Boats of Antibes - Acrylic landscape painting

"Boats of Antibes"
15" x 30" (38.1 cm x 76.2 cm)
Acrylic on Canvas
(click image for bigger version)
Photography Prints
Boats of Antibes has been a personal challenge for two reasons: the big size - at least for my standards - and the fact that I let my instincts guide me in choosing the colors and the brushwork. I started the painting looking at the reference photo on my monitor screen, then closed it and balanced my visual memory and my feelings, other than trying to be realistic. My goal was to make it personal, trying to let my intuition lead me. 
I imagined there was a big cloud that makes half of the harbor shady, and getting the values right has been tricky.
To help with the values I took photos of the painting and desaturated them in my computer. Looking at the black & white version really helps spotting value problems.
Now I think I’m pretty happy with it, and can finally post it and move on to the next personal challenge.
The reference photo is from Google Street View, in Antibes, France. To see it click here.


“I know not how I may seem to others, 
but to myself I am but a small child 
wandering upon the vast shores of knowledge, 
every now and then finding a small bright pebble 
to content myself with” 
Plato 

Comments

  1. suzanneberryDecember 02, 2011

    wow! this is just beautiful robin! i so admire the challenges you give yourself in creating. it's very inspirational and gets me thinking. lovely job!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Robie BenveDecember 05, 2011

    I inspire YOU? You sure are very kind and generous on your comments Suzanne! Thanks much! :))

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Comments and feedback are welcome. :)

Popular posts from this blog

Winter is Coming - Portrait, Acrylic on Canvas

Image
"Winter Is Coming" 12"x16" Acrylic on Canvas Available   I am really pleased with how this painting came out.  And to think that I used to be very intimidated by painting people, now I can do portraits that really resemble the model, woohoo!  :) I used a canvas that had an abstract pattern already painted on it, with the idea of covering the pattern in most areas, leaving only a few hints of it here and there. However, when I started the new painting, I really liked the pattern background and how it was peaking through everywhere, so I kept it visible as part of the composition. The model was wearing a warm scarf, and it made me smile when shortly after we got our first big snow of the year, she must have known that winter was coming, and coming soon. :)
Read more

Cane Corso, the Italian Mastiff - acrylic dog painting

Image
"Ettore" 9" x 12"  Acrylic on canvas panel Ettore is a very black dog that belongs to my family in Italy. I hear stories about this smart and friendly puppy all the time I call home, from what they tell me he’s such a handful! My family always had German Shephards, and this is the first “different” dog in the household, his breed is Cane Corso, an Italian tipe of Mastiff.  I asked for some pictures of him and he’s so cute that I couldn’t resist painting him. The fun part is that I did not use any black paint. I’m curious to hear what my family thinks about this portrait, did I get the personality of a dog I never met?   We do not see things as they are.  We see them as we are. Talmud 
Read more

Japanese Maple Tree - Acrylic Landscape Painting

Image
Japanese Maple Tree 16"x20" (40.6 cm x 50.8 cm) Acrylic on stretched canvas, framed In front of our first home there was a Japanese Maple Tree. We bought the house in November, and I had no idea that the naked twisty tree in the front yard could get so pretty and colorful (not many Japanese Maples in Italy, where I was coming from). Spring is always a delight for me, and the first spring in the new house, I was so excited to discover what could be sprouting in the flower beds, what beautiful treasures were planted by strangers that lived there before us. There were tulips, daffodils, irises, but what really elated my heart was the little tree with the star shaped red leaves. A true delight. When, more recently, I saw a picture of the Japanese Maple Tree from the Portland's Japanese garden, with those beautifully bent branches and bright leaves, it brought back cheerful memories, and renewed my sense of wonder for this amazing plant. I just had to paint
Read more