I begin painting with the adobe walls. Various mixes of Ultramarine Blue + Cadmium Orange + MUD (Ultramarine Blue + Alizarin Crimson) + White are used. Working on the shadow of the chili ristra I add a little bit of Alizarin Crimson into the mixture. This is because the red of the chilies reflects on to the wall beside them.
The back edge of the side walls on the window and door is made bluer, or cooler, to make it recede. This follows a simple rule that helps to increase the feeling of depth in a painting: Warm Colors Come Forward, Cool Colors Go Back.
A special color is pulled out for the Santa Fe window and door: Turquoise Blue. Three shades of Turquoise Blue + White are mixed.
The light and shadow pattern on the door is blocked in with the Turquoise mixes. Willow twigs cover the window part. My wrist is braced against a mahl stick to steady my hand as I drag them over the dark, washed in area of the opening.
For the Sarza, or as some call it Virginia Creeper, I make washes with a couple of other colors that are not normally found on our palette. #1. Magenta + Liquin. #2. Alizarin Crimson + Liquin. #3. Sap Green + Liquin.
The three different washes are ramdomly scumbled on the canvas for the leaves of this multicolored vine. I let some of the areas remain very transparent in order to give luminosity to the foliage.
One of the most fun parts of painting vines is to add the little twigs and tendrils draping down. A fine liner brush is used to make the long streamers.
I’ll let the washed in areas dry, then I’ll come back later and add some thicker, opaque leaves.
And……Don’t forget. My eBay auction for Chief Hollow Horn Bear ends tomorrow, Thursday June 4 at 8 PM Central time! To go to the auction CLICK HERE.
Thanks for following along today. Hugs,
Mikki Senkarik 
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