One of the most atmospheric paintings by any Impressionist, it is mystifying that Sisley’s wonderful landscapes have been all but forgotten.
painting
Painting is about form, light, and colour. Here is a short summary of the practical points developed in the previous articles on colour.
Some men paddle their skiffs along a wooded river: a study in rippled reflections, bright ochre paddles, and watery greens and blues. Caillebotte was not only a patron of Impressionism, but shows that he was one of its Masters too.
How pigments work, and some of their practical problems.
Images of the remarkable Lily Crucifix in Godshill Parish Church, Isle of Wight, which was spared removal during the Reformation. It dates from the early Renaissance, c 1450.
Ask which were the first landscape paintings in Western art, and most would suggest works of Dürer, Albrecht Altdorfer, or Joachim Patinir. But they were actually very late compared to frescoes of the Cycladic civilisation, some three millenia before.
Chroma is hard to separate from lightness. An important painting point is that mixing paints cannot increase chroma. Instead it tends to reduce it towards muddy grey.
A distinctive presumed self-portrait of this exceptional woman painter, cropped close, from an unusual viewpoint, using chiaroscuro, colour, and the most amazing fabric textures.
“The Cambridge History of Painting in the Classical World” edited by JJ Pollitt Cambridge, March/April 2015 Hardback, 22.5 […]
Although lightness and chroma can usually be approached successfully using methodical approaches, long experience has shown that hue is much more hit or miss. Developing a good ‘eye’ for colours is generally much more important.
The Eclectic Light Company 