Watercolor Painting; Practice On A New Surface

Hello Everyone;
In the past, I have tried any number of different surfaces to paint my watercolors on.  I tried boards, paper, watercolor ground just to name a few.  I keep searching for that perfect support that will allow my work to shine, but also make it easy for my customers to display their purchase.  Traditional supports for watercolors is paper.  With paper, your painting needs to be matted, then framed behind glass to protect it.  Watercolor canvas is nice, because you just have to seal it, then frame without glass.  The problem with watercolor canvas is that the paint does not absorb anywhere.  It stays on top of the canvas.  The colors are bright, but it is very difficult to make the work look good (in my opinion).  Ideally, you would have something in between paper and canvas.  A support that absorbs paint and water similar to high end watercolor paper, but the colors still remain close to the surface for brilliance.  I am not sure yet if I have found that surface, but this Aquabord made by Ampersand is trying to fill that need.  Pictured here is a 5" X 7" piece of aquabord I am practicing different elements on.  It has some resemblance to cold press watercolor paper, but just a little.  This surface takes some getting used to, but so far, I like the way my work is looking.  You can find it anywhere online that sells fine art supplies, but I have found that Blick seems to have the best prices.  This is a 3 pack I paid approx $7.50 for US dollars.  Aquabord comes in many popular sizes and best of all, they have a 1" 1/2" cradle.  That means you can seal your work and your customers do not have to spend additional money on framing, just hang as is.  I do not know yet if I am going all in on this product, but I do know I will be doing much more experimenting.  So far, this definitely has possibilities.  Let me know if you have ever painted on this surface and what you found.  Have a blessed day everyone.

Watercolor Painting; New Finished Painting

Hello Everyone;
I usually do not paint winter scenes since I really do hate the cold weather.  However, since it was 20 degrees as a high today, I figured, why fight it.  Painting in and of itself is a challenging endeavor, but painting a winter scene in watercolors has its own separate challenges.  Convincing snow is the main issue.  Since most watercolor purists use only the white of the paper for snow, it requires some really good planning.  The shadows will create the illusion of snow in that instance.  For me, I use a little bit different of a technique.  First of is the wet into wet sky with dark mayan blue.  This is a very deep blue that has a slight resemblance to paynes gray, but obviously much more blue in it.  To me, this looks a lot like winter blues you see in landscapes.  For some reason, when I paint this color onto the paper, I need to get a sweater, it just gets colder in the studio.  That is an atmospheric part of the equation.  Show the viewer a sense of cold.  The last part is easy,  I use white gouache.  Yes, that sounds like cheating, but I don't care.  It gives me the look and feel I want.  I have tried using the white of the paper and for some things I keep it that way, but for winter scenes, I much prefer the white paint.  I just feel it gives a much more realistic feel to being snowy.  The fact of the matter is, you are the artist.  Use whatever tools at your disposal you need to convey whatever it is you want.

Watercolor Painting; ACEO Painting

Art Cards Editions and Originals.
Besides the long winded name these small paintings are a lot of fun to create.  For some reason, your mind does not worry about messing up the painting.  Maybe it's the small size, or maybe the little cards are just that much less intimidating.  Whatever the reason, I recommend you try some.  To be a real aceo, the painting surface needs to be 2.5" X 3.5"  Really, you do not have to paint only.  You can draw, stamp paint, do most anything you wish.  I use the Strathmore Watercolor ACEO paper I get from Dick Blick.  They are 140 lbs watercolor paper and already cut perfectly.  If you have a good paper cutter, buy watercolor paper and cut your own.  When I do these small pieces, I try my best on each one, but I do not labor over areas like I do on much larger pieces.  The old saying less is more really strikes a chord with these types of paintings.  For me, there are only two rules for aceo paintings.  First, make sure the size is correct, and second, have fun.  That's all you need.

Watercolor Painting; Sketchbook Work

Hello Everyone;
Here is another page from my sketchbook I have been working on.  I have been battling a bout of food poisoning and have not really had much energy.  It is so nice that sketching in watercolors does not require a lot of physical energy.  If you can hold your brush and a thought, you're in business.  If you noticed, I have been practicing people a lot more then in the past.  Most of you probably remember my post on my desires to start to do story telling with my paintings.  For me, it begins and ends with painting convincing figures.  Once again, I have no desires to make them photo realistic, but I do want them to be painterly and believable.  As I sketch these figures, my mind starts to wander about what types of situations these people are in.  Where are they going?  What are their intentions and so forth.  I am not sure, but once I get good enough and consistent enough with figures in my paintings, I believe I will add them to most of my future works.  I have always been drawn to art work with people in them and I think many people may feel the same as I do.  Like believe that paintings are not just about the aesthetic beauty of the piece, but of combination of the beauty coupled with the story of the painting as well.

Watercolor Painting Video; Landscape Painting Tutorial

Watercolor Painting Video; Sketching Simple Figures

Watercolor Painting Video; Watercolor Doodling

Watercolor Painting; Thumbnail Studies

So, you have a particular scene running through your mind, but you are just not sure how to begin.  You could guess, use your artistic license and just apply paint to paper and hope for the best.  There are times where this is actually an acceptable strategy.  Spontaneous painting can result in some beautiful work.  This time, however, I want to plan it out a bit.  Take a piece of inexpensive watercolor paper and divide it up into fourths.  Make sure it is watercolor paper.  You want the paint to act the same on these studies as it will on your finished work.  Now, paint four different versions of what is running through your brain.  Unlike sketches that are quick and expressive, take your time a bit on these studies.  I don't want you to labor on each one for hours, but put some thought into each one.  Next, paint each element on each study before moving onto the next.  paint four skies, then four mountain or hills and so on.  The trick is to basically finish all four at the same time.  That way, you do not declare a favorite too soon.  Once all are completed, then make your decision, but wait until all four are done.  If you are still undecided, get a small matt that will fit each study and see what each looks like matted.  Once you do this, your original question will be answered in full.  Use this method with any painting dilemma you find yourself in.  Sketching works well for this too, but I find the longer study versions help me make up my mind a little easier.  Use them both and decide for yourself.  Sometimes, you will find, both sketches and studies will have the desired affect.  It is all a matter of your own preference.  Never be afraid to test new techniques that will assist you in creating beautiful art.

Watercolor Painting Supplies; High End Student Grade Paint

If your thinking about trying watercolor painting, but you don't want to spend a ton of money not knowing if you will even like it, then I have a solution for you.  Winsor & Newton is a paint manufacturing company based in England.  They have been around from the late 1700's or early 1800's.  I keep forgetting which one. Winsor & Newton artist grade paints are among the best made world wide and rather pricey as well.  Their student grade however, are really good paints at a very affordable price.  The set pictured is their twelve half pan set.  You can get it at Hobby Lobby for about $29.00 - $34.00 U.S.  Then there is the 40% coupon that makes these paints really affordable.  I suggest the half pans over tube paints for beginners for a few reasons.  First off, they are really convenient.  They come in this little box made of very strong plastic and have mixing areas right in the lid eliminating the need to buy a separate pallet.  It comes with a small travel brush that stores in the box itself.  Just buy a watercolor sketch book and get a few paper towels, some water and your painting.  You can store them anywhere, clean up is almost instant and they travel very well due to the small size.  Another benefit to half pans is that there is no wasted paint.  The pans are made to withstand non use for periods of time and there are no tubes to try and squeeze the last drop from.  For a total of maybe $40.00, you can start painting in watercolors and find out if this is a medium you want to continue learning about or one you want to move on from.