Watercolour 7

Hi all,
I will have to admit that the challenge this week has been, well, a bit of a challenge. I have not had a good week time wise. The problem is that when we moved to our current house about 18 months ago, we found that it had a cold water supply and tap in the garage/workshop. That's great you might think, but the trouble is the tap is just on a wall, there is no sink and no drain. If anybody uses the tap and doesn't turn it off properly the garage floods. Who thought this was a good idea I don't know, but they obviously didn't have all their chairs in the same room.
Anyway, I booked a plumber to come next week and move the tap to an outside wall so that my wife can use it to water her-always thirsty-plants. To cut a long story short, I have had to paint the walls in the workshop in preparation for the plumber. The walls want painting anyway and I want to do it before he redirects the pipework across them.
On the art front, I thought I'd have a go at some wet on wet pansies. Pansies are easy to draw so I did a few.

Then I copied and pasted them in photoshop and rearranged them into the design above. So far so good. I then transferred the image onto watercolour paper and set about painting them with the wet on wet technique mentioned earlier.
All I can say is that it was a absolute disaster. You've most likely seen my last 6 paintings, so you will know that I'm not shy about showing you my failures, but even I couldn't pluck up the courage to post my pansies on here. Take it from me they were crap.
So, like a naughty rose, I reverted to type and had a go at some more undergrowth. I want to get the hang of painting backgrounds with realistic leaves in the foreground. Once I've mastered that I want to add wildlife like butterflies and dragonflies, I guess I've always been a dreamer.
Painting Number 7

My Review score 15/100
Bad bits
1   The light blobs in the top right hand quarter spoil a reasonable image. They were caused by me dropping granulation medium onto the wet painting. It seemed like a good idea at the time but it turned out to be stupid. I won't do that again. Here on my website are few other stupid things I won't do again.
2   I don't like the background colour, it looks like an explosion in a marmalade factory.
3   The composition is wrong, especially the top right hand corner which is as empty as a gambler's wallet.
Good bits
1   Some of the background stems and leaves work quite nicely.
2   The hips and leaves in the foreground have a nice bright look to them. This was achieved by glazing them with several thin layers of paint, rather than applying one thick coat.
It has taken a while for the penny to drop but applying watercolour in layers is the best way to give an image a bit of a glow. I have also discovered that not all watercolour paint is transparent. This came as a bit of a shock to me and I will discuss it more in my next post.

Bluebell Wood

Hi all,
I'm sure that if I can improve my drawing skills I will also make improvements to my watercolour paintings, so I decided to draw a bluebell wood and use it for the subject of my next painting.

Many artists believe that doing a pencil drawing of a subject first has certain advantages. Firstly, it allows you to sort out the tones so that you have more chance of getting them right in the painting stage. I am sure you have heard the experts talk about establishing the lightest lights and the darkest darks in their paintings, well doing a drawing up front allows you to accomplish this task.

Secondly, doing a drawing up front gives you a chance to become familiar with your subject, which is never a bad thing.

Here's my drawing of the bluebell wood.

It isn't bad, but to be honest, by the time I'd finished doing the drawing I gone off the idea of the painting altogether. I need to do something with fewer trees in it.

Watercolour 6

Hi all,
In my last post last I showed you the snow drop that I did for the competition I was entering. Well it wasn't good enough, so I did another on the theme of damselflies taken from a pyrography design I once did on top of a box.
Here is my first attempt at the subject.

Yes, I know its a right dog's dinner. Last week I said that hoping for happy accidents wasn't the way to go, yet in my next painting I did exactly the same, in fact, it was worse. I won't even give it a review because it doesn't deserve one.
The only thing to do was try again, but in a more controlled manner. I know that loose water colours that look  like they've been produced by an artist who did the job with the brush shoved up his nose are the in thing, but I want better.
Here's painting 2 of the same subject.

