Angry Sky

 Looking at my painting today I noticed I'd created a very angry sky.  The clouds appeared to be ominous like they're on the verge of breaking into a thunderstorm.  Not the peaceful sunrise I was aiming for. Time to cool it down.

Purple is a cool color. But this color appeared too aggressive in my clouds, probably because of all the yellow in the sky.  The contrast of these color opposites (aka-complementary colors) was too great.

 1.  I began to add a wash of blue to the left side of the sky. Not only did this cool down the temperature of the colors but it reinforce my focal point - the sunrise on the right.

2.  I still wanted the feeling of billowy clouds so I fluffed in some white.


3.  I brightened the horizon line with a wash of orange and pink.  Then I added a little more color to the ocean.  Before I finished the painting session I "cleaned" my palette by adding some color to my dunes and boardwalk,  I never like to waste paint.

Tonight I meet with my painting group and am ready for critique.  I can't wait for their feedback on my work!