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White Dove

6x6 watercolor 

Here are two value studies I did of this little dove. The difference between them is that for the watercolor painting, the dove was lit only with ambient light from a table lamp and the oil study was lit with a spotlight.

For me, white objects are fun to paint and a great way to study value and temperature.

There are a few spots left in my class at Von Liebig on Friday. 

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White Dove

6x6 oil on panel 

Gray is the Way

I'm in value boot camp and nothing is as it really seems when it comes to lights, darks, reflected light and local color. The whites can't be too white or there's no room for the highlight. So what color would 'read' white, but not be straight from the tube white? 

Grays. Green gray, violet gray, orange gray ad infinitum. You can mix endless beautiful grays. I'd like to say that I finished this but I wiped it because I veered off the path and created mud. 

It happens.

"Lonely" 6x6 oil on gesso board