The Cobalt blue sky is much improved by a coat of fat Ceramic White that has been softly pounced off to leave a gentle glaze that makes the colour less intense. The blue was far too bright in its pure state, and feels much more natural now. A tiny bit of Cadmium Red mixed with Ceramic White made a very pale pink that I added into the tops of the clouds, making them feel a little brighter because of the direct colour contrast against the blue of the sky. I’ve also painted a line of white at the horizon that I’ve blended up into the body of the clouds, making the hills stronger and the clouds feel as if they run deeply into the distance. The yellow dress on the left has also been softened with a glaze of Ceramic White, making it far more delicate.
I am constantly amazed at how pure pigments are so rich compared to the majority of colours in the natural world, which are often almost grey by comparison.
I’m pretty tired, feeling a bit under the weather (appropriate for painting clouds, I guess), so I’ll colour the remaining dress and leave it at that for today, although I’m really tempted to get into the shadows on the marble, because I’m excited to see how the spatial drama of the the action of light upon the figures within the courtyard will pay off.
