Painting A Silhouetted French Couple In Acrylics

When you search the internet, you will find lots of pictures of youngsters strolling or meeting in the rain, under an umbrella. I love the joy and thrill of young love, yet there is something very comfortable and inspiring about the love shared by an older couple. In today's painting, I show you how to paint an older couple taking a romantic moonlit stroll on a rainy evening. I use acrylics as medium.

I once again start this project on a deep-frame masonite box.

I prepare the surface by coating it with two layers of gesso.

I leave the gesso to dry completely before continuing with the project.

I want to create a dark midnight atmosphere and start by squirting black and a dark blue onto my palette.

I mix these on the surface, rather than on the palette, to give it more interesting hues and shades.

I then using a semi-transparent mixing white with the same blue to paint the area that is lighted up by the street lamps, but are not flooded by light.

I again mix the colours on the surface, rather than on the palette.

I add even more white and this time I do mix the colours on the palette, but I leave it highly marbled.

I fill in the center of the painting and wait for it to dry. I then use black to paint the silhouettes of my figures.

I add blues where the light reflects off their clothes.

I add an umbrella and make sure to have shadow and light playing off each other by using black, white and blue to create these reflections of light.

I paint a lamp post in black and paint the light stark white.

Then I add white branches and twigs overhanging the pathway.

I use a rigger brush to add grasses in black, with white highlights.

White highlights added.

I add bright yellow to the lamp.

This is reflected on the umbrella.

I now add red to give my umbrella colour, the only object in the picture that is directly lit by the lamp. Some of this red light shines through onto the couple.

Shadows are added to the twigs and branches in black, using a rigger brush.

The completed painting.

Marietjie Uys (Miekie) is a published author. You can buy my books here:
You can purchase Designs By Miekie 1 here.
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