The Spring Leaf

By J.Sivanvitha

This leaf is pictured reaching for the sunlight towards the sky. The sunshine reflects upon the leaf. Upon completion of the painting, we can see the sun glow and lights on the leaf which give life to the entire painting.

SUPPLIES:

White canvas board 10x10" #B07QG9VBVW Homestrap Art & Craft or any arts & crafts store.

PAINTS:

Plaid FolkArt:

Classic Green Multisurface 2917

Daffodil Yellow Multisurface 2912

Titanium White Multisurface 2938

Lime Green Multisurface 2914

Burnt Umber Multisurface 462

Pure Black Multisurface 2957

Yellow Ochre Multisurface 2910

Cobalt Blue Multisurface 2926

Look at Me Blue Multisurface 2924

Liquitex Paints:

Burnt sienna - PBk9

Prussian blue - PB153

https://cadenceboya.com/en/ (Editor's note- As this is a company from Turkey, I suggest using a paint similar in color from a paint company readily available in your area.)

Medium Yellow Multisurface H-008 Cadence

MEDIUMS:

Blending gel - 867 Folkart

Matte Sealer/ Finish Spray AS-13-7 Decoart

BRUSHES:

Flat Brush 3/4th inch 50603 Plaid

Flat Brush 1/2inch 50603 Plaid

Rigger round Size 0 BRAMBR12 Brustro

Flat brush Size 6 1059 Plaid

Scruffy brush 3/4th inch 1059 Plaid

Filbert brush Size 10 1205 Plaid

Flat brush 1 inch 50603 Plaid

Miscellaneous Supplies:

Paper towels

Pencils

Water bin

Pallet paper

Grey transfer Paper

Masking Tape

Preparation:

Initially place Prussian Blue, Cobalt Blue, Look at Me Blue, Titanium White as shown in the figure. Blend all the colors starting from light color (white) towards Prussian Blue in a circular direction. This will act as a bright sunny sky. When it is dried transfer the pattern.

Instructions:

Twigs:

Load the rigger brush #0 with Burnt Umber and paint the stem line and few twigs coming from outside branches.

For the fat twigs, load flat brush #6 with Burnt Umber and stroke them. These dark twigs appear to be front side.

Now a few twigs will be behind. For these backside twigs, load rigger brush #0 with Burnt Umber (80%) + White (20%) and paint them.

Highlight the twigs by loading rigger brush #0 with White (90%) + Burnt Umber (10%) and just paint some broken lines on a few twigs. This acts as a sunlight effect on the branches.

For the small fall leaves on twigs load the flat brush #6 with Burnt Sienna (90%) + Burnt Umber (10%) and with the corner of the flat brush, stroke a few random leaves. Now highlight by adding little medium yellow to the above mix and finally add little White to highlight those leaves.

Leaves:

There are orange and green shaded leaves here.

Orange shaded leaves:

Load 3/4th inch flat brush with Yellow Ochre (80%) + Burnt Umber (20%) and paint the complete leaf.

Sideload the 3/4th inch flat brush with Burnt Umber and stroke on the top side of the leaf with a tapping motion. Follow the shape of the leaf at the edges.

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Load the dry filbert brush #10 with very little Yellow Ochre (80%) + Medium Yellow (20%) and brush on the leaf till the dark color, without covering it completely. This paint should just lie on the canvas threadings.

Load the same dirty filbert brush #10 with more Medium Yellow this time and again brush in layers to form the highlights on the leaf. Finally, add a little White to the Medium Yellow and add the final highlight on the leaf.

Green shaded leaves:

For the green shade leaves basecoat the leaf with Classic Green. Sideload the 3/4th inch flat brush with Classic Green (70%) + Burnt Umber (30%) and add a shadow to the top edge of the leaf.

Load the dry filbert brush #10 with Medium Yellow in increments and brush in layers on top of the leaf towards the shadow. Add a few layers to form the highlight on the leaf.

To paint veins on the leaves load the rigger brush #0 with Burnt Umber and stroke thin veins towards the edge of leaf from the center vein.

On a few leaves, we see the sunlight, for this load the dry filbert brush #10 with a small amount of Medium Yellow and stroke a small portion on a few areas of the leaf. Incrementally add White to the Medium Yellow, stroke in layers, and form the sunlight highlights on the leaf. This should be done on the veins.

Bottom Leaves:

For the bottom small leaves, blend colors i.e., Medium Yellow and Burnt Umber (80%) + Burnt Sienna (20%). Highlight the top portion of the leaf with Burnt Sienna and the bottom side of the leaf by adding bits of White to Medium Yellow.

For the last final detail, load the 1-inch flat brush with blending gel. Sideload this brush with White and stroke along the outer edge of the leaf. Use the 3/4th inch scruffy brush to smooth out the shading.

Finishing:

Following the manufacturer's direction seal the surface with several light coats of Matte Spray Varnish, allowing appropriate drying time between coats.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD ORIGINAL WORD FILE

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD LINE DRAWING