NCBG Intermediate Expressive Watercolor October & November 2018

Wet on wet watercolor.  I start very wet and progress towards less water as I work. The first pass was done by wetting the entire paper and dropping in light greens, yellow, blue.  The first pass can be seen inside the artichoke and is what was how the paper looked after the  first pass.  While wet I moved the paper around in order to move and mix the color.  I used a cleaned and dried brush to wick the color/paint from the highlight areas.  I kept doing this for a few minutes as the paint continued to move (you can see the marks from wicking at the tips of some of the artichoke petals).  I let the paper dry.  For the second pass I wet the background working in sections.  I started on the right side towards the middle where the leaf goes off the page and worked around counter clockwise.  I wet the paper to about the top left.  I dropped in a darker/more pigmented greens.  I stopped adding color before the wet edge ended and dotted in a cool yellow.  I then continued wetting the paper from the upper left wet edge down the left side.  I continued adding the greens, dotting with the cool yellow.  I let this dry.

I started working on the the petals.  I dampened the petal I chose to start with.  Dampening is wetting, but not as wet as when we did the first and second passes.  How much water is on your paper determines how the paint moves and how much the paint moves.  So for this I want it to be move a little and I want a little control - so I dampen rather then make it really wet.  Then I used the various mixed greens and some yellow and a little red to start lightly shading the petals.  I will do all the petals this way as well as the stem and leaves (will demo more next class).  I also showed glazing on this piece.  I glazed an area with blue, yellow and the top right with red (which is the easiest to see).  Glazing is used to alter a color, neutralize a color or change a color temperature.  Glazing is using a slightly pigmented color (lots of water and a little pigment) and painting an area that needs an adjustment or an enhancement.

Art & Ale September & October class 2018

I worked with mostly darks adding the dark value and color.  I used a lot of Copenhagen blue, indigo blue, dark brown, dark green, black for the various darks.  I used white for the light areas and added a little color over the top of the white for the light areas.  Using the colors in the trees in colored pencil plus white I scribbled the colors adding to the trees and softening them some.  I also worked in the grass adding shadows, highlights and texture.

BAL MM Oct. & Nov. 2018

I did a little work on this adding another layer of values and a little more fur on the Sloth and some cool yellow to the white in the background.but need to do work for you in the next class.

I worked with white first getting a "road map" of the flower to help me see the parts before I started adding the form.  Then I chose a petal to demonstrate and used a dark red (crimson) to add the dark stripe areas.  I added more white to the petal as well.  I used the light and dark to create form.  Then I used pale vermilion and spanish orange for the color and subtle color changes.  I used Copenhagen blue to add more subtle shadows to make the petal look as if it bends.  I will do another petal next class and some of the middle thingies.  

This is the background for the man.  It needs another layer of two.  I will paint the layers and post photos.  This was done with a warm yellow (quin. gold) and a mixed purple (rose and ultramarine).  I wet the paper first, dropped in the yellow, dropped in the purple, splattered both colors and them moved the paper around to move and mix the paint.  I need this to be a little bit darker in value which is why I am doing another round or two of color.

Art & Ale CP class October

On this one I worked on the leaf on the right and added shadows on the buds and leaf on the bottom left.  I posted all the other photos so you can see the progression and changes (some subtle and some not).

I added more watercolor pencil to the car and the background and then started working on shading the car using white for light areas and indigo and other darks and color for the shadows and textures.  When I do these it's like I make the subject emerge from the paper using values mostly and color as well, if that makes sense.

BAL Mixed Media October & November 2018

I poured this on watercolor paper.  I transferred the drawing.  I used green, yellow and a little blue to pour color on.  I let it dry.  Then I poured with orange and brown.  I put a little saran wrap in one section for texture.  Then I started with a white pencil shading lightly on the light areas of the background (need to finish those). Then I used white on the sloth's face.  I added some browns on the sloth's face as well (burnt ocher and dark brown).  I also used a little crimson with some brown on the nose.  I will continue demonstrating the fur and leaves and branches next class.  This is not done, it is the star and the values need to be pushed more.  Darker darks and lighter lights. 

I transferred the drawing.  Then I wet the paper and added ultramarine blue into the background and flower making it textured by adding salt (when the paper was wet but not puddled).  Then I added a warm red into the flower and background, lightly.  I demonstrated sanding and using a watercolor pencil to edge/darken the background around the flower.  I decided the flower needed more color so I added more red.  The next step is to refine and detail with colored pencil which I will demonstrate next class.

Tennessee Mixed media 2 day workshop. Example of colored pencil over watercolor (starting with a watercolor textured paper and superimposing colored pencil on top)

Textured and colored watercolor paper.

Transferred drawing

The start with a white pencil.

