WATERCOLOR PROJECT: “Water Lily”
I am going to preface this blog entry with the advice
that if there is something you really don’t like about your painting either fix
it, if you can, or start over, I ended up doing both.
 |
| Bad paper |
 |
| Torrance redo |
The PV project just didn’t look right when I got it home
and in good light, I just put another ultramarine wash over the offending area
and it is fine. I was not so lucky with the Torrance project. I tried a quick
fix with another wash but it really didn’t help, I think the paper hadn’t been
stored properly and the surface had gotten damaged. It was gifted paper and
even though it is the same brand I use, I just couldn’t get it to work right no
matter what I tried, it just looked too streaky and not the look I wanted so rather
than waste any more time and paint on the dead horse, I started over on some of
my own paper and I am much happier with the results. Just so you know your
teacher has problems too.
The first thing we did – and this is mostly a whim on my
part – we splattered our painting with colors and water. Most of the time
beginner and intermediate students are so worried about being “perfect” even
the slightest variation from that notion of perfect throws them into a tailspin
and even before something is an actual problem, they are trying to fix it and
they become fixated on a non-problem. By starting the painting of by first
splattering we have already taken away “perfect” and we can move on.
 |
| Splattered color and water |
Actually, many watercolor artists will start with some
variation of splattering when they start their own projects. Look in watercolor
magazines where they have the how-to section and the artist describing how they
create their visions. Many of them start out with splattering or dripping wet
into wet or so combination of the two. It is a very loose and free way to give
an under tone to you painting. Don’t be afraid of it.
Once the drip were dry and I mean bone dry, we put
masking fluid on the outside edges to about an inch in to protect our subject
while we paint the background water in. do not put masking on the flower
shadow, it is almost the darkest thing in your painting so it will need all the
values it can get. While we didn’t need to mask out anything in this painting
because we could have painted around everything (negative painting), sometimes
it is just easier to be able to paint quickly and not worry about edges or
painting around stuff. As you develop your skills you will automatically paint
faster and subjects like this will be easier painted without masking but for
now you know you have another tool in your art box.
Once the masking was dry (it should look clear not cloudy
when dry) we mixed a color for the water that was ultramarine blue and Hooker’s
green, I did add a tiny touch of burnt sienna but mostly the blue and the
green. It was a medium light value. It will take more than one wash of color to
get to where you want and you don’t usually want to get there right out of the
gate (exceptions to all rules) and adding layers of washes lets you build up to
where you want to be rather than blowing past it then having to fix it.
I painting everything that is water including the yellow
leaf that is under water in a more or less horizontal direction with a
scumbling stroke. (Scumbling is a disorganized series of strokes) Remember,
this is a painting not a wall and while it is water and water lies flat, you
want to avoid long horizontal strokes which could leave streaks that will be
hard to get out. It might make it easier to get the paint on quickly if you wet
the area first and always work with the back of your board or paper slightly
elevated, even an inch is better than flat. Let gravity work for you, if you
work flat the paint and water will stay in puddles and as your paper dries it
can create blooms or back runs you may not want.
The second layer of wash I applied after the first layer
had dried, it was the same colors but
We are going to move a bit faster now because we will be
able to move around our painting as areas dry, so get ready to work. See you
soon.
