parks. Many beautiful places in the USA and nice people. I only posted all those pictures because Ruby wanted to see how I work, and this painting lent itself nicely to painting in different sessions. I am not a "colorist" or really a "tonalist" two of the major movements in American impressionism, but my work is best described as "realist" work. I do use a lot of the techniques of the impressionists and my work is definitely not photorealistic. I paint the way I see things, but I always like to try new things so that I do not get stuck in a groove. I actually had Johannes critique the painting before this last one the "revision" and he is going to use it as an example for his paint along classes. My revision was to do what I said in the comment; this took no more than 15 minutes, but the added atmospheric perspective really changed the look and cooled down the distant canyon walls and accentuated the foreground walls. Thanks for all your supportive comments. Richard is an alla prima painter and he lays in a thin underpainting and then does the rest wet in wet in a single session. I can paint that way and do that when I paint outdoors, but I am not as good at it as I am in painting in multiple layers. The Sunday 6 hour paint alongs with Johannes are all done alla prima (literally "all at once") and after 3 of these sessions, I am getting better at it. So while practice does not necessarily "make perfect" it certainly helps to make easier. Stu

Comment by Ningning Li on May 24, 2012 at 6:45: Oh, I love the comments of Diane and Ann, such nice ladies and I would join them if you keeped on working on it. Stuart, do you have an agreement with Richard to scare us by layers? just a kidding. First I have to thank you for sharing with us your know-how and experiences of creation of this magnificent piece. I am not good enough to comment on your work technicaly, but I can tell you as a viewer how I feel when I stare at it. You did not use loud colour like me to call attention but the strong value contrast and balance amonge them attract my eye and impress me.The same, your colour changes ring are not big but skillfuly handled with harmony,contrast and saduation at proper degree . Therefore, it shows me an alife nature scene formed by billions of years(Dee told me they are billions of years old, I trust her) . I do not want to be attempted to tell you that your foreground is so nce or middleground(or midground?) is so realistic or your perspective did so well, in detail. I just tell you that after I saw this one, I have a strong desire to sing. I found that song , AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL words by Katharine Lee Bates, melody by Samuel Ward. I practised it for one week, down stares up stares, working in the kitchen,in low voice. Even made my husband excited and joined me. "O beautiful for spacious skies, For amber waves of grain, For purple mountain majesties Above the fruited plain! America! America! God shed his grace on thee And crown thy good with brotherhood From sea to shining sea!... Thank you Stuart! and Congradulations for you another beautiful master piece.

Comment by Stuart J. Gourlay on May 23, 2012 at 15:35: Actually, I also got some advice from Johannes; I am not touching it further. Thanks, Ann. Stu

Comment by Ann Turner on May 23, 2012 at 15:19: Looks like you took some of your sound advice. It is very impressive, time to put down your brush and enjoy.