Maasvlakte 2 - After sunset

Going to the beach to see the sunset means returning home after sunset. As we were on the beach of the Maasvlakte, we drove to the ship spotters point to look at the sea after sunset before going home and on the way we stopped to make pictures of the moon hanging over the port industry of the area of Maasvlakte 2. On Maasvlakte 2 the industry is mostly loading and unloading of container ships (the very big ones) so the lights come from the huge cranes that are built there. 

As the sun had just set, the moon had a pink shade and I have tried very hard to make good reference pictures of that view. Of course that was not really easy, making a picture after sunset means there is not much natural light left, but I got some nice reference pictures. I combined these pictures of the moon with the ones that had all the lights of the industry for the composition of this mixed media painting.

For this painting I started painting a dark blue background with a lighter spot where the moon was. The foreground of grasses and a bit of the road was painted in watercolours over that dark background. There is not much detail in the foreground only the suggestion of the landscape.

The moon and the lights are painted using white gouache and watercolour. As I have written before, the moon was not white, but slightly pink so I added a hint of pinkish orange to the moon. This was painted in several layers until I got the moon I wanted to paint. The industrial lights have yellow and orange shades when they are further away and I have used the same layering as I did for the moon to paint them.  There are some reflections of all those lights in the water that are painted with watery gouache and some hints of watercolour and the lines on the side of the road in the foreground are painted with very watery white gouache.

This was the first time that I have painted with white gouache over a dark watercolour background - I usually paint on heavy black cardboard - and for me the experiment turned out well. I know what to expect the next time and this small painting is just what I wanted it to be.

The information about the materials I have used, the size and availability of this painting can all be found in my Tumblr blog.

Chapel - Conté sketching crayons on black

After having painted a lot of watercolour paintings I was looking for a change, a different technique and if possible, an experiment.
My Conté Sketching Crayons are relatively new to me (I bought them last summer and have not used them often) and I thought I could try these on my 'all black' heavy paper that I usually paint on with white gouache and some watercolour.

As the Chapel is a subject I can sketch by heart now I have done another imaginary landscape with it, now a night version. 
While I was drawing I could see the composition needed the clouds and moon for balance. 
These make the scene a bit more friendly - as I wanted this to be. 
I have tried to place the highlights in the right places and the light in the Chapel is also where it usually can be found.

The picture was more challenging than the drawing itself. I have tried to show the right colours and contrast but I fear I haven't got everything as it looks in reality.

More information about this Conté drawing can be found at my website www.jannekesatelier.webs.com 

Evening mood in the polder

The reference photo for this watercolour painting had been waiting for almost two years now. My son Martijn lives in Almere, which is in what we call 'the New land', one of the polders made in the IJsselmeer. His birthday is in September so when we drive home after a visit the chances of a nice sunset are good. Usually my daughter Mariska makes a picture from the car when I ask her to.

Because of the poor light circumstances the fields were very dark and without structure in the reference photo so I have changed that part a bit. I had to do this from my memory because since the photo has been made, parking places have been made there.  
The railroad is still the same. On the right is the little railway station, unfortunately its structure is mostly on ground level. Behind the railroad only one building is visible. There are plans to build more of course as the town of Almere will be developed further in the next decades.

Maybe it is due to the rainy weather but painting this was not without struggle. It can also be caused by the fact that I did not soak and stretch my paper before starting to paint. The surface of the paper reacts differently to water and paint when the coating from the mill is not removed by the soaking and stretching. It's easier to remove paint this way and I had forgotten that - I remembered quickly though.
Nevertheless I made a painting I like very much.
For the first time I used Chinese White in this painting - only to highlight the moon a bit. After I had removed the masking fluid I tried to soften the edges and the result was not good, so I tried to hide that behind some clouds, and still I was not happy about it. The white paint did the trick, as it is not very opaque (like gouache) the clouds are still there, but my moon is round again.

More information about this watercolour painting (size, paper and paint used, etc) can be found at my website www.jannekesatelier.webs.com 

The moon exposed....

As an amateur artist I want people to see my work so I participate in expositions from time to time. Each year the section of Amateur Art in my home town Papendrecht will organise an exposition in the public library where we all contribute one work. The name "Met z'n Allen" means All Together and that is exactly what it is. This year there are over forty very different pieces of art hanging together on the walls of the library. This exposition is always from the 1st of October untill the 31st of December.

This time is also the first time my daughter Mariska participates, so we chose similar works. She made a series of pictures from the moon last year and she is exposing one of them now while I am exposing a painting I made after another picture from that series.