When the wrong end of the brush is right.

I saw this old barn in Canada and I’m assuming it’s an old dairy farm barn. At least it reminds me of one. I was attracted to the look of the barn and its texture. If you read down you’ll see how I achieved the look of the wood on the barn. Be sure to click on any of the images for a larger view!

First I started with the door opening of the barn and worked out from there.

Simple enough. However, when it was time to start on the side of the barn, I wondered how to achieve the texture of the grayish black wood on the barn. To get the look I wanted, I first applied a thin mixture of a blackish gray tone to the white canvas. I then over-painted it with a heavier paint application. This is where the wrong end of the brush was right! With a T-square resting on the top edge of my canvas I placed the “wrong” end of the brush, (end of the wooden handle) next to the T-square and scored vertical lines into the wet paint which resulted in it removing the paint and exposing the lighter tone underneath. I then softened the effect with the “right” end of the brush.

Using this simple “trick” I was able to effectively capture the look and texture of the old barn!

The following images reflect the painting’s progress.

After this stage I begin to work back into the distance adding detail as well as in the foreground.

From here I paint in the chickens and continue with my detail work in the foreground adding more grasses.

Finally I make adjustments in the sky and finishing details.