Lake Eyre

The painting for this demonstration is a picture of Lake Eyre in South Australia. It is an interesting example of the power of Nature overtaking man’s futile attempts to conquer the land.

- John Murray

MATERIALS

• Artists’ canvas.
• Artists’ acrylic paints.
• Chalk.
• Selected brushes.
• Turps-based varnish.

STEP ONE

I have drawn in my initial lines and composition with chalk. This can be easily reworked or removed with a cloth, leaving no pencil lines or commitment.

Next, I establish my light source by blocking in the poles and shadows with paint. In this case, the light shines from right to left.

STEP TWO

Even though I am going to have a white surface of the salt lake in the finished picture; in trying to establish the feel of the hot earth under the salt pan, I have applied washes of earthy tones as my underpainting.

STEP THREE