Day 30: a watercolor technique

Following a youtube tutorial about two toned edges, by Scarlett Damon, I practiced using two colors to create an edge without outlining. Each of these shapes was painted with just two straight washes, the second pushing the first outward.

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Using what I learned there, I tried to copy a leaf of my own, which I had found walking Emmett. (More about Emmett at Allthecrazyworld.blogspot.com) I had some problems with it, but am satisfied with my end result, and feel good about the technique.

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Day 29: more watercolor study

I really like Peter Sheeler’s style… his quick loose sketches are exactly what watercolor is noted for AND exactly what I’m worst at (I think. I may not have found my worst yet) And I love the look. I’m going to continue to try his tutorials. There’s a lot I can learn from them. (I won’t do this every day, though… I’ll try to mix things up for you!)

I am finding that my lower grade paints and papers do not react the same way his artist grade supplies do. The end result is ok, but not the same. Some of this, I know, is skill, but since I am watching what happens as he applies the wet paint, I can see that some of it is materials. They simply act differently. I’m not prepared to drop several hundred dollars on paint. Or paper. Right now. But this is something I’ll need to adjust over time if I plan to pass a certain point, and maybe purchase even one or two colors at a time of some superior line. Regarding paper, some artists recommend purchasing student grade paper on which to learn and practice (that’s what I’ve done, and it made sense to me, since some of what I produce will be useless, and none of it will be “art” I plan to display.) Steeler suggests purchasing high quality paper from the beginning, and says you’ll have to relearn skills when upgrading from less expensive to professional paper because it feels and acts differently. This makes sense to me, too. I’ll think about it over the next few days.

These were sky studies.