Category: Newsletter

Below is the reference photo that I used to make this quick watercolour painting done as a demonstration in one of the classes last week. I thought you might enjoy a little mini art lesson. Here are the main points that were covered: The background was done first, the trees last. 1. Skies often gradate from darker blue at the top, to lighter at the horizon. Even if your reference doesn’t show this, putting it in adds depth. /  2. Cloud shapes should be larger at the top of the page and get smaller toward the horizon. / 3. The colours in the original were very dull – why not make those distant hills autumn instead? / 4. Using dark silhouetted foreground trees, give a lovely glow of light to the background. This effect is called a ‘screen’ and was made popular in the Art Deco time period – early 1900’s. The Group of Seven sometimes used this effect in their work. / 5. Making up some shadows under the trees sets them nicely into the ground. /  6. Simplify the number of branches – only enough to indicate the brush. /  7. Near the end, I was going to do the green shapes on the branches. At the last minute decided it would be more fun to echo the orange/brown of the distant hills in the leaves. And since I liked how the background had turned out, might as well leave more of it showing. /  And the most important point of all? 8. A photo reference is simply a launching off point. Give yourself permission to change anything – colours, shapes – whatever your heart desires to make a more dynamic painting. 

Today’s tip is for watercolour painters. When painting, just put out enough watercolour paint to do you for that session. Do not put out your complete tube of paint into the wells of your palette. Once that paint dries it never gets as rich and creamy again when you rewet it. Practically speaking, this makes it difficult for you to make rich strong darks in your painting. Now, I know that some teachers tell students to put the whole tube out, so this is not to make you feel guilty if you have done this. I suggest that you use that paint up, and if you need an area of dark colour, put out a bit from a fresh tube for that. Fresh paint just out of the tube also gives a richer flow into a wet area too – it’s more fun and more effective. If you still end up with left over paint on your palette when putting out the smaller amounts, spray them with water and cover with plastic wrap to keep them creamy for a few days. Happy painting! 

Did you know that oils do not dry by evaporation, but by light curing? This means that if you leave an oil painting in a dark room, it will stay wet for a long long time. This can be used to your advantage if you get interrupted while painting and want it to stay workable longer. It’s not a good idea to delay the drying for too long though. A few days is fine, but longer than that and the paint might have a tendency to yellow. However, if you are in a hurry to dry an oil painting, putting it under bright light both day and night really helps speed things up. But using a hot hair dryer to try to speed up oil paint drying is a completely useless exercise.