Working with Light 2

When I worked on the painting of the canyon at sunset, I really enjoyed the focus on light and the warm look I created. I wanted to do something like this again, so I thought of another setting where light is the focus. A fireplace lighting up a living room came to mind, so I began to sketch out an idea. I used a reference image for the fire itself, but the rest I just sketched out as it came to mind. I quickly used colored pencils to color in the sketch and get an idea of how I wanted it to look. Once I had a good idea, I sketched out the drawing on a bigger piece of paper.

I wanted the colors in the painting to be bolder than in the sketch, especially around the fireplace. I wanted there to be a rich red-orange-brown color, so that's what I started out with. Then I lightly brushed some red-violet on top in some spots to add some texture and shadow. I also used this darker color on top of the mantle where the light doesn't reach quite as well. Then on the inside of the fireplace, I lightened the color to more of a yellow-orange to make it brighter.

Then I mixed some dark brown with blue to get a pretty dark color. I used this for parts of the fireplace, and then I painted some of the objects above the fireplace, such as the pictures, mirrors, the candle, the bookshelf, the door, and the night sky view out the window. After that I painted a light yellow outline around the fire and left the center a bright white. I painted the firewood with browns and orange.

I finished the objects above the fireplace, such as the vase with the flowers in it, and then I added the shadows behind all the objects and lightly painted the wall. I also began painting the rug with a greenish color.

Next I finished the rug and the window, painted some books and the wood floor, and began work on the armchairs and people. Throughout all this, I added bits of yellow and orange in the different places that would reflect the firelight.

I finished by painting the rest of the armchairs, people, and books. This is the final painting.

I like how it turned out and am pleased with it, especially since I don't do many drawings or paintings from my imagination. I especially love how the fire and the bricks of the fireplace turned out. I enjoyed working with light again!