Granite Canyon - Watercolor Painting Process

Granite Canyon - Watercolor Painting Process

I typically stick to bright colors and blue skies, but this foggy morning called for me to paint it. I woke up on my first morning in the Teton mountains. As I climbed out of my tent to the crisp, damp air I felt like I was in a dream. But I wasn't, I was just in one of the most beautiful backpacking destinations in the U.S. Behind the mountains of Grand Teton National Park there is an area only accessible by hiking. This is where the Teton Crest Trail leads you. And this is where I was on that lovely, moody morning. 

As I go through these pictures I hope you feel like you are seeing our campsite come to life through my painting. I hope that you are drawn into the landscape and feel the calm and coolness of the mountain land.

I started with a sketch. 

Then added the soft clouds of the sky and light greens of the landscape.

This cloudy sky is probably my favorite that I've ever painted. I did it in two layers, wetting the entire sky each time so that everything was soft and smooth without sharp edges.

One of my favorite details about the painting lies in the tall tree in the foreground. I painted the top part dark and bold, then keeping the branch of the tree wet I transitioned to a lighter color with more yellow, then back. This part of the tree was in some fog so that detail helped to make it more realistic.

Before the last layer of grass.

And here it is complete. Get the original here. Prints coming soon - sign up for my email list to be notified.

Thank you for reading.

Sincerely,

Kimberlee

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1 comment

Beautiful painting

Barb Dickson

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