Over the next two weeks I will be working on artwork that needs my full attention. In the meantime, I will show some of my watercolour painting exercises, to remind people of the importance of 'playing' a little each day, and how in doing that, observation skills are honed.
I reminded myself yesterday when giving a workshop to a group I see just a few times a year, how important it is to allow oneself to play for fifteen minutes before actually tackling a painting. It's based on exactly the same principle as a dancer limbering up or an athlete stretching.
Use newspaper, or inexpensive rolls of wall paper lining, anything that doesn't matter. This will free you up to experiment and play, and ironically this is often when our best work is produced, because all fear and tension are removed!
My set up up with the finished water colour
First stage - working off white paper, I sketch out apples in watercolour. If you want to sketch out in pencil or magic marker even, go for it...the following frames are simply guidelines.
I now add some of the shadow tones and throw in a dark colour behind the setup revealing the white cloth. You can use any colour you want. The key is to observe the tones/shadows.
I now introduce red into the apples and the stripe in the fabric.
In this frame I bring burnt sienna into the shadows, which warms the overall image. Note that when I add a colour, I move it around the whole image, thus producing a sense of harmony and balance.
For the finished frame I have introduced a little cadmium organge. Note that all the white areas are dry white paper.
Rain and wind are forcast here in London for the next five days, and so this is an excellent time to set up a little table somewhere, which doesn't have to be moved. A place that you can go to each day and 'PLAY' with your creative spirit.
A Bientot
catsInVienna
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Today there is no rain in Vienna. I wish you a creative time in this wonderful autumn!