Yosemite Skies | Explorations of Color

These paintings were inspired by a gorgeous sky I photographed on a recent trip to Yosemite National Park.

Here is “Yosemite Sky (Violet and Gold.)”

I began with an earth-toned underpainting of burnt umber, then glazed over this with a warm gold, then added more layers of color on top.

I took the photos of this stunning location during the day, but decided to paint the sky in wild colors which became a fantasy sunset.

The trees reach so high up into the open dome of the sky above!

The color scheme is based around the complimentary colors of the buttery golden-yellow of the clouds and the lavender of the sky.

A deeper shade of violet shows up in the trees below.

These colors feel even more vibrant alongside the pops of magenta and deep green throughout the trees.

While the trees are mostly in silhouette against the brightness of the sky, when you look closely you will see they are full of color.

The painting continues around the edges of the canvas.

And here is Yosemite Sky (Emerald and Teal.)

The colors in this painting are harmonious cool colors of blue and green which are near each other on the color wheel.

Again, I started with an earth-toned underpainting then built up layers of color on top.

Although this painting is done in cool colors, they have a warm undertone, which I achieved by starting with a warm golden underpainting.

A hint of that warm glow shows through the clouds in the top of the sky.

The bright teal in the background is a loud, happy color that is not seen in nature except in tropical oceans. This color is interesting and beautiful as the background of a forest scene.

Pops of white sky shine through the tree branches as hundreds of tiny dots of negative space.

The shades of green foliage shift to violet in the darkest shadows, so dark it almost appears black.

Small hints of the warm earthy underpainting shine through in the many small details of the tree branches.

Because of this, the painting glows.

You may also remember my recent painting, Yosemite Sky (Orange and Blue.)

All three of these paintings are unique, even though they are images of the same location and time. This shows just how powerful a tool color can be, when composing a painting.

Feel free to contact me with any questions about purchasing the originals, or if you’d like to order prints of these paintings.

Paintings by Cedar Lee: Left: Yosemite Sky (Violet and Gold). Right: Yosemite Sky (Emerald and Teal).

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Yosemite Skies | Explorations of Color

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