Turquoise Door

This turquoise arched door makes a cheerful statement framed with fuchsia flowers. One of several memorable, charming, and historic homes in Turckheim, France. It was a cloudy misty day yet the colors were remarkable. I strolled the cobblestone streets photographing vignettes like this to paint once back in my studio. I began with a sketch on paper, repositioning, and adjusting scale of shapes within the scene to enhance the composition. Next, I brush on a diluted, warm value wash onto my panel indicating shapes within the scene. Value and color are applied with dark areas in thin paint first, layering up to lightest with slightly thicker paint. My final step is like adding frosting on a cake, placing juicy thicker paint in a few selected areas which I feel give the painting a little character.