For October Vevie and the Virtual Paintout gang took off for ... Lima, Peru. Hola!!
First, I visited (via Google Street View) a tourist attraction: Park of the Legends. Beautifully manicured, lovely gardens, trees, flowers, water sculptures. Playgrounds and zoo animals for the kids, and a mini Machu Peechu. Felt too... touristy.
Second, I visited the downtown city. Huge buildings, streets teeming with cars and people, colorful businesses. Felt too... impersonal.
Third, I traveled to the outskirts, scouting for rural beauty. I almost cried at the poverty. Crumbling husks of homes, barefoot kids, shacks stacked up the mountainsides... where people LIVED. Felt too... heart-breaking.
Lastly, by chance, I traveled up an extremely steep mountain road. Along the way, I passed all three types: touristy spots, businesses, and obvious poverty. Yet this road led them all to the same place: the huge stone cross statue called Cruz del Cerro San Cristobal, a famous landmark in Peru.
This last location made me smile. We are all the same in our Hearts. We all need hope, love, and meaning in our lives . And to help each other get on up that road. Cuz sometimes it gets steep!
And that's why I was originally going to call this painting "Uphill".
It was a joy to paint this from my heart, and not worry about being judged, or about performing. See... this is a Landscape. A Landscape doesn't "usually" have graphic design added! But after seeing this beautiful country and pictures of their culture and art, I wanted to include design work to represent these creative people. Here then is "Uphill, Peruvian Style."
My Google street view scene (can click on any pics to enlarge):
And the "making of" pics...
I played with color
schemes in Photoshop:
Sketched in with sepia pencil:
I enjoy the look of the wrap around image:
For the values I used yellow ochre
and red oxide:
Decided to start the design first,
to better gauge the colors needed
for the landscape part:
Fun toning the canvas with
pink and orange:
Ultramarine blue and
cerulean blue added:
Continuing with color and details,
refining the clouds and road:
Done! and drying on the easel:
Design close up:
Cruz del Cerro San
Cristobal close up:
And Vevie won't let
me get away without
her own close up:
"Uphill, Peruvian Style"
Cruz del Cerro San Cristobal
Lima, Peru
9 x 12 acrylics
on wrapped canvas
Vevie (rhymes with Stevie)
my Virtual Paintout muse
Retta
