Watercolor Eyes

Spider Wort
5.5 x 8.5" Canson Sketchbook
Watercolor 140#

This painting actually looks a little better on screen than in the sketchbook (that happens sometimes, interestingly); even so, I'm not enthralled with the results. What did give me a thrill is what happened afterward: watercolor eyes. 

When I really linger over a painting, as I did this one, adding one color wash over another, sometimes for about an hour afterward, I see more nuanced color and shadows everywhere I look. For instance, while I might normally see just a couple of shades of blue in our backyard perennial garden, after painting I might see a half dozen. The phenom doesn't last long, but it's the most amazing experience. I love those temporary bursts of super-power-vision with watercolor eyes! 

An aside: I've taken the challenge issued by Marc Taro Holmes, one of my favorite art bloggers (Citizen Sketcher) and one of my favorite online watercolor instructors (see Craftsy), to create 30 "direct watercolor" paintings in 30 days during June. ("Direct w/c" means no ink or pencil.) This image is from the third day. As you can see, I did cheat with a little pencil.