Scene Painting

Scene Painting is a vital aspect of putting a show together. It doesn't matter how many hours you spent putting together a mold, carving a design, or building a piece of the set; if the scene painter doesn't know how to paint the object to life the audience will never understand what you were trying to accomplish.

Paint Colors
Before you start on your journey of bringing objects to life the color selection needs to be thought out. The base coat colors are very important. For example, a rock rarely has only one or two colors, therefore you need to decide what colors are appropiate for the rock and its region and in which order they are to be put on. If you only want your rock to have a hint of red clay then the red would be one of the first colors applied. The same concept can be applied to wood grains, pathways, buildings, etc. The base colors are often called the underpainting. Colors also evoke moods/emotions, therefore color planning needs to be thought of in terms of characters and tones of the scenes. If a story revolved around two households, one was happy and lighthearted and the other dark and sad, the paint choices should help the audience understand the tone and struggle of each family. The happy family would have paint choices of cream, yellow, green, orange, and the sad family would have darker shadows painted in the scene, along with greys, blues, and splashes of red.
Painting Techniques
Dry brushing is a technique where very little paint is on the brush so when it is applied to the surface the paint comes out in streaks. This can be used in muliple layers of colors to create depth to an object. Dry brushing is most commonly used for wood grains.
Adding wallpaper paste to your paint can also achieve a similar effect while keeping your paint wet longer therefore allowing you more of an opportunity to work with your paint. When using this technique you typically put a good amount of paint and mixture on your brush and paint it on the surface. The paint will naturally separate and streak. You can also start adding layers using this style.
Another natural way of adding random texture while painting is buying cheap paint brushes and cutting and fraying the ends of them. This way the paint naturally will not go on smooth.
Texturing for rocks, marble, dirt, and items of that nature can be applied by sponges. Sponges, as long as they are not pressed down on to hard, will naturally give you the depth of lows and highs of a rough surface. Sponges can also be cut to create stamps for repeated textures. If a pathway needed to look like it was covered in pebbles, a couple of stamps cut in the shapes of random pebble sizes would save a lot of time for the painter instead of handpainting each pebble.
Splattering is also another commonly used technique. Splattering is used to either tone down a color, highlight a color, add texture, and/or age to an object. The color used for the splattering and the amount of paint used will make the difference in what you are trying to achieve. Splattering is acheived when paint is flung at the surface, creating speckles of paint.

The are a lot different ways to achieve the same look in painting. You need to find what is the most comfortable for you and what is appropiate for your space. Keep in mind the scene painter needs to be in constant communication with the costume designer, scene designer, and the director to make sure the appropiate choices of color and texture are being made.