SHADOW PAINTING

PODI LAWRENCE DEMONSTRATION ON PAINTING SHADOWS 

Podi had just returned from Greece where she was running a painting holiday in Kalymnos. She has paintings held in galleries etc worldwide and was recently one of the finalists in the Artists Illustrated Artist of the Year competition.

She began by showing us the method she uses for getting the shadow effect in her paintings. The canvas she favours is smooth linen of good quality ready primed from Jackson's. Paints are mainly Golden Open acrylic and Windsor and Newton. She mixes the paint with pouring medium or slow drying medium. She has found that it is possible to wipe out the paint to get a faint shadow effect if the mediums are used but it is not so easy if they are diluted with water. The brush that she used was a flat No 4 synthetic from Jackson's and the colours Ultramarine, Alizarin Crimson, Burnt Sienna and Bismuth Yellow. The colours are mixed to give greens and violets which are present as a slight tinge in some shadows.  

While she was working she pointed out the following points:-

 

1. If the object is close the shadow has a hard edge.

2. A mix of Ultramarine with Alizarin and Burnt Sienna is added on top of the first layer of shadow and blended at the edge with fingers.

3. Addition of the pouring medium increases the flow and produces interesting drips.

4. Wipe off the paint if it is too thick/dense/heavy.

5. Allow at least 10 minutes of observation before starting to draw or paint.

6. Be careful where the shadows are placed - make sure they fit the angle of the sun.

7. Some leaves show the underside and some are translucent. This is also reflected in the shadows.

The painting she was working on would take some more days of painting before it was finished. We were very grateful to Podi for showing us how she produces such beautiful paintings