Forest Nebula. Painting #20. Spectacular Night Sky with Nic Hankins.
Forest Nebula
Date Painted: March 12, 2017
Size: 16 x 20 canvas
Forest Nebula is my 20th painting. A quiet forest lake sits slightly silhouetted against the spectacular backdrop of a colorful Milky Way sunset.
Let’s Get Started
This post is about my version of Forest Nebula by Nic Hankins. First, I’ll talk about the inspiration for this painting. When I talk about inspiration in this blog, it will normally be why I chose a certain subject or Bob Ross or other artist tutorial to follow. Then, I will go over the colors and equipment I used and that you will need if you want to try your hand at it or something similar. Next, I will expound a bit about my process. Finally, I’ll wrap up with some lessons that I learned from painting this picture and things I could have done better or wished I had known. So join me on this trip down memory lane as I recap my 20th oil painting.
The Inspiration
I think around this time of the painting, I was looking to expand my skills a bit or try something a little different than straight Bob Ross techniques. I started to sort of venture away from only Bob Ross slightly. The Bob Ross company has a FB page of course but they also have a Twitch channel where they run Joy of Painting marathons on certain days. On Fridays, they would do a segment called CRI Friday. CRI stands for Certified Ross Instructor. It’s someone that had taken the classes taught by the Bob Ross company on how to instruct the techniques. That’s how I discovered Nic Hankins. Luckily the streams were archived for viewing later since they always aired at 1am in England.
One night Nic Hankins painted this forest nebula painted on his Twitch channel instead of Bob’s. I was able to watch the stream at a later time and follow along. Unfortunately, the video is no longer available.
Materials Needed for Forest Nebula
Here are the colors and equipment I used to paint Forest Nebula. All of the colors are included with the Bob Ross Master Paint Set. I’ll admit, that kit can get a bit pricey. So here is an alternative starter oil paint set. Windsor and Newton is a solid brand. The only thing is it doesn’t come with any brushes or instructions.
Colors
- Alizarin Crimson
- Bright Red
- Cadmium Yellow
- Dark Sienna
- Indian Yellow
- Midnight Black
- Phthalo Blue
- Phthalo Green
- Prussian Blue
- Sap Green
- Titanium Hwite
- Van Dyke Brown
Mediums
Equipment
If you want to save yourself the hassle of preparing the black canvas, you can buy them already black. They are called black canvases. Who would have guessed? You still may need the Liquid Clear depending on your preference which I explain in a bit.
Before We Begin
Every Bob Ross painting begins by covering the canvas with a medium. In most paintings he starts off with the medium known as Liquid White. And this is where I would explain how to apply the liquid white because it’s not as straightforward as it would seem. In this Forest Nebula painting, it’s obvious that there is no liquid white. Canvas prep for this one is a bit different. It requires one of the following.
- Black gesso
- Black Acrylic Paint. It doesn’t need to be fancy, and you’ll need a fair bit.
- Black Canvas
- Liquid Clear
If you’re not using a pre-made black canvas, you will need to do a little prep work. You will need to cover your entire canvas with either the black gesso or a flat black acrylic paint. For this you will need an old paint brush (I do not recommend using your Bob Ross brushes for this). Alternatively, you can use a foam brush. These are super cheap. You can get a few uses out of them if you clean them properly or you can just throw them out when you’re done. Also, they are everywhere from hobby shops to dollar stores. Another tool that works great for covering the canvas is a mini paint roller. These actually work rather well.
Once you’ve covered the canvas in gesso and let it dry completely, or if you’re using a ready made black canvas, you’re ready for the next step. The next step is to apply the Liquid Clear.
The Liquid Clear works similar to the Liquid White. That is it helps the paint move and blend effortlessly. The Liquid Clear however is not diluted by the white. Therefore, you retain the true value of the color. In the case of a black canvas painting, its primary purpose is to help the base color move and apply painlessly. I always use a thin layer of the medium when doing black canvases. Nic applied liquid clear in this tutorial and does a fine job of explaining the process. It’s a shame that the video is no longer available.
Liquid Clear
How to apply Liquid Clear. Applying Liquid Clear is much like applying Liquid White. The trick is to not apply too much. You really don’t need a lot. Bob once said on his show that one jar of Liquid Clear will last you a lifetime. He’s not wrong! I still have the first jar I bought nearly 4 years ago. Having the right amount of medium on the canvas will aid in blending everything together.
The best way to apply the Liquid Clear is to dip your brush into the medium then dab it all over the canvas. After you’ve dabbed it, then you start to spread it around. But, you don’t paint it on like you’re painting a fence. With this medium, you have to spread it around and scrub it in. Really get tough with it. Don’t worry, you’re not going to hurt your brush.
