The Color and Structure of Clouds
from Skip Whitcomb
Clouds are a fascinating and essential element in landscape painting. Their shape, movement, and, most importantly, their color structure bring depth and atmosphere to a scene. Understanding how light interacts with clouds is crucial for artists who wish to paint them realistically. In this post, we’ll explore cloud formations, their structural dynamics, and how color perspective affects them.
Understanding Cumulus Clouds
Most clouds in landscape paintings are cumulus clouds, recognized by their flat bottoms and billowing tops. These clouds change in appearance depending on their distance from the observer. One key principle to remember is:
Closer clouds have warmer bottoms and cooler tops.
Distant clouds have cooler bottoms and warmer tops.
Why does this happen? The clouds closest to us are influenced by the landscape beneath them. A warm landscape reflects warm hues onto the cloud bases. As clouds recede into the distance, the land underneath becomes more shadowed and cooler, affecting the color temperature of the cloud bottoms accordingly.
Desert Sky by Edgar Payne
Atmospheric Perspective and Cloud Color
Edgar Payne, a master of landscape painting, observed and captured these effects masterfully. In his paintings, you can see how the transition from warm cloud bottoms in the foreground to cooler cloud bottoms in the background creates depth and realism. This same principle applies to snow-capped mountains, where snow appears warmer in the distance due to atmospheric perspective.
Another essential element is the gradation of color in the sky. At the horizon, the sky is often a delicate turquoise or yellow-green. As it ascends, it deepens into a rich, darker blue. This transition adds a dynamic quality to the painting and enhances the perception of vastness.
Case Studies in Cloud Painting
Maynard Dixon’s work showcases how warm cloud bottoms transition into cooler ones as they recede. His compositions also highlight the importance of sky gradation, from warm tones near the horizon to deep blues at the top.
Jerry Weiss, known for painting on location, applies these principles effectively. His works illustrate the shift in cloud temperature and contrast. Close clouds are bright and warm, while distant clouds are more subtle and cool.
Garrodny, a Russian painter, excels at capturing soft edges in clouds. Clouds should not have overly sharp edges, as they are composed of water vapor and behave similarly to smoke. Hard edges can make clouds appear cut out and unnatural.
Desert Totems by Skip Whitcomb
The Pitfalls of Relying on Photographs
While photographs are useful references, they often distort color relationships. Cameras struggle to capture the subtle warm-to-cool transitions that occur in real life. To compensate for this, artists should exaggerate warm tones in foreground clouds and cool tones in the background when painting from photos.
The Key Takeaways for Painting Clouds
Close clouds have warm bottoms and cool tops.
Distant clouds have cool bottoms and warm tops.
The sky gradates from warm near the horizon to deep blue at the top.
Soft edges are crucial for realistic clouds.
Photos don’t always capture color accurately, so adjust accordingly.
The best way to master cloud painting is to observe and paint them in real life. Get outside, study the sky, and take note of the warm and cool shifts. By practicing these principles, you’ll gain confidence in capturing the beauty of clouds in your landscape paintings.
Join Skip Whitcomb’s mentorship course, The Power of Orchestrated Color, and elevate your painting skills with expert guidance. Skip will show you how to use color temperature to create depth and spatial relationships, craft balanced compositions with subtle variations of color and value, and much more: