"Dreaming Together" My Newest Commission

June 16, 2021 Austin Howlett

For this commission I was contacted by someone who was hoping I could create this beautiful scene as a wedding present for his son and soon to be daughter-in-law. This exact spot on Dream Lake is where the couple got engaged and so he thought this would make for a very meaningful painting for them as they started their lifelong journey together.

I feel so fortunate that I was contacted about this project and that I was trusted to create this special piece on a tight timeline. I hope that this painting will bring joy to the happy couple as it hangs in their home for years to come.

My Newest Landscape Painting | Hallett Peak

March 29, 2020 Austin Howlett

In this painting of Hallett Peak I really wanted to showcase the depth of this incredible landscape so that the majesty of this peak could take center stage. In order to achieve this depth, I made sure to pay attention to a few technique aspects of every landscape.

The first is that objects that are far in the distance have less color saturation and a smaller range of value. The second this that large objects in the distance have more atmosphere between it and the viewer so its colors typically have more blue in them, particularly the shadows. These small adjustments allow this peak to fade into the distance of the painting creating a nice illusion. Another important aspect of this painting was all of the shadows. This photo was taken at sunset time so there are plenty of shadows in this scene. The two main shadows I wanted to pay attention to were the shadows case by Hallett Peak in the background but also the shadow cast by a peak that is actually behind the viewer and out of sight.

I was tempted to leave this shadow out of the painting but I realized that it nicely created the illusion of immersion in the painting so that the viewer really feels surrounded my mountains. Plus this shadow breaks up the composition of the foreground nicely and adds some movement. Overall I really enjoyed creating this piece and I’m excited to be turning it into a Terra Human painting soon!

As always this original painting is available to purchase in my online shop. Click here to view in the shop!

Terra Human | "Imprint"

March 20, 2020 Austin Howlett

My newest Terra Human painting “Imprint” is finished and available! This piece expresses how an environment can leave a lasting impact on us, bonding with us on a spiritual level in a way that allows us to learn something new about ourselves.

We often strongly identify with our surroundings growing up and this can influence what places bring us the most joy and introspection later in life. But we can also find a deep appreciate for new environments where significant moments take place. There are times when every aspect of a moment is perfect and this amount of bliss creates a strong tie to what surrounds you. Everything from what you see, to what you smell, to what you touch gets imprinted into your memory and this place is now a part of who you are. This location has now been saturated with incredibly strong emotions and it is almost impossible to separate the two. The joy you feel when you remember a perfect moment in a perfect place is almost intoxicating and it inspires you to explore and seek out more moments of bliss and perfection.

This piece is available to purchase in my online shop for $500. Click here to view this painting in the shop!

I really enjoyed creating this piece and the part I loved most about it was the colors. I love working with warm colors and was really nice to see how they create a mood. The intense sunlight made a variety of yellows, oranges and reds that really contributed to the overall look of the piece. My favorite detail of this piece has to be the light coming through her hair. From the initial stages of this piece I was really excited to paint her sunlit hair so when I finally painted this section I had a great time and it really made the lighting convincing.

Terra Human | "Between Light and Shadow"

March 9, 2020 Austin Howlett

My newest Terra Human painting is finally done! After weeks of tweaking, reworking and obsessing over minute details she is finally done! I really hope you enjoy this piece and please read the full description!

Process: I started this painting by using a grid on my reference image and then drawing the same grid onto my panel so I could accurately lay out my composition. After that I started to immediately paint the face because I knew it would take the longest and require the most accuracy. As you can see by the process images below I reworked the face several times and painted several layers in order to obtain the realism that I wanted.

As you can see in some of the later images, I experimented with many different abstractions in order to get the right look for the painting. There were several instances when I would paint a section like the window or her arm in a particular way and the next day I would changed it because I didn’t like how it looked. Overall I found this piece much more approachable by painting it in sections. I would mix up my color palette for a particular part of the piece and then only focus on that area for almost the whole day.

This original painting is available to purchase in my shop! CLICK HERE TO VIEW IT IN MY SHOP!

