SPECIALTY PROGRAM

Painting Mood and Atmosphere

in Gouache
Ship On the High Seas

OVERVIEW
In this assignment we have a scene from WWII. The aging merchant ship is riding a heavy sea haunted
by the everpresent U-boats. The day is dark and moody with a hopeful burst of sun from the right. This
is, as with nearly all of these assignments, an invention of my memory and some imagination.
The tendency will be to attempt to copy every brushstroke in my finished image which will tend to make
your version stiff and very slow going. I encourage you to work on the general shapes of the dark and
lighter areas. The pencil shows the approximate areas in which a value exists. Don't labor over intricate
edges since in gouache we can come back and refine edges at our leisure. If you squint at the finish, the
dark water shapes will reduce to four fairly simple shapes. The lighter intrusions into these shapes are
just that. What follows will be a number of images frozen at important stages of execution, with notes
regarding important issues we must deal with at each stage. Think carefully and try to apply bold fresh
strokes without touching them again.

Preserving the Traditions of the Masters

© Watts Atelier of the Arts, LLC, 2013 www.wattsatelier.com 1
 SPECIALTY PROGRAM
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MATERIALS
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Preserving the Traditions of the Masters

© Watts Atelier of the Arts, LLC, 2013 www.wattsatelier.com 2
1
 SPECIALTY PROGRAM
Painting Mood and Atmosphere
in Gouache
Ship On the High Seas

Wet the board and apply a

thin, slightly reddish orange
wash over the entire sky
and water with the most
concentrated areas in the
sky. While this is still damp,
mix Ultramarine and a bit
of orange and with long
strokes using a #14 brush,
develop the darker wispy
clouds and the thin smoke.
When satisfied with the sky,
paint the dark areas of water
and the ship with the same hue as the clouds. You will find that mixing ample amounts of this color will
allow you to move forward while the board is still damp. Don't fuss with the tiny detail areas of the water
as they can and will be trimmed and detailed as we progress. It is probably a good idea to do the ocean first
and then the ship as it is a contained shape with many edges that should be done carefully.

Before moving on: the oranges or the darks in the sky may seem weak after drying. You can re-wet the
board again and starting with the pale orange, apply some more color and follow with any darkening of
the clouds. Be careful to work mostly inside the cloud shapes as they will fuzz out a bit. Use long easy
strokes with the ruler as a guide to steer the strokes, bending the brush along its edge to get lazy curves.
Don't hurry...relax. Next,
with Ultramarine Blue and
Alizarin Crimson with a bit
of green, paint in the dark
areas of the waves. The back-
sides are the same color
lightened with white and a
touch more green. Don't get
it too light, keep it cool and
quiet. Paint in the slightly
greener waves on the right.
Paint in the pale orange
areas on the sea next. Darken
the ship and add the cool
spray deck run-off areas.

Preserving the Traditions of the Masters

© Watts Atelier of the Arts, LLC, 2013 www.wattsatelier.com 3
 SPECIALTY PROGRAM
Painting Mood and Atmosphere
in Gouache
Ship On the High Seas

If upon drying the waves seem too light, using a thin wash of the original dark side of wave color,
re-apply with a large flat brush over the entire ocean. This may make your cool backside and bright lit
side of wave too dark, but the smooth results of overall darker value is worth it. Repeat this again after
drying if necessary. Repaint the cool areas now if they seem dark, but using shallow crisscross strokes,
leave some of the darker value showing through. Feel free to completely cover some areas. Add the
not-too-bright orange sea accents again with a few much brighter spots as below. There is a spray line
of dark blue-green along ship side. It must be softened delicately with a damp brush along with the
run-off from the deck. The ship itself is mostly one value with only subtle color variations, so just add
a few darker horizontals and a vertical or two and some slightly lighter marks. A few orange highlights,
well-placed and blurred with a moving finger then re-accented, will seem to be shining through the
spray. Study the highlights and added indications of detail below and remember: nothing too bright
or too dark. A feeling of general softness, achieved with repeated strokes of a damp brush will look
much better than many sharp screaming edges and contrasts. When glazing over use enough water to
flow easily and when painting opaque areas use much less water. Wet any bad area, and blot gently to
remove paint...let dry. Be patient and don't panic.

Preserving the Traditions of the Masters

© Watts Atelier of the Arts, LLC, 2013 www.wattsatelier.com 4
 SPECIALTY PROGRAM
Painting Mood and Atmosphere
in Gouache
Ship On the High Seas

The final stages of the process are to soften or sharpen-up edges throughout the painting and adjust
any colors that appear too light or too dark. Add detail as you see in the finish image but no more. We
don’t have a photo for reference and too much faking will get us in trouble. Additionally, if you over-
detail any portion of a painting, you must over-detail every other portion to maintain a consistent
look! Even at this stage, use the largest brush you can to execute any strokes you apply. Small brushes
on large areas result in an uneven and spotty look.

Preserving the Traditions of the Masters

© Watts Atelier of the Arts, LLC, 2013 www.wattsatelier.com 5