Paint a Fox in
Autumn Forest 🦊

Using your pencil, sketch two tree trunks on the left and right edges of the canvas, each with 2–3 branches reaching inward. In the center, draw a sitting fox viewed from behind — a rounded body, two pointed ears at the top, and a tail curling out from the right side. Draw a gentle curved grass line near the bottom. Keep all lines light and loose.

Mix Cobalt Blue with a generous amount of Titanium White to create a soft blue-grey. Paint the upper portion of the canvas with smooth horizontal strokes. Without cleaning your brush, pick up Orange and paint upward from the bottom of the sky area, overlapping the blue-grey while still wet. Use gentle horizontal strokes where the two colors meet to blend them into a smooth gradient from blue-grey at the top to warm orange near the horizon. Work quickly while both colors are still wet.

Using Hooker's Green, paint the grass area along the bottom of the canvas with horizontal strokes. The top edge of the grass should follow the gentle curved line from your sketch. The dark green creates a strong contrast against the warm sky above.

Using Burnt Umber, paint the two tree trunks and their branches with upward strokes — thicker at the base and tapering toward the tips. Then use Orange and Scarlet Red to paint small oval leaf shapes scattered along the branches. Alternate between the two colors for a varied, natural autumn look. Keep the leaves simple — small rounded shapes are all you need.

Load your brush with Orange and fill in the entire fox shape — the body, head and tail. Use smooth strokes that follow the rounded body shape. Apply the paint generously for solid coverage. The fox silhouette doesn't need to be perfect — a slightly rounded, imperfect shape looks natural and charming.

Using a fine brush and Titanium White, paint a white tip at the end of the fox's tail. Then use Lamp Black to darken the inner ear areas on top of the head, and add a thin dark outline along the edges of the fox body to help it stand out from the background.

Step back and look at your painting. Add a few more leaf shapes if the trees look bare. Touch up the fox body where the background shows through. Your fox in the autumn forest is complete! 🦊