Elephants by Niah (grade 5)

Niah's first picture in pastel shows her good eye for proportion and a real flair for colour!  In her original reference photo, two grey elephants stood against a background of faded greys, ochers and browns.  Such lack of  contrast and colour can add up to a rather dull painting.   In response to this problem, Niah positioned some dark vegetation next to the light coloured animals.  She then filled her background with a combination of  warm yellow and orange, which contrasts nicely with the pale tones of the elephants,  and captures the feeling of intense sunlight and  heat.   Nice use of cool tones in the shadow areas too!