Okay, it might not be everybody's cup of tea, but in my world it is grand improvement on the first effort. If you disagree I'd love to hear your views; please share them with us.
Review bad bits
It isn't terribly interesting.
Good bits
It is tidy and a step in the right direction.
Score 14/100
I'm not sure what I am going to paint next, but I'm going to increase the size. Everything I've done so far is about as big as a post card so I'm going large, well at least twice as big. I'm also thinking of doing a bit more drawing to try and hone those skills a bit

Drawing

Hi all,
 It seems to me that painting and drawing go hand in hand, unfortunately, my drawing skills leave a bit to be desired. I keep telling myself that the best way forward is to draw something every day and that is exactly what a lot of drawing instructors advise. I am sure that are right, but having the discipline to sit down and draw everyday is another matter. Finding something to draw is also a problem, I'm sure I could arrange a still life of a couple of cups and a jug on a gingham table cloth, but I haven't got any inspiration for that.

Anyway, I decided to draw something out of my head and just let it happen on the page. Here is the first one. It was inspired by a book my wife picked up from a garden centre. I started off with a pencil and then went over the lines with a Staedler 0.05 pigment liner pen, but it was taking too long so I did away with the pencil. That's the best thing about not copying. If you make a wrong mark, nobody else but you knows about it. If you draw a wren and it looks like a duck, who is to know you weren't drawing a duck in the first place.

I started by drawing the big daisies first then just filled the rest in a bit at a time over the course of about a week. The end result was quite pleasing so I went on and did another.

This one I felt was even better. I especially like the leaf like pattern around the tree and the Hooty owl peering out from his hole.

I will now endeavour to draw as much original content as I can and only resort to copying and tracing when I'm extra desperate. If you like the drawing above please feel free to print them off and colour them in if you wish. There seems to be surge in popularity at the moment to colouring in, especially among adults. This is a good thing because it may lead many on to bigger and better art.

Painting number 6 in my challenge will be posted soon. Meanwhile, enjoy your painting. One last thing, one of my books in The Fishing Detectives series is up for a free download on Smashwords this week. If you would like a copy just pop along to my website for details and the link.

Watercolour Painting 5

Hi
A few posts ago I was moaning about the cost of paint, especially artists' quality paint. Well, I have come up with a cost saving plan that should keep my wallet happy. I have joined the SAA to take advantage of their great prices and every thing else they have to offer. Here is an example of what I mean.
A 5 ml tube of watercolour paint in my local art store cost me £5.60.
A 14ml tube of SAA watercolour paint costs £4.70
I'm sure you can do the sums yourself and this isn't just a offer price, it is on the full range and all the other artists' materials in their catalogue are excellent value as well. More good news, postage is free no matter how many times or what you order. My experience is that delivery is also very quick.
The only catch with being a member is that you have to pay an upfront fee of £29, but when you see the prices of their stuff the membership fee will soon be recuperated and you will forget the pain.

Being a member also has lots of other advantages, a gallery to display your paintings, a forum and every two months you get a free magazine etc. I'll put a link at the end of this post if you are interested in taking a look at their website.
Anyway, when I joined the SAA, they sent me a free book and some watercolour post cards. The purpose of the post cards are to allow new members to enter the new member competition. You don't win a big prize but if it is selected it is printed in the free magazine that members get every two months. I nice boost to the ego I thought, so I decided to have a go at a postcard painting to see how I got on.
Here is my first attempt, which was inspired by a painting by Jane Betteridge who is the author of Watercolours Unleashed.

I masked off the snowdrop flowers stalks and some parts of the leaves. When that was dry, I wet the paper and brushed paint across the paper in a vertical strokes to try and give the painting a bit of movement. When the paper was almost dry, I brushed in some of the leave and then sprinkled salt over it to give it a bit of an interesting texture.
When the whole painting was dry, I brushed off the salt and removed the masking fluid. Then I painted the stalks and put some more definition into the leaves.
I would say that it is my best effort so far and a step in the right direction, so I'm giving it a score of 12 out of 100
My review of the bad bits
The salt didn't work. In fact, I'm not sure at all about always being on the look out for happy accidents because my accidents always look like total carnage. I don't want to be a botanical artist using a brush as big as a butterfly's todger, but I think a bit more control wouldn't go amiss.
 The ink splatter at the bottom right was also a big mistake.
Good bits
If you take away the scabby salt marks and silly ink splatter it isn't too bad.
I don't think it is good enough to enter the post card competition so I will have another go this week.
Here is the  Link to the SAA and here is a link to Jane Betteridge  website. She is a fine painter and she also uses SAA paints in her work. So if they are good enough for her they will do for me.

