Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Pyk Cottage

Here's another one that goes back a few years that I still quite like. I managed to paint this with  just two colours - my favourite two colours -  raw umber and prussian blue.  I love this colour combination and use it all the time, although I usually augment it with other colours. This was a private commission and the idea here was that this tree house is a bed and breakfast and out in front we have a traveler who may or may not decide to sleep over. At this time I was thinking that I would like to do a travelers guide to the world of Faerie. The best places to stay, like this one. Where to go for the best food. Places to avoid and places that may be haunted. I never did get that idea off the ground but even now as I right about it I think it's something I'd still like to do. Anyway -

I'll have something new for you shortly, but in the mean time I leave you with Pyk Cottage.


Cheers

13 comments:

The Art of Kim Kincaid said...

It amazes me that you are able to achieve so much with two colors. Delightful.

Melissa said...

I may have to try painting in these two colors - I've been trying to beat the candy-coatedness out of my stuff for a while now!

Are there any other color-combos you find effective?

Anonymous said...

Just two colours? Such skill. Amazing!
Just makes you realize that we really don't need a whole library of different colours to paint a great picture!
Prussian blue is one of my all time favorite colours, and raw umber is someting I use religiously!

Larry MacDougall said...

Melissa - This colour combination is my favourite but all you really need is a warm and a cool. Raw umber and Paynes Grey is another good one. What I like so much about Raw Umber and Prussian Blue are the silvery greens that you get.

Larry MacDougall said...

Thanks Kim. I'm following in the foot steps of artists like Arthur Rackham and the early Brian Froud who worked with very limited palettes. What you lose in colour variety you make up for with mood and atmosphere.

Larry MacDougall said...

Thanks AA. You're so right. You can certainly do a lot with a little.

Sam Agro said...

Haven't seen this one before Lar. Very nice. It may be my new favorite.

Larry MacDougall said...

Thanks Sam - Happy New Year :)

Sarah Fogg said...

I'll definitely have to try this in my university projects. I've worked with limited palettes before, but never managed to get this much subtlety from just two colours! Just from the thumbnail I struggled to believe such a green picture was made of (basically) brown and blue, but I think I see how it works in the larger one. I'm blown away by this.

Your comment about atmosphere making up for the lack of variety reminds me of Dulac's phase of mixing blue into everything. (They're some of my favourites.)

Larry MacDougall said...

Good luck Sarah. These two colours seem to work particularly well. You might also want to take a good look at Alan Lee's paintings. He does a lot with a little also - especially his work on The Hobbit.

Unknown said...

Fantastic work! I love the worlds that you create. There's a real authenticity here. Good stuff!

Andrus Raag said...

Yes, raw umber is my favorite colour as well, i dedicated a painting years back to just that colour to show it in all it's various shades.

Cheers!

Unknown said...

Beautiful. Mood and emotion happens almost naturally when dropping out saturation and limiting color. This is a masterful painting. Wow.