Working on a dark surface

The keeper, 24"x18"

I'm constantly surprised at how much my palette changes when I work on a dark surface. A color in my hand seems to magically transform to a much different color on the surface (hello simultaneous contrast!). Overall I find my palette becomes much lower key than usual on a dark surface to achieve the result I'm after, mainly because colors appear much lighter on a dark surface than they would on a lighter one.

When I came up for the idea for The keeper I knew I wanted to work on a dark surface because it would do a lot of the work for me with all the dark drama in the background. So I decided to pull out a 24x18 inch dark UArt panel, mainly because I have a ton of it and wanted to use it up as lately I've been much more keen on La Carte or Pastelmat. But I'm so glad I did.

The effects on dark UArt can be so lovely. Dreamy, smudgy marks that layer beautifully made me remember how much I enjoy this sanded paper. Instead of reaching for it to "use it up", in the future I think I'll be reaching for it more because I enjoy the results I can achieve with it.

As I began this piece you can see that the tone of UArt dark is not a true black. It's more of a charcoal. I like this because I can add darker darks as accents. I was working from a reference photo and decided to take some creative license on the composition. You can see that the branch in the middle of the piece was added in with the simple mark up tool on my iPhone. After I had started the painting I wasn't sure I liked that branch just ended (apparently it had broken off) and thought it would help the viewer move around the piece if it was strategically lengthened.

As with most of my work, even on a dark surface I generally work from dark to light, although I like to get all the values in at the very beginning to give myself a value roadmap - hence the light sky at the top even in this early stage. It's also good to get my most chromatic color in right away.

I really enjoyed working on this piece. If you haven't worked on a dark surface before give it a try!

Share This Post

Comments

3 Responses to Working on a dark surface

It's so beautiful.

Posted by Tom Ciano · via kimeshelman.com · 46 months ago

I think working on a very toned surface has a lot of appeal. Back in the day (60's), I was taught at Pratt that white surfaces were mandatory. A true follower of the law, I never deviated; until, I started set painting for local theaters. That was when I saw the advantage of black surfaces as all colors, especially under the stage lights, just carried vibrantly, even to the back of the theater. So dramatic. It still didn't carry over into my artwork. But taking workshops with Casey Klahn and Christine Debrosky, and expected with the latter to bring very dark warm paper, I was converted. Your example created, for me, a woodsy scene that looked like the rain had just stopped, the sky still lightly overcast, the earthy smell of wet foliage and how vivid colors are after it rains. Jackie Aves

Posted by Jacqueline Aves · via kimeshelman.com · 46 months ago

Thanks Tom! And Jacqueline that is so interesting how you came about working on dark surfaces. Very cool!

Posted by Kim Eshelman · via kimeshelman.com · 46 months ago

Name (required)

Email Address (required)

Website/Blog Address

Comments (required)

Remember Your Info
Check this box if you want email updates when people comment on this post

The Color of Light: An Artist's Blog