Oh Wade you did not really paint over that nice sketch you did... That was so nice, with a little more work on it you could've had such a good drawing. I saw potential in it that I guess you didn't see. I think you have ability and talent, and much of what you've shared is close to being really good with more practice, taking an art class sometime would probably be worth it.
edit - What I see looking again is that the pencil sketch could use more definition, and there's empty space. In the color version, there's so much of the same blue. Cover up the building and just look at the bottom half; I think in the painted version that's where it appears as shape without shadow, dark, light, etc. I don't see where it changes from grass to sky. The marks to indicate grasses could be further defined and seem to be the same size; it should vary closer to the building compared to what's closer to the viewer. That's where taking a class could teach perspective and how to use that in drawings and paintings (at least I remember learning that in art classes).
Sharon, thanks for the feedback. I appreciate all feedback, whether positive or negative, because this helps me understand how others view my work. It helps me grow as an artist, as well. For that, I do appreciate your comments. I think there may have been a slight disconnect between what you thought my end product was/would be and what the real intentions were, because this was a sketch and watercolor for fun. I hope you know there are no hard feelings. I want explain a little bit about why the final image went where it did. I also want to immediately state that I know I could be a better artist, that I know that having formal training would make me a helluvalot better, and that I need to grow considerably as an artist and person.
(I really would love to take an art class, but I have neither the time nor the money for a class right now. I'm having fun playing around, even if it means developing "bad habits" or creating artwork that not everyone likes. I've been trending towards big, bright, bold colors in both my art and my photography, so that came across here. Anyways, back to the art itself...)
If I had wanted a hyper realistic image to frame and put on the wall, I could have easily spent hours with a ruler, pencil, and eraser getting all the angles perfect, the perspective perfect, and the scale right on point. Then, I could have stuck with what is familiar and what I've been doing best lately, which is pen. I could have outlined it, shaded it with dots/lines, etc. I agree, it would have looked great. But, what you saw in my original pencil sketch.. sketch... was a work in progress and done completely freehand while watching TV. As much as my wife needs to keep her hands busy knitting while sitting, I need to do the same (I tried to come up with a funny saying, but arting while farting didn't have the same ring to it).
I didn't intend to keep it that way, but as I had said, I wasn't sure what I wanted to do with it (or where I wanted it to go). That was part of the reason I didn't originally draw the foliage and left it blank.
What I found is that I started to get quite bored, which was the exact opposite of what I wanted when I started to get back into art. The initial sketch was meant to be fun. I did some quick calculations in my head comparing how much time would be spent on it vs how much time the art would actually be viewed and by whom (me, my wife, and whomever gets my sketchbooks when I die, LOL). I decided to have fun with it and see where it would go. I thought about what I wanted to do with the leaves, and thought I'd try ramming my brush down on the paper to see what happened. I thought it looked neat and gave it some texture, so I kept doing it (much to the chagrin of my brush's feelings).
I do understand perspectives (that leaves further away will be smaller and vice versa), and this is actually how I started out with the piece. I also started out with a very light orange/green foliage near the top due to the warmer light from the sun and a darker green near the bottom due to the area being darker. This might not make sense to those that are not familiar with Fallingwater, but this is probably one of the most famous views of the house. From this perspective, it's completely surrounded by foliage; there is no sky.
I was working off of my own image of it, but here's a
Wikipedia image of it for reference. I just didn't like it, but apparently physically attacking the paper with a brush turned out to be my method. LOL
The only part of your critique that I do take exception to is the "I saw potential in it that I guess you didn't see." I don't believe you meant any harm or malice by this, so I am not offended. But, it is kind of walking that line of being non-constructive. I'm used to taking something that has "potential" and nearly always "ruining" it based on other's opinions--see here as an example:
More "Vintage" DC.
The goals of my art right now aren't to get approvals, or even to hang on the wall (although I do have one hanging right now). One goal is get some of the daily frustrations out, and I decide to share my art here, whether or not it is in line with conventional thinking.
All this said, I'd be more than happy to continue receiving your feedback, and I hope you stay and continue to post in this thread. I'm sure we'd all be happy to see your artwork, as well, and to have another artist to commiserate with.
This is on my fave paper, Arches Oil paper, with mostly Neopastel oil pastels. 
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