With the same immenseness as Caernarfon Castle, Conwy is going to be a good balance in the room. With the suspension bridge, modern meets historical – and was most tricky to paint!
Previous paintings in the series:
Caernarfon Castle – Raglan Castle – Criccieth Castle – Dolwyddelan
I’ve used for this painting
- Generic stretched canvas, 60x60cm
- Liquitex Professional Spray Paint: Parchment / Brilliant Purple / Dioxazine Purple
- Black and White Gesso
- DecoArt Media Ultra Matte Varnish
Technical thoughts… When painting with the rule of thirds in mind for the placement of the subject matter, one really ought to do the same with the background. If you look to the left of the painting, you can see I have placed the nominal horizon line half way up the canvas.
I had to make a decision with this painting whether to add a lighter tone of grey to further define the forms. It would also help the final painting in the series. For Conwy, this would be the highlights on the suspension cables and the main towers. I chose to not to, in part so all the paintings would match, but mainly because of yesterday’s thought that, at twilight, shadows and highlights would be less evident. I’m glad I didn’t, as again the sheer mass of the building is more effective in silhouette.