#WorldWaterColorMonth Day 2

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Hi, the holiday in the middle of the week, sure throws the best laid plans to the side. Even without being able to to do the decorating, cooking, or congeniality thing to the max, having everyone here still ate into my Art therapy painting time. Today, I tried to catch up.

Day 2 Sunny Skies (each day there is a prompt if you choose to follow along).

I'm not a beginning artist, but I'm really a watercolor novice. So, I made a few rules for myself: not take it too seriously, use some restrictions for each project, follow the theme, use what I have on hand, and have fun.

I found a few more paints and tons of brushes in an expedition to the basement. I also wanted to try and use some masking medium. Applied, this is a rubbery yellowish medium that repels the paint and later can be peeled off, leaving the white un-painted paper exposed. I really have never used this for watercolor, before, so this will be an education.

oldnewgreenredo

                        

Palette: I planned a controlled color palette: Grumbacher Academy(GA) Lamp Black, GA Burnt Sienna, GA VanDyke Brown,GA Thalo Yellow Green,GA Cadmium Yellow Deep, WinsorNewtonArtists(WNA)Lemon Yellow Hue,GA Thalo Purple,

WNA Cobalt Blue, (Note I avoid using blacks but I put it in the tray anyway.)

Paper is just a drawing Sketchbook 11 x 14. It's smooth paper that stretches a lot, but I'm practicing, not going for finished paintings.

oldnewgreenredo

I had a couple of days to ponder the prompts, so in our garden my favorite sunflowers are most gorgeous photographed early in the morning in what I call bright yellow sun. Light spills over the fence and the edges of the leaves and petals are always brilliant, and the shadows are dark and deep since the sun isn't so high.

I've kicked up the contrast and the hue  so you can see the applied pale yellow masking.  My thought was to hit the edges of the petals and where light might land on the flower centers. I lightly wooly-sponged some on what will be the dark brown seedy centers of the sunflowers and let this dry for 15-20 minutes.

oldnewgreenredo

Then I sprayed areas and did a wash with a wide brush on the petal shapes adding quick brush strokes of (Cadmium YD and Lemon) on the wet paper. The centers I dabbed with Burnt Sienna. I rolled the paper around a bit to get the colors moving. We have a fan going right above and the paint dries pretty quick if I blot up any pools.

oldnewgreenredo

Closeup of the beginning. Always fun to watch colors flow/spread and you can see the areas where the masking is blocking the paint. I had very loosely penciled some vague outlines of my composition.

oldnewgreenredo

I planned one sunflower facing the viewer and one facing the sun. I'm working from memory and not a photo. Leaves are multi-colored with all of the colors of my palette in them, except black. I did add the purple to the browns for the darkest accents. I mixed an olive green from the browns and the Thalo Yellow Green (really like the intensity of this color). I try to use all my colors around the paper in different ways. 

After drying, I peeled off the masking. And, touched up the areas that were too white. 

oldnewgreenredo

I used some light wash colors here and there to blend out some of the whites. When the painting dries, the colors always seem a bit washed out---I'm going to have to kick my colors up a notch, wet paints look darker and more intense or I'm using too much water?

Disclaimer: Any products I am using are not a recommendation, but only for reference for the reader's use. I am in no way affiliated with any of the companies or products, or have I received compensation or products. 

My painting projects will be posted on Pinterest, Flickr and Facebook with the hashtag

#WorldWatercolorMonth 

I will try and respond to every comment and answer every question. 

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 Please do not use photos without linking back to this blog without my permission. 

Thank you for your cooperation, 
Sandi