Outback Twilight: Windmill and Sorghum Field, Queensland

In this piece, I contrasted the sharp, vibrant greens of a growing sorghum crop against the dark silhouettes of an outback windmill and water tank.  Rather than relying on black, I used deep blue tones to capture the shadows, set against a colorful, restless twilight sky.  If you look closely near the top right, a distant flock of crows catches the last light of the Australian landscape. 

Old building, Ravenswood Queensland painting by artist Alan J. Benge

Ravenswood in North Queensland is worth a visit to view the picturesque outback-style old buildings along its main street.  In this original composition, I used a limited palette of earthy colours, complemented by a pen and ink over-sketch with white highlights.  Use was made of splatter texture and the painting was created on an old sheet of plywood.  A simple wide white frame - with ribbed, corrugated iron-style lines - sets off the composition.
The texture could well signify an approaching dust storm, and it helps convey the magnificently harsh climate that all must learn to live with in the outback of Australia.

Far North West Queensland outback painting by Alan J. Benge

If you've ever travelled in the outback of Queensland, you will have noticed that once you get past Longreach, there are large stretches of countryside that could well be described as "driving across the surface of the moon."
However this arid, dry country has a distinctive individuality that makes it unique.  Admittedly, it is as flat in places as a billard table. But if you can gain a viewpoint from a hill or rocky outcrop, you will be rewarded with amazing views.
It is one such view that gave me the inspiration to create this outback landscape in acrylic. I found a suitable hill on my way out to an ancient dinosaur quarry near Winton.
 I wanted to convey the sense of a huge, dusty plain, with a relentless sun on the horizon.  To give the foreground more impact, I used silhouette shapes of a stockman, his dog and horse, in solid contrast to provide interest in this part of the composition.  A limited colour palette was used, mainly warm browns, beige, with patches of red.  The background hills are a hazy blur of ranges receding into the distance.