How to Paint a River with a Brige | Acrylic Landscape Painting Tutorial

Learn how to paint this river with a bridge and quint town using acrylics in this painting tutorial. Artist Ashley Krieger is traveling and painting in all 50 U.S. states. Today she takes you to New Hampshire to capture the New England charm of Henniker, New Hampshire.  I hope you learn a lot and enjoy this video as she paints plein air. ​

While we were in New Hampshire it rained and it rained hard almost all week. We had streams flowing on both sides of our camper. So playing outside was a wet, muddy disaster. I would normally not care about muddy kids, but laundry is a bit different when you live in an RV. We went to a museum and a submarine to pass the time and both were fun. Most of our time was spent in the RV playing Legos, I'm still finding legos. The last two evenings were clear and so I was able to paint this lovely bridge. As we drove to find a good spot to paint I kept seeing things that I would have loved to enjoy if only the weather would have cooperated. I felt like we got gipped while we were here. But that's all "water under the bridge," we still love you New Hampshire, and we will be back again. This bridge is found in downtown Henniker, New Hampshire. This town is charming and kept it's New England style charm. I just had to paint this lovely town that makes you feel relaxed and right at home. 

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Learn How to Paint a River with a Bridge

You can find the acrylic art supplies use here. I also used metallic gold and silver Liquitex heavy body acrylic paints. Watch the tutorial to see what colors I used and when. ​​

Watch the Video Tutorial

How to Paint a River with a Bridge, Step by Step...

Step 1 - Paint the composition. Because this landscape has a lot going on, it's important to sketch it out. I use a light colored paint and my small flat brush. I don't worry about mistakes...I just paint over them to get the general idea of where everything is at. 

Step 2 - Paint sky. It's important to start with the sky so you can paint the trees and buildings over it. I use a bigger flat brush and mix of blue, white, and grey. My brush strokes go side to side. I don't worry about going over my sketch with paint, I already have the general idea of where things are at back there. I also don't white canvas showing up in the gaps of my trees. If you want to paint in clouds, do so, but it isn't necessary.

Step 3- Paint the trees. This is a mix of my sky color and green (phthalo and emerald). This is just the first layer. You want to get the trees down where they are next to the background. You can add details later. Let it dry. 

Step 4 - Paint the water. Paint the first layer of your water. I just paint in the basic colors that I see. 

Step 5 -  Paint the bridge. I used my gold, white, and a grey made with purple. Paint in the basic colors. The reflection of the bridge will be in your water. To get the look of bricks use a flat 1/2" brush and use the brush strokes seen in the video. 

Step 6 - Paint in your buildings. Make sure your trees are dry or the color will blend into your buildings and it won't look as sharp. You're looking for the basic shapes, their size and where they are located next to each other. Don't look at the buildings as a whole or you will find your buildings will be off. I use the colors I have already made up on my palette. This will make the painting have more harmony.

Step 7 - Paint in details. Watch the videos to see how I added more details to the trees to separate them. I also concentrated more on the homes and the bridge because they were the focal point. You can get as detailed as you want per your own style and preferences. Be creative!

Step 8 - Finish the water. You will want to add more reflection in the water and again more detail before you go on to the next step. 

Step 9 -  Paint the foreground. There is no need to get too detailed as this is not the focal point. However this is where the most contrast will be noticed against the water. I use a dark purple and black to paint in the trees framing in the focal point.

Step 10 - Look back and make any changes you need. This is where the final touches are important. Sign your work and your done!

Thank you for watching!

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