I wasn’t sure how to do what was required for this exercise and couldn’t get it from the suggested artist research, so I did more research, mainly focussing on pieces that appealed to me, and from which I got a clear feeling of evoking mood and atmosphere, and found Mamma Anderson’s painting ‘Ackerland’ -
I found this painting very enigmatic, an almost plain field of long grass done in Sepia, Yellow Ochre and greens - colours that really appealed to me. Anderson uses thick paint as well as textured washes which I would like to experiment with. The figures in the middle ground give the painting a clear narrative as if they are looking for something, and the clue is in the heavily textured rectangle on the right-hand side. The field reminded me of the country park near my house.
Another painting that inspired me was The Lake View by Akseli Gallen-Kallela which
I saw in the National Gallery exhibition A Vision of Finland - Lake Keitel last year -
This is a beautiful, striking and serene painting of a lake in portrait format, and I think the format helps the composition to evoke the mood. The artist uses impasto techniques as well as soft brush strokes, big and small.
Having done my research, I chose my subject from a quick sketch I did a few weeks ago in the country park lake near my house, and a photo I took at the time -
For my support I used recycled cardboard 21 x 33cm which I primed with clear gesso, and I used acrylic as my medium. To create texture, I used modelling paste and matt medium applied with brushes, natural sponges and sticks.
I began by blocking the top and bottom areas with a dark grey wash, leaving the middle unpainted to use the colour of the carboard as a base for the grass in the background.
I wanted to give an impression of water in the lake and experimented by applying masking fluid in small areas at the bottom of the picture, applying a slightly lighter grey wash, and rubbing off the masking fluid to reveal the colour underneath - repeating the process three times but unfortunately the experiment wasn’t successful, so I resorted to painting the lighter areas in with light grey acrylic.
I tried to be energetic and freer with the clouds to give them some drama, and for the grass in the background I used modelling paste mixed with acrylic, applied with a pallet knife. For the long grass I used barbecue sticks and for the trees I applied paint with a natural sponge to create the foliage.
My finished piece was -
In comparison with Anderson’s ‘Ackerland’ painting, I can see that her long grass field texture is soft and tidy while mine is energetic and much less tidy. Her painting is also full of narrative because of the figures and the close-up element, and mine lacks narrative which, in all fairness, was not my objective in the exercise anyway.
I had hoped that due to the similarity of the subject something more interesting would emerge during my painting process, but unfortunately it didn’t, and maybe next time I should try to replicate her technique to get the impression of the long grass in the foreground.
Looking at Gallen-Kallela’s ‘The Lake View’, once again there is a similarity of subject in that there is a lake. Gallen-Kallela’s painting is however calm and serene and mine is more dramatic. I wanted to try his idea of a landscape in portrait format, and really like that.
I do like some elements of my final piece - I like the texture of the grass in the background
and think it evokes mood and atmosphere, though the grass in the foreground looks a bit untidy and this is emphasised in portrait format. I clearly need to find a different way to create the impression of long grass as this way isn’t successful, and I need a better technique for a dramatic sky. I think I’m on the right path but not there yet. I need to back off, have a rest, and have another try in a few weeks’ time.
Reference
Schwabsky B, Landscape Painting Now: From Pop Abstraction to New Romanticism
Bradway T, Thames & Hudson