Description: “Between Light and Shadow” The concept of this painting is strongly linked into the techniques I employed to create it. The biggest hurdle I needed to overcome in this particular piece was how to properly observe and render this figure which has so many complex and nuanced shadows. And when I identified this issue I couldn’t help but see the parallel to the shadows in our lives. It is no secret that many of us feel shaded by experiences in our lives that we just cannot seem to brighten. These experiences may even define us for a certain amount of time and control our behaviors because they affected us so deeply. I even felt this way when I started painting the figure’s face and couldn’t seem to see any end in sight. I felt a bit lost in these darker values and couldn’t see the distinct differences between colors. It seemed like colors and values were getting muddled in the shadows making me think there was no beginning or end to my brush strokes.
But as I progressed with this painting and persevered to give it a chance to develop I started to discover that with time and effort these shadows presented rare opportunities. I began to see the subtle colors that can be found in shadows because of reflected light. I started to understand that theses shadows created an amazing contrast that made the highlights even brighter. The figure I was painting was no longer defined by the shadows that used to haunt her rather now her character was enhanced and clarified by the this darkness. The shadows now seemed to server as a backdrop for all of the light that is embracing her.
We all experience shadowing in our lives but as we grow we learn to create our own definitions of ourselves and we can choose the path that allow us to see the most light.
Thank you for reading!

Fall Paintings!

October 27, 2019 Austin Howlett

Hi everyone, sorry I haven’t posted in a while! I’ve kept myself super busy with new paintings that I would love to share with you right now! Fall in Colorado means that our aspen trees in the mountains begin to change and there is a small window of time to see them with their amazing yellow and gold colors. Luckily I was able to get up into the mountains on two separate weekends to enjoy the amazing views and take some great photos! These hikes and photos really inspired me to make several fall landscape paintings that showcase the amazing aspens we have in Colorado.

So here is my first fall landscape piece that I recently completed! I took the photo reference for this piece near Nederland Colorado around sunset time. I just loved how the aspens in the foreground framed the rest of the landscape and added a pop of color. I also really enjoyed how the clouds added some dynamic movement to the scene.

This piece is titled “Dancing Leaves” and is still available for purchase in my shop for $400. CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE!

My next fall landscape piece was also inspired by one of my photos near Nederland but on a different hike. The lighting of this one is very difference because the sun had mostly set behind the mountains at this point so there were a lot of shadows and just a few spots of sunlight hitting the trees. The lighting on this scene got me really excited to create this great piece so I hope you enjoy it!

This piece is titled “Autumn Sunlight” and has been sold to a private collector! Don’t worry, there are more to come!

"As One" A New Terra Human Painting!

August 7, 2019 Austin Howlett

I'm proud to bring you my newest Terra Human painting "As One.” Whenever I reflect on my artistic process its always safe to say that I’ve chosen a profession that requires an incredible amount in internal motivation that solely depends on my personal drive and dedication , and while working on this piece I felt constantly driven and inspired to create something that surpassed anything I've ever created. And by creating small attainable steps for myself everyday I was able to accomplish what I set out to do! So here is the final product along with a description. Below these you will find some process photos along with some descriptions of my painting process.

Painting Description

In this piece humans and nature breath as one. The divisions that we have insisted on for generations have evaporated and we finally see ourselves reflected in the natural world that surrounds us. Plants, trees and moss start to grow with her body as her hands reach into the earth with humility and understanding. The curves and angles of her limbs are reflected in the surrounding landscape showing the balance we can achieve when we listen and reflect. As she sleeps her breath soars with the birds in the sky while her heartbeat synchronizes with the core of the earth.

Creation Process

Before approaching this painting I did a few studies first starting with a sketch, then a landscape study and lastly a figure study. When planning large paintings like this these studies become incredibly helpful in order to learn about your proportions, size ratios, values and colors. After the studies I laid out my composition with pencil on the canvas, making sure to measure out proportions early. Now that I had the pencil sketch I started to paint in small (bite sized) sections as to not get overwhelmed. I started with the figure because I knew she would be the most challenging part of the piece and I wanted to achieve a certain glow in her skin by layering paint. I very interesting tip that I recently discovered by painting many figure studies is that the face will always contain more pink color than the skin from other parts of the body. It creates a much more natural look!

Once I painted the figure to about 90% I started painting the surrounding landscape section by section paying special attention to color and value. The colors were very important in this piece, because they showed how the sunlight was hitting the mountain peak and illustrated the shadow below. Another key decisison that added to the realism of this piece was adding cast shadows behind the tress on the figure to show that this figure was indeed a part of this landscape and had her own weight and mass. And finally once I filled in each section of the surrounding landscape I evaluated the painting overall as a whole and make some small adjustments in order to make it feel cohesive and alive!

This lovely original painting is available to purchase for $3000 in my online shop! CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE!