Paint a field of poppies using Acrylic Colour

In this beautiful little project we use Studio Acrylic Paint to create a colourful and fun field of poppies with a backdrop of mountains in the distance under a summer sky. Mont Marte Studio Acrylics are an ideal paint for beginners, students and anyone who wants to give painting a go.

Step 1. Transferring the image.

The outline of all the elements can be transferred onto the canvas with a HB graphite pencil. The suggested outline is on page 6. Although it is very easy, ensure the mountains lie in the correct position. This is 1/3 of the way down the canvas. Place in the profile shape of each poppy.

Step 2. Painting the sky.

For the sky I lay out some White, Lemon Yellow, Crimson Red, Phthalo Blue, Cyan Blue and Cerulean Blue. First lay in some Cyan into the top of the area then mix a little white in to the Cerulean and paint this a slightly lighter colour from the top of the mountains and blend it into the first tone. While the coat is still wet I roughly blend some Phthalo Blue into the top part of the sky. I then lay in some pinkish clouds created from 1 part Crimson to 4 parts White and a touch of Lemon Yellow. Lay these clouds into the central part of the sky and soften the edges. Next lay in some Titanium White across the bottom of the mountain line and create fluffy clouds up into the sky. Soften the edges.

Step 3. Painting the mountains.

The mountains can be broken into 3 main tones. The first tone is a burgundy tone created from 2 parts Crimson to 1 part Phthalo. Lay this into the closest set of mountains. To this mix add 1 part White and then paint the mountain in the middle area. For the farthest mountain create a mix from 1 part White to 1 part Cyan and a touch of burgundy. Lay this tone in and let it dry. Next lay some pure Cyan into the lower portion of the mountains closest to the viewer. Lay in some pure Crimson into the top of the mountains and drag it into the blue. Finally create a very weak glaze of water with a touch of Crimson and lay it into the rear mountains. Ensure the glaze is very weak though. You still want those mountains to be a blue tone.

Step 4. Painting the foreground.

The first step in the foreground is to lay a mixture of Sap Green and Crimson from the base of the mountains to the bottom of the canvas. Darkening a green with red is a really good way to darken the colour cleanly. Use a flat brush and cut around the areas that have been pencilled in for the poppies. Let this coat dry. Next squeeze out some Orange, Cerulean, Lemon Yellow and Emerald Green. Start by laying some Orange dabs into the middle ground. Add some Cerulean dabs in below the Orange and whilst you have this colour, lay it in long strokes into the base of the foreground. Next add some Emerald spots into the Orange. Concentrate the dabs around the centre of the canvas and let some of the Orange show through in parts. Like the Cerulean create vertical strokes below the flowers.

Step 5. Painting the poppies.

Poppies are a concave shape so there will be a shadow thrown across each flower. To suggest this start by creating a red from 2 parts Crimson Red to 1 part Phthalo Blue. Paint this into each flower. Use a filbert brush for this and lay it in thickly. Whilst this coat is still wet, mix a little Scarlet into the previous colour to lighten it slightly and roughly blend it into half of each flower. Let this coat dry. Next squeeze out some Scarlet and paint it over the lighter side of each flower. This will create a highlight for the side in full light. Add a few spots of Scarlet into the immediate foreground below the poppies as well. This will suggest partially hidden poppies and reinforce the busy nature of the scene. Next we need to create a rich brown colour for the central stamen area. Create this tone from 1 part Crimson Red, 1 part Sap Green and 1 part Phthalo Blue. Dab a spot into each flower. When you apply each dab, don’t place it centrally on every flower. The position of this dab of paint will indicate the angle of the poppy. So apply a few dabs slightly off centre. Once the dark mass of each stamen is in place a little spot of Titanium White in the middle of each of these dark points. The final step is to add a stem for each poppy. This can be created with a fine round brush and the rich brown mix used for the stamen.