Demonstration Glencoe in Autumn
You will need
Surface
Saunders Waterford or Bockingford Cold-pressed
(NOT) or Rough paper
9x12in. (23x30.5cm)* Non-granulating watercolour Raw sienna (Winsor & Newton) Burnt sienna (Winsor & Newton) Granulating watercolour Cobalt blue (Winsor & Newton) Geothite (Daniel Smith) Quinacridone burnt orange (Daniel Smith) Super-granulating watercolour
Red jasper genuine (Daniel Smith, Primatek range)
Desert brown (Schmincke Super-granulating range)
Lunar black (Daniel Smith or Jackman’s)
Brushes
A large Round watercolour brush No. 16
A medium Round watercolour brush No. 8 with a good point
A small detail brush Miscellaneous
Schmincke Aqua blue masking fluid and an old brush (a small Round with a fine point) or other fine applicator tool
Fine mist water spray bottle Old credit card (optional, for the rock effects)
* I use a Saunders Waterford block but you can tape a sheet firmly on all sides to a board. Rough paper will give the maximum effect.
Step 1
Prepare a light pencil sketch of the scene and apply masking fluid (mine is blue) using an old, fine brush to the top of the mountain on the left and a tiny bit on the very distant mountain to preserve the white paper as snow. Add masking fluid to the path. Allow this to dry completely.
Step 2
1 Prepare three washes: a fairly weak strength wash of raw sienna; a medium wash of cobalt blue and a medium wash of cobalt blue plus a touch of burnt sienna to give a bluish grey. 2 To paint the sky wet in wet, pre-wet the area with clean water and allow the water to settle a little (not running over the surface).
3 Using the large brush, apply raw sienna to the cloud areas first then add cobalt blue around this. Finally apply the grey wash to suggest darker clouds and cloud shadows. Allow the sky to dry completely.
Step 3
1 Using the grey wash, paint the distant mountain and allow this to dry.
2 Pre-wet the mountain on the left with clean water and allow this to settle for a moment or two (but don’t let the sheen disappear). Add a wash of raw sienna to the lower part of the slope then drop in a little geothite and weak quinacridone burnt orange.
4 Whilst still damp, add a strong wash of lunar black to the top of the mountain and let it gradually run down towards the raw sienna, geothite and red jasper wash by tilting your paper and board at a gentle angle.
5 Don’t be afraid to add a few touches of lunar black almost straight from the tube as you will find it disperses quickly into the water.
Step 4
When the mountain area is completely dry, paint the distant hill on the right-hand side in a similar way by using some of the sky grey and weaker washes of raw sienna and lunar black to create more distance.
Step 5
1 Paint the foreground slopes in the same way but using stronger washes of the geothite and quinacridone burnt orange plus red jasper genuine and desert brown (if you have them). Alternatively, use a colour similar to warm orange.
2 Scrape out the rock shapes in the foreground using a piece of an old credit card while the paint is still damp.
Step 6
When everything is completely dry, remove the masking fluid and soften some of the hard edges on the white areas with a damp brush. Add a hint of the grey sky wash for shadow here and there on the snow and the road.