Watercolour 4

Hi all,
I can't believe another week's gone since I began this challenge. I had a day trip to Barmouth on Wednesday and, because it was a three hour drive around twisty roads in each direction,  it took me another day to get over it. In fact, my wife got me a bottle of Sanatogen tonic wine to see if it will bring some life back to my poor old soul. I have had on glass full and the taste is great, however, regarding its pick-me-up qualities I'm not quite sure. If I start dancing about like a new born lamb I'll let you know.
Anyway back to the painting, this week I thought I'd have a go at something different and chose a red admiral butterfly. It was done as usual with watercolour paints on 140lb cold pressed paper. I won't beat about the bush any longer, here it is in all its glory.

Again, I am disappointed with the way it turned out and would give it a score of 10 out of 100
My view of whats wrong with it.
1 The butterfly is smack bang in the middle of the painting, so that was my first mistake.
2 The butterfly doesn't look very dainty, in fact it has all the fragility of a pair of welder's mitts.
3 The background is an horrible colour. I come from a large family and it reminds me of the over diluted orange cordial I had when I was a youngster.
4 The blackberries are purple when they should be black.
5 The leaves look like they've got some disease that all the people on Gardener's World couldn't cure.
Good points
1 I think the stems have a pleasing curl about them.
2 The painting is small, so not much time or paint was wasted.
Now there may be some people who think I'm being a bit harsh on myself, well perhaps I am. I guess it is all about meeting ones own expectation. At my age, how good can I expect to get and what sort of paintings do I want to do?
Well, photo realistic and even realistic are probably objectives that are beyond me. I've never been a fan of abstract painting or impressionism so what am I left with. The answer is that I want to paint images that are pleasing to the eye and look as if at least a thimble full of skill was used in their creation.
To me art is all about making pleasing images. I am sick of hearing expressions like, "good art should say something" or "great art should be though provoking." Bullshit, great art just needs to be a pleasing image however it is produced.
If you have any views on my painting or on what constitutes a great picture, please let me know.

Watercolour 3

Hi all,
A week goes very quickly when you get to my age, but I managed to crack off another painting. Following on from the watercolour birch trees that I produced in painting number 2,  I thought I'd have another go and see if I could make an improvement. "It wouldn't be too difficult," I said quietly to myself.
My inspiration for better things this time, came from seeing a painting by Jane Betteridge in her book "Watercolours unleashed." Jane is one of those artists who paints with a lot of confidence and it shows in her work. My wife and I attended an exhibition of hers earlier in the year at Ticknall village hall where she had some great art on display. Her book is well worth a read and will inspire any artist who is stuck in a rut. Here is a link to Jane's website . Please don't forget to come back and have a giggle at my efforts.
Part of me would like to paint in her style, but yet another part of me doesn't want my paintings to be quite so loose. I like the idea of using Jane's style and technique for my backgrounds and something more detailed in the foreground. I guess I can only dream at the moment but one of these days, who knows.
Anyway, here's my painting of some birch trees in a bluebell wood. It is painted with Winsor and Newton artists' watercolours on 140lb Langton paper.

I suppose it is slightly better than my last painting but only because it isn't so green. The method I used isn't worth relating so I'll just get on with the review.
My review
Bad bits
1 Again I've gone for a sunburst yellow background and again, that looks totally daft.
2 The bluebells in the middle ground look okay, but I could have done with adding some in the foreground with more detail.
3 The foreground foliage in general is rather pathetic. I sprinkled some salt on it to give it some interest but I'm not impressed.
4 The birch trees have their markings all coming from the same side, which when you thing about it is really absurd.
Good bits
None
I can summarise this painting in one word, crap. I know it is only my third attempt but I was hoping for better. I'll score it just to be consistent but it isn't getting anything higher than a 7 out of 100.
What do you think, am I being to hard on myself? Your comments are very welcome.