Make sure the medium is spread evenly. To do this, I use the light of the room or outdoors. For example, I look at the canvas at different angles to pick out dry spots. Remember, you don’t need a lot of medium. Once it’s completely covered, take a dry brush or a shop towel and lightly wipe the surface. The medium you need should remain on the surface. Now it’s time to apply the base color.
How I Painted Forest Nebula and Lessons Learned
Base Color
You apply the base color the same way you would any other sky. Use the little criss-cross or figure eight strokes. Blend the transition of colors with a clean, dry brush. This can get a little tricky if you can’t see the colors. The Liquid Clear will aid in blending.
You can see roughly where each color is placed in the sky. The nice thing about the colors used in the sky is that you only have to wash the brush once. After applying the Indian Yellow, you can go right into the Alizarin Crimson. The crimson will blend with the yellow and make a nice orange tone that transitions nicely into the crimson section. There’s a small area of Pthalo Green. I suggest watching the brush after applying the crimson then putting in the green. Then you can go right into the Pthalo Blue and work your way around the rest of the sky area. Into the Prussian Blue and Midnight Black.
Sky
This sky came out pretty well overall, I feel. I was impressed. The colors are stunning! This technique, very similar to Golden Sunset, was really cool to try and it was amazing seeing it come to life. However it wasn’t easy! I had trouble similar to the Golden Sunset sky. When I applied the white paint, it didn’t seem to pick up the color as easily as it does in Nick’s version. It looked sort of chalky. A remedy is to add more base color over the white and keep blending until you’re happy with the overall value and brightness, Blend with a clean, dry brush. Always blend from light to dark. So in this case from the yellow to the crimson to the blue.
The technique for applying the white is similar to applying the base color I explained above. The only difference is loading the brush. Load it like you would any other brush, getting the paint thick right on the tip. After applying the white to the Indian Yellow area, wash the brush before you apply more white. That is only if you want to make the horizon brighter. That’s up to you. After you have finished bringing out the yellow, you can go up into the other colors just like applying the base color.
Nebula
Now here is something completely new and exciting I’ve never tried before. The nebula effect. The basic method for creating the colored sky has been tried in Golden Sunset and Northern Lights to an extent. The nebula effect creates a whole new element. And it’s quite simple and fun to do!
Load up the fan brush with titanium white and place the brush handle between the palms of your hands. Wherever you decide to start the nebula, fire the paint right in there and roll the brush between your hands like you’re rubbing your hands together but keep the brush moving upward on the canvas as you do this. Wipe off the brush, reload and hit it again with the same technique. You can do this as many or as few times as you want.
Once you have the paint in there, it’s going to be a bit thick. This is where you take the two inch brush and fluff it around much like a cloud. We’re talking a very light touch. Three hairs and some air. If you think about it, it’s just a big cloud anyway so treat it as such.
Stars
The stars are easier than you would think. The key is getting the right mixture. In about equal parts, mix a bit of titanium white, liquid white, and paint thinner all together on the palette. The consistency you want is hard to explain. Not as thin as water but not quite as thick as the liquid white. Just play with the mixture a bit and see what works.
Now that we have the mixture we like, it’s time to add some happy stars. There are two ways to do this. The way Nick demonstrates in his video is using the knife and the fan brush. Load the fan brush with the thin white mixture then lightly brush the bristles across the tip of the knife in a forward motion. Start slow and start in the brightest part of the painting to get the feel of it and test the consistency. Once you have that down you can move up the canvas while flicking the paint. Don’t overdo it though. You don’t want to cover the whole sky with stars.
The other way to flick the stars is by using an old toothbrush and the knife. Pull the old toothbrush through the thin white mixture and lightly run the bristles across the knife edge in a forward motion. I have found that the toothbrush creates smaller, more subtle star indications. I don’t know how but that’s what I have found when I tried it.
Foreground
The rest of this painting can be painted any way you like. You could add a mountain or any feature from your favorite Bob Ross painting. I stuck to the painting that Nick did. It’s pretty simple overall. The key thing to remember is to not make the highlights too bright. It’s a night seem with some low ambient light so you just want to add indications of some highlight just to create a bit of depth.
Final Thoughts
Wow! I have to say. I surprised even myself! The thing I struggled with the most was the splatter to create the stars. My mixture was either too thick or I wasn’t flicking it the right way to apply the paint. Other than that, I think it looks awesome. This was another popular one. I ended up giving this one to one of my cousins as a gift. I eventually did it again a few months later for another cousin of mine. Learning this technique came in handy for a few future paintings. I certainly had a lot of fun with this one. I truly experienced the joy of painting. If you do this one I hope you experience the same thing.
I hope you enjoy this painting. Give it a shot yourself then share a link to a photo of your rendition. Have a question? Comment below. Subscribe to my blog to stay up to date and be notified when a new post is live and learn more about the Bob Ross method and how far it can take you as a new artist. As I just mentioned, this one is no longer available However you can see what else I have available in my Art Store. You can also follow me on all my social media sites.
Happy Painting!
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