Last of the Coneflowers

Last of the Lasts, Iowa Fall
watercolor and pencil
on Fluid 8" x 8" cold press w/c paper

So glad I got to see these Iowa coneflowers before they dropped. 

 

Fall in Iowa

 

Fall in Iowa
7'" x 8" watercolor
on Fluid cold press w/c paper
 

Just back from a 2-week trip to Iowa, where the fall colors danced every single day.  

By the Bay

 

By the Bay
Watercolor on 8" x 8" cold press paper

Just a little quick sketch of a place I have come to love these past few years. Iowa, I still love your tallgrass prairies, but SF Bay, you have also captured my heart. 

The Joy of Painting Outdoors

 

Garden of the Gods 2
8" x 8"
in Field Watercolor Journal with Fluid cold press watercolor paper

When sketching outdoors, I often sketch a drawing in pencil or pen, take photos of the scene, and then add the paint in my office/studio. 

But last weekend while in Colorado Springs for a wedding, I visited the Garden of the Gods and took along my w/c paints, brushes, and folding metal palette. I settled into my folding chair in a shaded area just off a walking path. 

It was morning but getting hot already, so the shade felt good. I went to work, mostly oblivious of passersby.  

First I drew the sketch below in pencil and added color. (Later in our hotel room, I added the ink lines and the writing.) 

Then I drew in pencil the scene above and began to add paint. That's when I had the nice conversation, described below with the lady from southern India. 

Garden of the Gods1
in 5" x 8" Dylusions Creative Journal Sketchbook

The last painting, below, I created in the hotel room from a photo I'd taken that morning. Not quite the same as creating it on location, but by the time I spied this formation called "Three Graces," it was getting too hot and there was no shade near that spot.

It can be a hassle to lug the extra supplies for "real" painting when outdoors, but there's a real joy that immersive experience when you have the time. And sometimes you can have some great conversations about art, which can serve as a sort of social currency toward a meaningful connection.   

Garden of the Gods 3, "Three Graces"
5" x 8"
in Field Watercolor Journal with Fluid cold press watercolor paper

Windowbox

 

Windowbox1
10" x 10" watercolor
on Arches 100% hot press paper

I heard about an artist who paints a half dozen paintings at a time--same composition, step by step, layer by layer. I decided to try it today with two paintings, one on hot press paper (above) and one on cold press paper (below). 

The actual painting on the hot press looks better than this digital version, and I think it like it better. But in both cases I had the same issue, which is that it's tough to keep the transparency with the color red. Other artists talk about this--it's not just me. I need to do some research on how to work with reds. 

I like this multiple paintings approach. With watercolor there's so much time spent waiting for paint to dry before adding another layer. Switching to a different painting helps take care of the waiting--you can just work on another painting. 

And if you wish you had done something differently, this approach gives you another immediate chance. 

Windowbox2
10" x 10" watercolor
on Arches 100% cold press paper

Awakening

 

Copy of Rick Surowicz demo
10" x 14" watercolor
Arches 100% cotton cold press paper

Finally, I think I'm getting something about watercolors that instructors have been saying but I wasn't hearing, for some reason. 

This week in my online class with Rick Surowicz, he talked about the importance of monitoring the pigment levels in our paint applications. "Too much pigment lessens the luminosity," he said, explaining that too much pigment doesn't allow the paper to bounce light back to the viewer, which is the special quality of watercolor painting. "Don't use the paint like tempora," he warned.

I believe that's exactly what I've been doing these past ten years with watercolor (check out my last painting, for instance). Not always, but much of the time. 

And it's a tough habit to break. Even so, I think I made considerable progress here. It's still a little heavy-handed, but I am hoping I am finally beginning to understand how to retain more luminosity with my paintings. 

As my caption says above, this painting is an imitation of a painting by Surowicz. I would never give it to someone or sell it, but I may frame it for myself to commemorate this important breakthrough. 

Sometimes these breakthroughs last and sometimes they don't. I sure hope this one does. 

Efforting?

 

Alameda Home
10" x 10" watercolor
on Arches 100% cotton cold press paper

I spent much of the day on this painting. Whether it's any better than the quick sketch I made a few days ago, I'm not entirely sure. I think it veered into the "efforting" territory I talked about with that post. But it does read well from a distance, unlike the quick sketch, and I do like the textures in the front bushes/foliage and in the roof. 

Therefore, I signed this one and I'm calling it done.