Posted in painting

Life is a………

Posted on by Laura Kate

Last month at Open Studio, expert watercolorist Cheryl Bryan presented this example to our group. The lesson was about painting in shadows.

I wanted to do this lesson, but felt that painting five cherries was not enough subject matter to keep my interest. So I chose this reference photograph, to supplement Cheryl’s example.

Initial sketch:

Lots of masking fluid added:

First washes, background and beginning to paint the subject.

To get this subject to work, each cherry must be painted individually, with multiple colors of paint worked in.

Most of the painting is finished, masking fluid removed.

Finished:

The cherries look luscious, but my favorite thing is the bowl. What a dreamy color!

Unknown's avatar

Author:

One of six children, I was raised by a busy mom, who instilled in me a love of fabric. Though I learned to sew and knit at a young age, it was the arrival of my first grandchild that pushed me into action. A long-time knitter, I am now ready to explore all things fiber.

13 thoughts on “Life is a………”

  3. You did a great job here! I think that this is an especially challenging study with all that white – hard to catch in watercolor. Frame it and put it on your wall. 😉

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  5. Wow, such a great looking watercolor! I tried a handful of cherries once, like the top example but without the tablecloth – not easy! What I love about your painting is how lively the cherries look, like they’re ready to get up and dance. 🙂 Thanks for the follow –

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  8. I recently taught my partner about shadows! Now he lets me paint the shadows in his paintings, ha! (Makes ALL the difference!) Also, after fifteen years of loving orange (My house is orange now) I’m moving into loving that dreamy creamy blue…

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

Leave a comment