Master Class - Rowland Hilder
Learning from a master artist
Winter elms silhouetted against a heavy winter sky. An farm house glowing faintly in the middle distance. The whole thing rendered in greys and earth colours so quiet you almost miss how much is going on. That’s a Rowland Hilder.
Time for another master class, a special edition of the workout where I recreate an exercise and a painting by an established master artist.
I came across Hilder by accident on a trip to the UK a couple of years ago, when I found a copy of “Painting Landscapes in Watercolour” in a second-hand bookshop. What struck me about his paintings was the muted colour palette, the clarity of the washes, and the use of black ink for the darkest values.
His approach to skies in particular runs counter to how I learned, and it’s always good to practise a different way to expand your repertoire.
So this week we’ll practise a Hilder sky, and then I’ll paint an English landscape from his book. The video demo is in the premium section below.
The Exercise
Hilder’s skies are all about glazing earthy and neutral tones. I chose a simple seascape with a low horizon and and a couple of boats for interest.
Start with a graduated wash of Raw Sienna, getting lighter as you get to the bottom of the page. Let it completely dry
With a light wash of Neutral Tint paint the clouds, leaving some sky areas.
Now paint in some blue sky with Cerulean or Cobalt. I faded it out towards the left. Then I glazed some of the blue into the cloud for more interest
With a mix of blue and Neutral Tint put in the ocean, leaving a strip of light underneath the clouds
With a dark mix of Neutral Tint and Burnt Sienna I finish with the boats.
Why
Building the sky in layers gives you full control over edges and value, instead of using one wet wash for everything
The warm underwash carries through layers on top, giving the sky a unifying glow
Practising a restrained, atmospheric sky trains you to think in mood and value rather than reaching for bright colour by default
For Premium Subscribers:
Video demonstrations of the exercise
Video tutorial of a landscape à la Hilder using glazing
