Banyan Tree 6x8

I'm not sure that I kept the design as close to the initial block in, as I might have but, I like this finish anyway. Painting Banyan trees is kind of like banging yourself on the head with a tire iron. I've still got two left to finish. One 6x6 and one 3x5. Keeping it simple? Not!

Banyan Tree #2 6x6

Back to the jungle today to paint the banyan tree yet again. I made a value drawing to start with and worked on a 6x6 square. I also premixed my dark using Ult. Blue, Alizarin and Viridean and some greens using Ultramarine with Cad Yellow Med and with Cad Yellow Light and a green mixed with Thalo blue and Cad Yellow Light. I still want to see more variations in the greens here but I'm more pleased with the shapes than last week. This is my second week painting with the Naples Outdoor Painters which has been meeting on Thursdays forever. I really enjoyed it.

Banyan Tree #1 6x8

I'm posting this as the finish, though after studying it while writing my post, I think the left side of the painting needs just a few small strikes of sunlight into that neutral mid tone to enhance the form of the trunk. I'll let it sit a while and it will tell me what it needs. We're going back to the same location this Thursday and I plan to stay with this subject. It's a good lesson in seeing the big picture in terms of design. This is just a small section of the trunk system of this massive Banyan tree. It happens that while I've been working this evening I listened to a inspirational PBS feature on Ansel Adams who was a fantastic artist with a camera.