The small demonstration area for adding color.

The finished piece.  The colors are off as the piece was taken in various lighting situations and with different cameras.

Tennessee Mixed media 2 day workshop. Example of colored pencil over watercolor (painting the subject and finishing with colored pencil)

Watercolor painting of the man.

Colored pencil over watercolor.

Tennessee Mixed media 2 day workshop. Example of colored pencil over watercolor (pouring)

This and above are the layers of masking (I only had patience for 2 layers) and pouring (I did 5 layers of pouring)

This is after the masking was removed.

This is after some direct painting.

This is the start of adding colored pencil.

Tennessee Mixed media 2 day workshop

Colored pencil on a medium gray (in this case Strathmore Toned gray).  I came to the workshop with this part ready to go.  This method focuses on values first using white and black (or you can use another dark such as indigo, black grape, sepia).  I build the values lightly using the side of the pencil.  Early on I keep the dark areas a little lighter so I can darken them with color.  But I get the over all value structure in place.

I then add color, lightly, over the entire piece.  In this case I used warm colors such as orange, warm yellow and a warm red.  I added the color lightly over the entire piece.  This truncates the value range, so I will need to reestablish the value range.

I have started to darken and lighten areas to reestablish the values.  There is a lot more work needed to push the color and value and to add more details (already started details on the trunk area), but the overall structure is here.

This is the demo of the first part, adding the values with black and white.

Mixed media, colored pencil over watercolor.  This started as white watercolor paper with the drawing transferred (Stonehenge Aqua 140 lb cold press).  I wet the paper and added color, splattered color, did some salt, did some sanding (see the texture handout for making the various textures with watercolor).   I did several passes of color.  After it was dry I started with a white pencil laying in the lights, building them up.  I then used a dark pencil (indigo) to add some darks.  Then I started adding some colors such as a cool red, warm and cool yellow, blue, green.  I think about these pieces as sculpting or pulling my subject out from the texture on the paper.  I use mostly values and some color to do this

I came with this in process already and demonstrated on it a little.  Wanted you to see one further in the process.

This is a slightly different version.  I started with an old abandoned watercolor painting, painted dark colors over the old painting and added some salt as well.  After it was dry I transferred the drawing and started with the white pencil.

Platic wrap texture. I wet the paper, dropped in color, and laid plastic wrap into the wet paint scrunching it until I get a look I like.  left it on until the paper was dry. 

Sanding texture.  I wet the paper, added some color, and then using a small strainer and watercolor pencils.  I rubbed the watercolor pencils in the strainer making little flecks of color on the wet paper.

Salt and splattered texture.  I wet the paper, dropped in color and splattered color.  While the paper was wet and shiny and not puddled I added sea salt and table salt (you can see the white shapes the salt made)

And example of the black and white on the medium gray paper.  On this one I decided I will finish it without color.  it has a bit more work to be done value and structure wise.

I demonstrated on this in the workshop.  This was a poured watercolor painting.  I used white, light peach, peach. terra cotta, dark brown, scarlet lake so far.  I used a cool yellow for the eye underneath.  I worked on the eye and nose and surrounding skin in the workshop.

I brought this as an example for the workshop. Colored pencil over watercolor.

I brought this as an example for the workshop.  Colored pencil over watercolor.

Art & Ale Colored Pencil

I transferred the drawing, wet the paper, and started adding light color using a wet paintbrush and getting the color from the tip of the watercolor pencil.  While the paper was still wet I dipped the WC pencil into water and drew darker color in the shape of trees.  I went over the trees with a damp brush.  Then, while the paper was still wet I used a small strainer and rubbed the pencil in the strainer over the painting to make the small dotted textures.   This is the under painting for the car.  I will show you the next step in the next class on October 17.

I started working with colored pencil adding the shadows and highlights - the values, both dark and light.  I studied the photo and added the highlights and shadows.  I used grass green, dark green, terra cotta, pomegranate, crimson red, white, indigo, yellow chartreuse, canary yellow.  In the background I lightly added canary yellow, grass green and spanish orange.  I melted the background with rubbing alcohol.  I plan to add more variation  in the background with the pencil in the next class.  I also smoothed out some of the leaf areas and on the buds with a stump.

DAC CP ASO, 2018

I worked more on the face adding color and darks (still need to do the mouth and chin).  I worked on the clothing adding shadows starting near the face and neck.  I will shade the clothes darkr near the face and graduate the shading as it moves away from the face.  I worked on adding darks and details and shaping to the hat.  

Using the same 4 colors only (crimson red, peacock blue, canary yellow and indigo blue) I started adding more darks and details refining the frog.  You can see the newer shading on the front and the first few layers on the back of the frog.