painting – Page 9 – Daily Fiber

Watercolor Wednesday Tutorial

Posted on September 13, 2023September 13, 2023 by Laura Kate

Last Wednesday in Open Studio, Cheryl introduced the group to the work of Soon Y. Warren, a painter who excels at creating light and texture in her watercolor works. Cheryl has taken a workshop with Soon and raves about her.

https://soonwarren.com/

To get us started, Cheryl sent her own version of Soon’s Orange as a reference.

To achieve the effect of bright light on the orange, the artist applies masking fluid on the areas of white. After the painting dries, the mask is scrubbed off and final details are painted in.

I need practice using masking fluid, so I went along with the instructions. It was not a difficult lesson, except for removing the mask. I had to scrape vigorously with fingers, fingernails (go wash my hands and come back) and more fingernails. Ultimately, all the masking fluid came away, but in the process, I rubbed some dirt and/or paint into some places on the white paper where the mask had been. (sigh.)

Fortunately, the areas with the worst stains were pretty well covered with an application of Dr Ph Martin’s Bleed Proof White.

Here is my finished study. It will make a nice greeting card.

I chose a different palette for my version: W&N French ultramarine blue, Thalo blue, Winsor lemon, transparent orange, and permanent alizarin crimson. A little salt and paint spatter added texture.

If you enjoy light-filled, transparent watercolor paintings, check out Soon Warren’s site.

painting

Finished by Friday: Abstract Paintings

Posted on September 1, 2023August 31, 2023 by Laura Kate

It’s time to share two more paintings resulting from my lessons last week with Jan Brieschke. She taught three days on how to approach abstract painting using watercolor and ink. She calls her style Fractured Light.

**https://www.janbrieschke.com/Abstracts.htm**

Last week I posted photographs of these works at the half-way point.

First is an exercise featuring iterations of a leaf. After drawing some directional lines, we traced a leaf over and over again, following the lines. I chose a red bud leaf.

The next exercise was truly abstract. It involved a string, puddles of paint and two pieces of paper. The wet string is pulled vigorously through the paper sandwich.

Initial painting. This is a close-up of the section I worked further.

Finished painting. I fleshed out the design with many, many stipples. I also used a soluable graphite pencil to augment my painted lines.

This one pleases me a lot. I found myself in the flow while working on it. Somehow I knew exactly what to do, and exactly when it was finished.

So mysterious.

I’m sorely tempted to do more work in abstract style. I’d like to know if I got lucky or if I can find myself “in the flow” again.

painting

Watercolor Wednesday: Abstract Art

Posted on August 23, 2023 by Laura Kate

More accurately, this is Watercolor Week. Our local art association is opening its annual art show and sale on Friday. In conjunction with this event, the association invited the judge, teaching artist Jan Brieschke, to give a three-day class.

https://www.janbrieschke.com/

Jan is teaching me and 10 other students how to compose and paint in the abstract style using watercolor and ink. Her work in this form of mixed media is stunning.

The first two days have been great fun. Jan is soft-spoken and low key. Her lessons on how to get an abstract composition started are inspired by four modernist painters:

PIET MONDRIAN

https://www.theartstory.org/artist/mondrian-piet/

MARCEL DUCHAMP

https://www.theartstory.org/artist/duchamp-marcel/

PABLO PICASSO

https://www.theartstory.org/artist/picasso-pablo/

and JACKSON POLLOCK

https://www.theartstory.org/artist/pollock-jackson/

We haven’t got to the Pollock yet (dripping and throwing paint at paper will be pretty darn exciting for a bunch of conservative Oklahomans!) Today I’m posting my work resulting from the first two days of class.

We started with Mondrian and geometric abstracts. Jan’s method was to have each student to suggest a shape. We then had to incorporate those suggestions into our initial drawings. Here is my work after drawing, inking the lines and painting washes.

To finish, we were asked to stipple our paintings using black Micron pens. I limited my stipples to the red circles, as you can see in this slightly wonky photograph.

The next technique involved the organic shape of a leaf. We started by making directional lines on our papers. Then we traced the leaf many times, overlapping the shapes in the direct of the lines. Color was added to the spaces made by the lines crossing. I chose to use warm colors on the leaf shapes, keeping the background in mixed shades of green.

Tomorrow I hope to finish by drawing more lines and some texture in black ink.

Our technique this morning involved soaking a string in one or two colors of paint, laying the wet string on a paper, covering the paper with another piece, and then pulling the string out while rotating it. I pulled two strings through mine, one twisted one straight. This is how it looks after the paper dried and I added a few twisty lines in a pale color of paint.

After studying the result for a while, I decided that I will crop it down, maybe like this.

Tomorrow is the last day of class. Hopefully I will finish my leaf and string paintings. And who knows what other crazy things Jan will show us using paint and ink.

drawing, painting

Sunday Sketching

Posted on July 22, 2023August 14, 2023 by Laura Kate

This is the view from my sister’s backyard deck.

It is her husband Sam’s workshop. I decided to do a watercolor and ink sketch.

They both liked it so much that they framed it and hung it in the kitchen.

painting

100-Day Project: Days 36,37,38

Posted on June 21, 2023June 21, 2023 by Laura Kate

I could have called this post Wednesday WIP. But since I worked from three of Bill’s photographs to create this panel of the dragonfly art quilt, I prefer to focus on the inspiration.

As noted above, I am still working with dragonfly photographs. In this installment, I selected two images of the same dragonfly……….

…….plus one photo of some bougainvillea blooms.

The three images will be combined in a horizontal panel measuring 12 x 24 inches.

On the first day I painted the background. I dipped the scrunched white cotton into two different pigment baths, wringing it out in between soaks. After smoothing the fabric onto my dry erase board, I placed two dragonfly shaped masks, several sprigs of dried leaves, and a sprinkling of dried peas. Next, I dropped on a little bit of purple and magenta paint, then set the board outside in the sun to dried.

It didn’t take long.

I took my time painting the dragonflies. Today I finished up by drawing the delicate wing veins. Next the background got more attention. I enhanced the leaf shapes with color, then painted a long line across the panel – my interpretation of the wire plant support seen in the photos.