Autumn Stream. Painting #84. How to Work With Happy Accidents.

Supple sky, fluffy trees and playful rushing river are created in this autumn painting, simply from correcting common mistakes on canvas

“This is your world. You’re the creator. Find freedom on this canvas.” – Bob Ross.

The Inspiration

Growing up in New England, I became quite accustomed to seasonal weather which included Autumn along with its cool, crisp temperatures, earlier sunsets, and color changing leaves. I always took the leaf changing for granted.
Living in England and Germany for half of my adult life, I did get the seasonal weather but the leaf colors were certainly not as vibrant as they are in New England. Now living in Florida, Autumn is all but non-existent. It’s still hot on the autumnal equinox. There are no colorful leaves that fall. It’s hard to get into the fall holiday spirit.

That is why I must paint the worlds I wish to be in. I love seasonal weather. I like the cold and snow in the winter and the heat of the summer. The transition from winter to Spring is one of my favorite times of year. This autumn, I wanted to be back home and feel the crisp air and see the colors of the leaves. Since I couldn’t make it home for this, I had to recreate something similar on the canvas with an autumn painting.

The inspiration for this is The Joy of Painting S11E13. I chose to follow this one because I liked the soft background and wanted to get a feel on how to do that. I also wanted play with the autumn type colors. Another reason I chose this one is so I could put my new Round Brush to work.

Colors

• Alizarin Crimson
• Bright Red
• Cadmium Yellow
• Dark Sienna
• Indian Yellow
• Midnight Black
• Phthalo Blue
• Prussian Blue
• Sap Green
• Titanium Hwite
• Van Dyke Brown
• Yellow Ochre
• Don’t forget the Liquid Hwite!

Equipment

• 2 Inch Brush
• 1 Inch Brush
• #6 Fan Brush
• Large Palette Knife
• Script Liner Brush
• Small Palette Knife
• Round Brush

Before We Begin/Medium Application

How to apply liquid white. The first thing to do with any Bob Ross painting is to apply the liquid hwite. The trick is to not apply too much.  Having the right amount of medium on the canvas will help lighten your value in the sky and aid in blending everything together.  

I learned that the best way to apply the liquid white is to dip your brush into the white then dab it all over the canvas. After you’ve dabbed it, then you start to spread it around. However, 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.  To check if you have applied the right amount, lightly press your fingers on different spots on the canvas. You should be able to see your fingerprint.  If you can’t, then you’ve put too much on.  Don’t worry.  Simply take a paper towel and lightly wipe the canvas.  The liquid white you need will remain on the surface.

How I Painted This Painting and Lessons Learned

This a great painting to learn how to work with happy accidents. Sometimes, you don’t get a highlight right or you accidently mix some mud. The beauty of oil painting, especially with this style, is that you can simply scrape the paint off and try again. The dark background color that you need is still there. You just reapply the highlight.

There were no real difficulties with this painting but I did learn a couple things. If you try this one, remember to use lighter colors in the background shadow area. This will make the foreground foliage stand out more giving it that autumn painting feel.

The round brush can be tricky. Apply the paint at an angle so the brighter paint goes towards the top. You want the paint to get darker the lower you go in the foliage. Then you want to start a new bush on top of the darker shadow color of the previous layer.

When you apply the dark base color of the foliage, don’t apply it so thick. You want a little bit of texture but not think paint. You will probably see Bob lay it on thick but I have found that you can get better results if you don’t apply such a thick layer of base color. The reason for this is that when you put the highlight color, it’s going to mix too much with the base color. So then when you try to lighten it up, you become a mud mixer. Sometimes you just have to do what works for you. That’s how you learn.

Final Thoughts

My favorite thing about this painting are the colors. I like the colors against the dark, blurred background. Gives it more depth. This painting reminds me of when I used to go hiking in New Hampshire when I was a little boy. My dad had a friend whose parents had a cabin in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. This cabin was at the base of a small mountain and there was a stream that ran right next to it. There was also a little hiking trail that ran along the stream. My father used to take me for walks down that trail. I was thrilled that I could recreate this autumn painting that reminds me of that stream in the fall. What does this painting remind you of? Let me know in the comments.

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. This painting ended up as a gift to a friend. If you want to see more of my work or see what’s for sale, check out my Art Store or Etsy Shop to see other paintings available. You can also follow me on all my social media sites. 

Happy Painting!