Contrast and Consistency

“Mt. Shasta Afternoon”

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Contrast and Consistency
Atmospheric Perspective

As summer days lengthen, we have many hot days and warm nights at The Grand View Ranch in Mt Shasta, and my focus turns to the stunning effects of light on the mountain. Mt Shasta is one of the seven most spiritual places in the world, and her volcanic peak can be seen hundreds of miles away in many directions in Northern California. Every year, thousands of people and artists visit Mt Shasta to heal, be inspired, to camp, and to paint.

Just painting her majestic slops and grand cliffs is difficult for any artist, but capturing the effect of sun light on the mountain that creates a sense of the time of day is almost an over-whelming challenge. By using a few artistic principles such as color mixing to make warm, bright light to contrast with cool, dark shadows, and including Atmospheric Perspective (that results when the moisture and particulate matter in the atmosphere makes distant objects look softer, cooler, and lighter), success can be just a painting away!

In this painting, Mt. Shasta Afternoon, I wanted to create the late afternoon light just as the sun disappears on the horizon. Because light changes quickly, I took several minutes to memorize the scene so that I could remember where the areas of light and dark, warm and cool, and the brightest focal points are located. Then I quickly painted in the basic shapes and values with contrasting light and dark areas.

To create a sense of warm light on the mountain, I painted the areas illuminated by sunlight with warmer colors and lighter tonal values. Using warm colors like yellow and red gives the effect of warmth to any painting, and by lightening up the value by adding white to the yellow or red, the effect of light will appear even brighter. I made the effect to be even greater in the center of the painting (the central focal point) by emphasizing the middle rock in the foreground. I did this by making the contrast even stronger and warmer by applying almost pure white with a little yellow added in to paint the atmosphere silhouetting the rock.

Next, I wanted to add even more contrast in the foreground by using darkened values of brown, green, and cooler colors for a more dramatic statement against the lighted areas. Notice how the warm light comes from the upper left and is consistent on the background hillsides and the mid- ground trees. The areas that are not in light are cooler, darker, and less intense.
If you want to create a strong sense of the time of day in your painting, be consistent with your treatment of the contrast between the light and shadow areas throughout your painting. In addition, by contrasting the foreground areas (with their sharp detail, strong value, and temperature differences) with the distant objects (that have less detail, cooler colors, and softer contrast,) you can successfully intensify the sense of depth and realism in your landscape paintings.

If you are interested in experiencing a breakthrough weekend that will take your art to the next level, visit our new website at http://www.thegrandview.com You can download my FREE BOOK where I share “Everything I know About Painting.” At my website

I hope that we can build a community of artists that can share information with each other.If you know of any artists that might appreciate being included, let them know about this blog.
I hope to offer more painting tips as this conversation continues.

If you have questions that you can email me anytime Stefan_Baumann@yahoo.com, please don’t hesitate to email me anytime. I welcome your feedback

Taking Your Art to the Next Level

“Last of the Rhododendron Bloom”

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Working and maintaining a ranch is time consuming and hard work. While we are doing our daily chores, I see hundreds of ideas for paintings like the wildflowers that call to me wanting to be painted, along with those commissions that are due to collectors. I often have to just stop and take note of the fantastic abundance that we have at The Grand View Ranch. Today was the last of the Rhododendron bloom, and with this in mind, I put aside the tasks at the ranch to paint these magnificent blossoms.

For some people, art has been a part of their life since an early age and these artists are lucky, because for them, art is a way of life. Many people gravitate toward becoming an artist later in their lives because they are looking for an activity to bring relaxation and meaning into their hectic lives. Others are looking for something to do during retirement. Most people become artists because they enjoy the creative freedom to paint what inspires them, and find that they are encouraged to express their deepest ideas, visions, and desires as well. Some artists want to create something from their own experience to share with others, with their family, and with the world. They may have a moment when they see an amazing, morning sunrise and say, “Look at that! It’s beautiful. I wish someone could see how breathtaking it is.” And, if they take their time to paint what they see and feel, and share it with others, they discover the magical ingredient that compels artists to create art- the connection of sharing one’s self with others - which becomes the power that can take your art to the next level.

I painted this painting of the rhododendrons for you because I wanted to share the moment when I discovered these beautiful and delicately colored flowers as they gave their best in the last days of their blooming season.

If you wish to accomplish anything extraordinary in art, you must do everything necessary to paint effectively by including some simple elements such as a central focal point, subtle values, and accurate drawing in the painting. In order to be successful, you must grab the viewer’s attention and be able to hold it. An artist is like a great conductor or director who knows how to focus the attention of his or her audience on the art at hand. Contrasting light and dark colors, the artist captures the viewers’ eyes and leads them around the canvas from hard to soft edges, from detailed to loose brushstrokes, and with the addition of counter-balanced values, gives the finale that wows them with a crescendo of light. Creating great art is no accident; it is as deliberate as an Agatha Christie mystery novel. It takes knowledge, hard work, concentration, and dedication to create a masterpiece that looks free and feels expressive. When choosing your subject, let the subject come from within you and let your painting be a simple act of sharing. It does not have to be complicated or heroic, or have some great meaning or message. Great art touches us deeply in a way we cannot forget.

If you are interested in experiencing a breakthrough weekend that will take your art to the next level, visit our new website at http://www.thegrandview.com/,You can download my FREE BOOK where I share “Everything I know About Painting.” At my website

I hope that we can build a community of artists that can share information with each other.If you know of any artists that might appreciate being included, let them know about this blog.

I hope to offer more painting tips as this conversation continues.

If you have questions that you can email me anytime Stefan_Baumann@yahoo.com, please don’t hesitate to email me anytime. I welcome your feedback