St. Petersburg is a unique city, actually built in one century. Founded in the early eighteenth century, it immediately became the capital of a huge state and was intensively built up over the next hundred years. Many palaces, parks, churches and bridges, despite their diversity, are built in the general style of the era and harmoniously complement each other, representing a single consonant urban space. I love to come to this city for plein airs, the number of subjects here is endless, you don't need to look for a long time, you just need to look around and immediately find something interesting and inspiring. 

Today I will paint three subjects and choose three palettes to work with. I prefer complex muted warm and cool shades that perfectly convey the light and airy urban environment, characterised by a kind of constant noise, if I may say so. The subtle shimmers of hues shape the overall space, bringing together many details into a soft but dynamic background for contrasting colour and tonal accents in the foreground. 

I work on dry paper from top to bottom: I start with a light fill of the sky and gradually go lower, gaining tone and depth. Sky tones are a lot of water and little colour, always a balance of warm and cool. The buildings in the background, especially in the shadow parts, do not need detailing, I catch the shape and proportions, reflect a couple of characteristic details, I try not to draw the viewer's attention to them, as my eye only glides over them without stopping. With the second plan I work with more dense colour and use less water. The dynamics of the second plan is the play of light and shadow on the buildings, trees and other objects in the city scene. The falling light forms this rhythm. Daylight can be soft and diffuse if the sky is cloudy, or bright if the sky is clear. Scattered light gives soft blurred falling shadows, while bright sunlight gives contrast and graphic shadows. It is true that there is often variable cloud cover and the lighting is constantly changing, being an urban artist is a challenge. So I always try to reflect my impression of the subject, choosing the solution that best suits my impression. I use soft deep shadows along with contrasting shadows. To get interesting transitions and effects I use a spray can, allowing the paint to mix and spread randomly on the surface of the sheet, as if a little blurring the details. It seems to me that this technique reflects the real perception of a person inside the city, whose gaze picks out some interesting fragment from the surroundings, stops, and glides on. The foreground is always the greatest degree of contrast and colour. Contrast is created by deep and graphic falling shadows, and colour is colour accents: burning car headlights, bright clothes or an architectural element. Often I use paint for this, applying it to the sheet straight from the tube. Small fragments of white paper, contrasting shadows and saturated patches of colour form the foreground, separating it from the background, but maintaining the overall dynamics of the urban environment.

For the palette I chose 8 colours: 1. 399. Pyrrol Orange (P.O.73 *** ◨◮), 2. 222. Naples Flesh (P.O.62 P.W.6, *** ■△), 3. 270. Yellow Iron Oxide (P.Y.42, *** ◨△), 4. 255. Dunes (P.Y.42 P.Br.6 P.Bk.7 P.W.6, ***■◮), 5. 633. Augite Porphyrite (P.R.102, *** □△ G), 6. 561. Turquoise-rose Mist (P.B.28 P.R.264, *** ◨◮ G), 7. 528. Royal Blue (P.B.29 P.W.6, *** ■◮), 8. 562. Grey-Blue Mist (P.B.29 P.Bk.7, *** ◨◮ G). 

For the palette I chose 7 colours: 1. 271. Nickel Titanat Yellow (P.Y.53 *** ■△), 2. 206. Ochre light (P.Y.43 *** ■△), 3. 222. Naples Flesh (P.O.62 P.W.6, *** ■△), 4. 528. Royal Blue (P.B.29 P.W.6, *** ■◮), 5. 632. Hematite Mist (P.B.29 P.R.101, *** ◨△ G), 6. 563. Chromium-Cobalt Mist (P.B.28, P.G.17 *** ◨△ G), 7. 811. Ivary Black Hue (P.R.102 P.Bk.7, *** ◨◮ G).

It can be difficult for a beginning artist to find their own way, which leads from a study drawing made in accordance with the visual image of nature to the creation of an artistic image that is a reflection of the author's perception and emotions. Over the years, I have formulated for myself several rules that formed the basis of my work. All equipment should be as convenient and comfortable as possible, otherwise you have to constantly distract from painting and adapt to the inconvenience. The necessary materials must be of good quality and always at hand, and in painting it is necessary to develop the ability to hold a spot, to divide the subject into plans, to work with spatial silhouettes, to notice and display a small number of details characteristic of this particular subject.