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By Mitchell Albala onLandscape Theory
Mitchell Albala. Night Passage, oil on panel, 20″ x 20″
It’s early September and the plein air painting season is drawing to a close (at least for those of us in the unfortunate climes). As I’ve been working with students in my workshops and painting outside on my own, I’ve been reflecting on the nature of observation and the different way I think about color when working outdoors and when I’m working in the studio.
Color choices in the landscape are a combination of directobservationand interpretation.We begin by borrowing from the colors we see, but inevitably we modify or alter the color we see when the painting demands it. In plein air painting, working directly from life, we rely much more on direct observation of colors. In the studio, when we only have flat two-dimensional references like photos or studies, which are not life, we rely almost entirely on interpretive color.
In plein air: direct observation
When I painten plein air, there is nothing between me and the subject but the air. I experience every nuance of light and shadow, color, and atmosphere my eyes are capable of registering. This is the gift of plein air. Much of the excitement of the plein air experience is playing with the colors I see. If I am not trying to do that, then why am I outside in the first place?
When I paint outdoors I am engaged in an intense conversation with nature, observing the colors before me and attempting to perform a type of visual translation.
If I see a subtle orange hue glancing across the treetops, I will try to mix that color as I see it. I will try to identify the particular hue, how light or dark that hue is, and it’s relative saturation level. I will squint fiercely, and cast my eye between the subject and my painting and look for communion, for parity. Can I capture a color impression that is close to what I see? I know that pigments and canvas cannot compete with the luminosity and brilliance of natural light — but I can try! That is the play of the outdoor painter.
In the studio: indirect observation
When I’m painting in the studio, my response to color is very different. It has to be.In the studio, I have visual memory, photos, and perhaps sketches or color notes — but I am no longer connected to living colorlike I am when working outside. My choices about color must be processed differently because I am working with colorin an indirect way.When I’m painting in the studio, there’s no conversation in my head that says, “Well, that’s a blue sky, so I need to make it blue.” In the studio, I don’tchoose colors that way. I develop an overall color plan that fits my particular goals for that painting.
The difference between interpreting color outdoors and in the studio may be seen in this way:in plein air I am much more involved with the colors I actually see. I take liberties, to be sure, but I am working toward a reasonably faithful impression of what I see. In the studio, it’s the reverse. With no connection to living color, the colors are more my own. I may call upon my years of experience observing and mixing color in nature, but I become the inventor of my color plan.
Mitchell Albala.Azure and Asphalt, oil on paper, 7.5 x 14. In this plein air piece, I was interested in capturing the glare of brilliant sunlight light on the streets as the sun set. Can I truly do thatwith paint and pigment? Never. But with an eye toward perceived color, I am engaged in the plein air painter’s most essential form of observation. See more paintings from the series: New Works from the “Azure and Asphalt” Series.
Mitchell Albala,Border Peak in Sunlight, oil on panel, 12 x 12.
In Border Peak in Sunlight I am also very interested in the glare of sunlight. But unlikeAzure and Asphalt (above), which is based on an observedcolor experience, Border Peak uses color in amore inventive way. I may recall what the glare of brilliant sunlight looks like and how it felt to me, but to capture those sensations in the studio, I don’t refer to the photo. Instead I builda unique color strategy that fits my vision of brilliant sunlight.
Additional Resources
Landscape Painting: Essential Concepts and Techniques for Plein Air and Studio Practice
Real Light vs. Panter’s Light: The Limitations of Paint – page 104
Plein Air Demonstration – page 152
Studio Demonstration – page 156
Plein Air Painting: Beginning at the Source – page 34
Matt Smith on the Synergy Between Plein Air and Studio Painting
On Location with Stasinos and Albala: Same Subject, Different Visions
New Works from the “Azure and Asphalt” Series
About Author
Mitchell Albala
Mitchell Albala is a painter, workshop instructor, and author. His semi-abstract and atmosphericlandscapes have been exhibited nationally and are represented in corporate and private collections. He is the author of the two best selling books on landscape painting in the nation: "TheLandscape Painter's Workbook: Essential Studies in Shape,Composition, and Color” (Rockport Publishers, 2021) and “Landscape Painting: Essential Concepts and Techniques for Plein Air and Studio Practice"(Watson-Guptill, 2009). In addition to leading plein air workshops in Italy, Mitchell also teachesworkshops throughout the Pacific Northwest. He has lectured on Impressionism and landscape painting at the Seattle Art Museum and has written for"International Artist" and "Artists & Illustrators" magazines. He also hosts a popularpainting blog, which holds a top 20 spot on Feedspot.com's "Top 90 Painting Blogs for Artists."
