Enviroment Support Group

#261

hi koshime,
sorry but does this mean the shangri-la theme is over already? starting with the basics is definitly cool… really looking forward to that…

#262

To be perfectly honest, I’m waiting for this next theme before I get involved in the thread (seeing as how I’d be rushed otherwise). Always better to go from the start of a theme (and not halfway through - I don’t want to get left behind too much).

#263

Maui68 > Although the last Shangri La theme is ending, feel free to post/continue your existing concept at any point as feedback or constructive critique is always available throughout various themes. Sometimes, whilst working on another theme, you might just get the right connectino/idea to finish an old piece in newer light/ability

The aim is to help everyone, have a good set of basic foundation skills.
The main problem of painting, any painting can be broken down to thus.

In no particular order

1/ Composition
2/ Perspective
3/ Value/Lighting
4/ Colour

5/ Integrating it all together

Now, ultimately rules are made to be broken but knowing the rules helps you alot mroe to break them. As long as the end result is aesthetically pleasing and manages to convey what the artist percieves/wants to portray to the viewer

Looking at the list above, which best to start tackling when attempting to paint any picture. If you think too much, the sheer idea of painting according to the “rules” will litreally paralyze the artist from the mood attempted to be conveyed to the composition, and the lighting…to the point, a static, un fluid image is produced or at worst - a blank canvas…

So, perhaps lets tackle composition and unique thumbnail generation.
This process does not require any skill. It does nto require any technical ability.
It access the Right brain (the abstract side) within a left side (technical/detail side)

For many years (6 years), I struggled to grasp the fundamentals of drawing and painting (coming from a self taught back ground), especially colour and perspective. It was not till Philip Straub’s excellent enviroment workshop that all of this concepts have gelled together
and day after day, I have helped to incorproate various methods, tips and techniques of other artists and rennaisance masters to help improve and share this study applied to the digital medium

Composition - allows you to simply arange your props into a meaningful discussion and allows your to utilize space effectively, with the minimum of paint and lines that will for years on end, hopefully provoke and stimulate different viewers to the message of a painting.

RHS painting (Right handed side painting) - to make things more interesting, we’re going to try to paint without any subject theme. Rather like looking at abstract cloud formations, we’ll allow the interaction of various rapid concepts to blend together via your local paint medium to produce a genesis for new paintings. Some viewers will be familiar with these concepts, these are also portray fabulously by Scott Robertson - via marker pens. But for our purposes, we’ll be using a purely digital media

#264

hey koshime,

this sounds exactly like the thing I have been looking for…

subscribes

:bounce:

#265

I’m not sure what your last paragraph is saying, but I love environments, and your hlep in this thread has been great. Awesome thread, can hardly wait for the next challenge. I like abstract clouds btw… :wink: I’m better at those than fargin’ landscapes.

#266

hi koshime, i was wondering when is the next theme on the fundamentals and all that gonna start?

#267

Hi,

I’d like to start it this week but am still busy preparing some decent cohorent content.
If anyone has experience wit hbasic art fundamentals, feel free to pitch in as well

#268

Hi everyone

I’ve just discovered this site and this thread and I cant believe it. It’s exectly what i was looking for. I’ve been reading all the past posts and i wish i’d found it earlier.
I’m an architect in the UK and i dont get much chance to produce work that isnt flat and precise so i myself got a wacom and came here.
I might try and complete the previous assignment anyway just for myself but i’ll have a go at the current one although some examples would really help as i’m not too sure whats required.
I really hope this thread can keep going. (it looks like its been quiet for a short while) as i’ve learnt so much just by reading previous entries.

Thanks Koshime for taking the time to run this topic. Your work looks really amazing.
(i’d love to see what brushes you use)

#269

Hi there, feel free to try out the old themes. You’ll laways get some feedback here.

its been quiet the past two weeks as i try to prepare material for the next class/theme and finish multiple assignments/art jobs.

#270

I found this in your sig on CA.org:wink:
Anyway great that your doing this.

I’m currently looking at architecture stuff to come up with some good designs and to further expand my visual library. I did some thumbs to practice my composition.

I’ll post some thumbs later. I would love to get critics.

EDIT: here they are…got some more studies that I’ll upload later.

#271

very well done there.
You have certaintly a good range of different ideas that woudl make excellent value and final images

#272

Pretty quick environment started from a little thumb.

#273

That is an excelllent enviroment from your thumb.
I particularly like the lighting! The valueswork reasonably well

Cant wait to see it in colour

The only thing I would say is, in the distance, the bg would have a lighter appearance

#274

I’m gonna fix the atmospheric perspective koshime, good point.

Here is another one.

#275

these are great.your thumbnails will sure prove to be a good help.thnx for putting up ur quick renders too.cant wait to see more:bounce:

#276

Thats a really great piece and monochromic mood there.
The lighting is almost spot on, if you apply some subtle dark and light gradient overlays.
Allowing your piece to really gel into the scene

I’ve written some tutorials on atmospheric perspective a little at
Artsdojo tutorials

I’ll add a quick paint over for you to look at whilst i finish preperation for this months theme of getting back to basics

#277

Here is a quick PO

  • I use a complementary warm light - red/orange to show the shafts of light drifting down, and added some balanced light.

You can choose to add some local green ambient glow from the monitors as well

#278

[b]Theme 04: Enviromental Composition & Perspective

[/b]This month,
I’d like for us to get back to basics as the crucial point any any painters skillset is really how strong their understanding and grasp is of the most basic skills.

In contrast, there are no fixed rules (like the way a gifted musician can play an instrument without prior knowledge but by ear) but not all of us are gifted musician or can paint a Monet by sight alone. And thus, it helps if we do know some basic rules (and then rightfully break out of them)

A favourite qoute Vilppu is often wont to say is " There are no rules, just tools!"

Outline

Week 1-2

Introduction to types of composition used in landscape painting

1/ Reference - find 1-2 images/paintings that best exemplify the various composition

2/ Value study - To break down each choosen reference into a greyscale or black and white value plan into simple masses to analyze the location of shapes and ideas that make each piece work
Introduction to perspective as a compositional tool, and other elements such as texture, form, quality of line that when combined with composition allows your image to be believable

3/ Reference - find 1-2 images/paintings that exemplify various perspectives and draw the perspective rules over them

Weeks 3-6

4/ To use the rules of composition and perspective to draw an enviromental theme based on any fantasy industrial setting
in purely greyscale only

5/ Feedback and critique of participants entries

#279

this sounds like just the right stuff for a noob like me!

:thumbsup:

great!

EDIT: if this is theme #4 and you archived #1 and #2, where did #3 go?!
EDITEDEDIT: Nevermind, I just read the whole thread and I am fine…:smiley:

#280

Hi Mu,

Theme 3 has yet to be archived but can be found buried here :slight_smile: