Back to Watercolor
I feels strange to not be comfortable with watercolor — but that is the case! I’m pausing to think about how to do it and that is bizarre. I’ve painted in watercolor for almost 20 years but I’ve been totally focused on casein. So, I’m doing a fairly simple piece to get back in the groove.
I’m putting the first washes down now, thinking a great deal as I work. My watercolors progress very slowly in the beginning and pick up speed when they’re past the halfway point. In the beginning, I put down a lot of value changes, working with larger areas - thinking much less about actual color and more about value development. And I’m putting colors down that I hope will peek through the transparent watercolor later in the painting. Those unexpected under colors can perk up a painting later on.
This composition seems overly simple right now but I haven’t added the shadows yet. I think the shadow patterns will bring the energy to the piece. Cross your fingers.
Good bye Casein, Hello watercolor
I finished the last casein in my industrial architecture group — I could have developed this one further but I like it at this point. And I took the picture with my phone and now can see how much better my camera is for this! I can really tell the difference.
I set this piece aside to breathe, swept the floor and petted Smooch, then went directly over to the watercolor table. It was a strange experience - it felt like a moment that mattered. I do caseins at a small drawing table facing the interior of the room — natural light is less of a concern for me when doing casein. In fact, I really don’t want to focus on light as much so my table is turned away from the windows. Smaller mental space, more of an interior mindset, and lots of concentration are my general attitudes
My watercolors are at a large commercial drawing table set next to the windows. Lots of light splashing over my work surface and I’m facing toward the front of my building - a busy street, walkers passing by outside, my front porch, and the door. My golden retriever has laid under my feet while I painted since he was 7 weeks old (and he’s now almost 6 years old). And Carmela the cat loves to lounge right beside my painting as I work. Today, when I returned to the watercolor table, both of them were thrilled for things to return to what they know best. And I paint in watercolor with a lighter mood because it is the medium I’m most comfortable with - generally, an easier mindset.
I almost felt like I’d changed clothes, seasons, and my place on the map. It reminded me how much the landscape changes with my mental perspective. We have all the power within us to be content and focused — it’s simply a matter of deciding to be. Swiveling my chair from one table to another only five feet away put me in a while new place. So very interesting — and again I’ve learned something from my art making that I can use in the rest of my life.
