Let’s travel to Italy, I’m starting on a painting of Venice today. Work begins on a 10 inch by 10 inch cradled panel with the sides painted black. Using a brush dipped in a thin oil wash of MUD (2 parts Ultramarine Blue + 1 part Alizarin Crimson) + Liquin Original, the basic plan is sketched up.
You may click on any image to view an enlargement.
The Venetian icon, Santa Maria della Salute cathedral, looms in the background.
The sketch for the composition is complete and we’re ready to apply opaque oil color.
The upper part of the hazy, morning sky has been painted with a mix of White + Cobalt Blue. The mid portion is White + Pthalo Blue, while the sun-lit clouds are White + Cadmium Orange + a touch of Pthalo Blue. Then I begin blocking in the church domes with White + Ultramarine Blue + MUD + Cadmium Orange.
The haze and bright sunshine wash out the details of the distant buildings. The most prominent features are painted wet-into-wet in an impressionistic technique to make them less distinct. This will also make the cathedral and surrounding buildings remain in the background.
A gondola glides across the still water of the Grand Canal.
I begin painting the buildings in the foreground that overlook the beautiful cathedral. A Viridian Green + Ultramarine Blue + White awning provides shade for a small balcony where Magenta Petunias happily grow in a cascade down the side of the stone structure.
We’re HALF ‘n HALF way done! As usual, I’m “painting forward”. This makes most of my pieces at this point appear to be painted from the top down. However, the design of this Venetian composition makes it look a little different at this stage. Thank you for following along, please come back!
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Mikki Senkarik 
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