Photo © Lionel
"Moose at Lake Monahan" by Lionel (Hummingfrog). 10x20" (25x50cm). Oil on canvas.
From the Artist: Using a knife is something I like to do in oils because the colors are so much more vibrant as they are just spread on the canvas and blended into other colors. I have fun using a knife as the outcome is as it happens with each strokes.
I am somewhat happy with this painting, but I had no clue as to what the outcome would be. The mountains I started first and the moose I decided to add last to fill in the deserted lake. This painting was done quickly and totally created from my head.
From the Painting Guide: Some paintings just evolve ... sometimes even if you'd planned something in detail a painting can take on a life of its own. The moose definitely changes the feeling of the painting, especially the way it's looking at the viewer! It adds a sense of life to the painting, and that wonder which comes from encountering a large animal in a landscape.
Things to Consider When Looking at This Painting:
Composition: Take a moment to look at the arrangement of the trees and their sizes. Notice how they lead your eye up and across the composition. How they create a sense of distance and perspective not only by getting smaller but also the way they're painted with less detail.
Compare, for instance, the tree on the right -- with its beautifully painted, detailed branches and bits of shadow and light within the structure -- to the one on the far left, which is little more than a few lines which we "read" as tree.
Water: I feel the moose's legs end a bit abruptly where they enter the water. While I don't know whether you'd see anything through the water (a suggestion of its ankles/feet), maybe there should be a little movement of the water, of little ripples hitting its legs. Particularly as the lack of reflection in the water suggests to me it must have some movement on it.
I am somewhat happy with this painting, but I had no clue as to what the outcome would be. The mountains I started first and the moose I decided to add last to fill in the deserted lake. This painting was done quickly and totally created from my head.
From the Painting Guide: Some paintings just evolve ... sometimes even if you'd planned something in detail a painting can take on a life of its own. The moose definitely changes the feeling of the painting, especially the way it's looking at the viewer! It adds a sense of life to the painting, and that wonder which comes from encountering a large animal in a landscape.
Things to Consider When Looking at This Painting:
Composition: Take a moment to look at the arrangement of the trees and their sizes. Notice how they lead your eye up and across the composition. How they create a sense of distance and perspective not only by getting smaller but also the way they're painted with less detail.
Compare, for instance, the tree on the right -- with its beautifully painted, detailed branches and bits of shadow and light within the structure -- to the one on the far left, which is little more than a few lines which we "read" as tree.
Water: I feel the moose's legs end a bit abruptly where they enter the water. While I don't know whether you'd see anything through the water (a suggestion of its ankles/feet), maybe there should be a little movement of the water, of little ripples hitting its legs. Particularly as the lack of reflection in the water suggests to me it must have some movement on it.