Painting into the Light

Successful contre-jour art - art that is painted looking towards the light - possesses a captivating magic. It causes the viewer to squint, with dazzling light seeming to glow from the canvas. The technique looks incredibly accomplished, but with renowned artist Jenny Aitken's guidance, is surprisingly easy to achieve using oils. Known for painting sparkling light on water, Jenny delivers practical, easy-to-follow guidance for confident beginner artists onwards. It all begins with careful observation of colour value and temperature. Painting into the Light includes information on simplification, tone, capturing accurate colour, working indoors and out, landscapes, still life, how to create atmosphere, create the illusion of space and much more – all vital information to help you succeed across a range of subjects.Through 10 step-by-step painting demonstrations and clear, illustrated methods of working, Jenny's first book will show you how to bring every painting to life with light. A section on troubleshooting tricky paintings will show you that every painting is salvageable, but with an understanding of light and colour, it’s much more likely that you will find success the first time round.

For Jenny Aitken, teaching painting is an absolute passion – her main aim is for students to be encouraged, informed and creatively enthused. She began tutoring and demonstrating ten years ago, and now runs online courses and art holidays around the UK and in Italy and France. Since graduating in Art & Art History from seaside university Aberystwyth, she has exhibited all over the UK and won many awards. She won the Topbond Marine Award in 2022, the RSMA Baltic Exchange Award in 2023, and was elected a full member of the RSMA in 2023.She is currently represented by several galleries, including The Harbour Gallery in Cornwall and Peter Barker Gallery in Rutland. You can also view and purchase daily studies, paintings, prints, calendars and cards from her own online gallery on jennyaitken.co.ukJenny is a regular contributor to The Artist magazine, and an online tutor, with a series of 25+ modules on painting in oils and acrylics. She also produces shorter painting videos on YouTube.Jenny lives in Derbyshire, not far from the beautiful Peak District.