{"id":200,"date":"2026-04-11T20:16:41","date_gmt":"2026-04-11T20:16:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mfrancismccarthy.art\/?p=200"},"modified":"2026-04-11T20:16:41","modified_gmt":"2026-04-11T20:16:41","slug":"the-edge-of-light-15-minute-painting-demonstration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mfrancismccarthy.art\/?p=200","title":{"rendered":"The Edge of Light – 15 Minute Painting Demonstration!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/y6N7kgkoYuw\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Lessons in Color, Scale, and Painting Smart<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The painting I’m bringing you today is called The Edge of Light<\/em>. It’s a 4 painting I’m bringing you today is called The Edge of Light<\/em>. It’s a 4 by 6, and I painted this last week, but it took me a while to do, mostly because little Jerry had a problem and I had to stay home with him. He’s a good boy, but very excitable, and he definitely interrupts the flow in the studio.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I’m really happy with this painting and excited to present it to you. It’s got a lot of chroma, a lot of interesting color, and it’s a scene I painted before, larger, over ten years ago. That was a very successful painting. I’m looking at it right now in my office. But there were things about it that I’ve learned since that just aren’t that great, and I’m hoping to share that insight with you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Learning from the Past<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

When I painted this scene before, it was 10 by 14. This is 4 by 6, pretty close proportions. But those little hills in the back were just as high as the horizon line. That’s not going to be a hill, that’s going to be sky. They actually went up quite a bit higher.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even though I did my best to integrate them, I didn’t have as many skills back then with stepping things in the distance down a certain way, or understanding the necessity of proper proportion between forms. At a casual glance, this painting looks very similar to the original, but there are quite a few more distinct improvements. That’s why I think this is a big success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Clich\u00e9s and Authenticity<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of the defining characteristics of this painting is the intense color in the sky. There’s going to be really intense color coming in on that grass before we’re done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I’ve been indulging in extreme sky color for quite a while now. This is after initially, when I first started painting, not really wanting to do sunrise or sunset because I thought they were clich\u00e9d and hackneyed. And to be honest, they probably are. But I just don’t care anymore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here’s the way I see it: everything’s been done, but not everything’s been done by you. That’s the way to look at things. Express yourself your way and it will always be unique, even if you’re making a study after another painter. Your uniqueness is intrinsically valuable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But it’s only going to be intrinsically valuable. It won’t actually be valuable in the external world until you develop some painting chops. And the way to do that is by making a lot of paintings. I mean one a day. Even bigger paintings shouldn’t take any longer than this 4 by 6.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Secret: Brushes and Mindset<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I’ve done much larger paintings in the same amount of time. The real secret, and you know I’m always giving away all my secrets here, is bigger brushes and outlook mindset.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I used to have an outlook on larger works that said, “Oh, that’s definitely going to take more time.” And you know what? You charge more money for them. That’s largely a function of the fact that they’re larger and more significant in people’s lives. They cost more to frame. They take up more room on the gallery wall, so you need greater income from that space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But from your standpoint as the actual painter, the size of the painting is something you need to deal with and adjust to. It doesn’t mean it’s going to take you more time. You might physically take a little more time to cover the area, but if you scale up your brush, that won’t be the case. You’d be surprised.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ground Color: One of Your Most Important Decisions<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Lately, I’ve been doing my underpaintings with burnt umber. I got a tube of Georgian burnt umber, which is nice paint but has less pigment load and is more transparent. That forced me to adapt, adding Mars black to get it darker, but that uglies it up a little. So I’ll add some burnt sienna to pretty it up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think every aspect of your painting should be pretty or beautiful in some way. If it’s dull and flat, it’s not as beautiful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ground color is really, in so many ways, one of the most significant decisions you’ll make. I’ve experimented with a lot of colors. I used to be really big on painting on a burnt sienna tone, which is highly effective because it’s a brilliant counter to all the greens, and green is one of the most predominant things in landscape painting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then I went more extreme, painting on a dark burnt umber tone for quite a while. Then I tried painting on hardboard prepped with transparent color. The problem with that is it actually ended up having more saturation than you’d think. In this painting, you’ll see little bits of that brown board peeking through even in the sky, and it doesn’t bother you. It’s fine. You never even notice it. It’s like I painted that color.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Managing Chroma: The Umber Trick<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You can go very chromatic. No problem. But let me tell you, if you were taking a crack at a scene like this without some of the knowledge I’ve acquired over time, you’d find that your chroma was too much. It was too saturated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here’s the tip: when I mix a highly chromatic color, I tend to knock it down with a little bit of either raw umber or burnt umber. If I did nothing else in my painting but that, it would be 100% valuable. Burnt umber is a big component of my underpainting process, and the board color matters too. These are things we’ve talked about, and I might do another easel talk on ground color because it’s really one of the most significant decisions you’ll make.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fresh Brushstrokes and Avoiding Overwork<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I’m not a speed painter, but I do believe in getting your paintings done in an expedient manner. It doesn’t make sense to overdo things because all it tends to bring in is tightness and artificiality, which isn’t conducive to the lifting that you want people to feel when they look at your work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even if it’s dark and tonal, it should have a bit of looseness and freshness so people can actively engage with it. If you overdo it, and I’m speaking from experience, you put that painting up on the easel again and again, and you lose all the fresh brushstrokes. What’s great about those fresh brushstrokes is that they’re your immediate reaction to the reference. To leave that is really one of the greatest lessons any painter can learn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Value of Live Sessions<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I do think the live sessions are really more valuable than the cavalcade of tips you get in the 15-minute videos. But one doesn’t replace the other, they’re two different things. Ultimately, being able to record while you’re there, fighting the fight, making the painting happen in real time, it can’t be beat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There’s a reason Bill Alexander, who taught Bob Ross, is, in my opinion, a better painter than Bob. Bill was the real deal. Bob got more famous, but Bill’s work speaks for itself. And yes, Bob had a completed painting behind the easel that we couldn’t see. That’s speed painting for you. It’s a great technique, but it’s not how I work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

I hope you enjoyed watching me put this painting together. I think it’s very beautiful. Until I come back very soon, God willing, with another video for your edification and enjoyment, do me a favor. Take care of yourself, your family, all your loved ones. Stay out of trouble. Fight the power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Take care of yourself, your family, all your loved ones. Stay out of trouble. Fight the power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mike New Site<\/a> | The Book<\/a> | Gallery<\/a> | YouTube<\/a> | Members Area<\/a> | My Music<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

M Francis McCarthy, Your Painter in Residence<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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