Pastels and Watercolors (and a few other art media)

[terri]

I’m going to try to practice/paint at least 2x week while I’m in between classes. I didn’t sign up for the summer session because the class I wanted was sold out. This was last night’s practice. Wanted to do more of an abstract sunrise but ended up fiddling around afterwards and wound up taking it in a less abstract direction. It’s a bit simple but I like the colors.

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Good practice! This is simple and lovely. Keep those brushes busy!

 

[terri]

Finally back home. It got pretty dark a bit north of Portland. Seeing the hills in the fog and low clouds gave me an idea.

Sounds intriguing!

 

[SquarePeg]

Last painting from my Imagined Landscapes class. I’m sad it’s over, it was a really great class. Original finished piece looked more like a footpath than a stream so I tweaked it. Kind of like the first version better, but this started out as an exercise on painting rivers and streams because mine always tend to look more like a foot path than water, so I felt like I needed to make an attempt to fix it. What do you think?

 

[terri]

Last painting from my Imagined Landscapes class. I’m sad it’s over, it was a really great class. Original finished piece looked more like a footpath than a stream so I tweaked it. Kind of like the first version better, but this started out as an exercise on painting rivers and streams because mine always tend to look more like a foot path than water, so I felt like I needed to make an attempt to fix it. What do you think?

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I think it's absolutely charming! But I thought it was a little path at first glance, and mistook the blues for shadowy edges.

Not sure it really matters, since it's still such a sweet little painting and the colors are so perfect.

 

[SquarePeg]

First week of watercolor landscapes class. I was a bit disappointed in the chosen subject but the class itself was excellent. Instructor gave a detailed demo then spent time with each of us throughout our attempts to recreate the scene.

I’m not super happy with the sky in this one - the purple should have been more on the blue side. Barn came out ok, roof should have been wider with more overhang, and I would have liked a more translucent water color feel to the whole thing. But, overall, I did learn several new techniques and tricks and looking forward to the next class.

 

[terri]

That's a lot of detail work for watercolor. Looks great to me! I love the sky colors.

 

[SquarePeg]

That's a lot of detail work for watercolor. Looks great to me! I love the sky colors.

Thanks. Week 2 was another meadow with barn but green field, not snow. I hope he moves on to something with more trees and maybe some water. I was a bit bored just looking at the reference photo!

In other news I painted this at the request of the Princess. Not my usual style or subject (except the flowers). As usual Terri I did not leave myself enough headroom and left blank space at the bottom. Maybe I’ll see if she wants a country song lyric on it or something… despite my 80’s Hair Bands pedigree, the Princess is a country girl. Suggestions for improvement always welcome.

 

[terri]

Thanks. Week 2 was another meadow with barn but green field, not snow. I hope he moves on to something with more trees and maybe some water. I was a bit bored just looking at the reference photo!

In other news I painted this at the request of the Princess. Not my usual style or subject (except the flowers). As usual Terri I did not leave myself enough headroom and left blank space at the bottom. Maybe I’ll see if she wants a country song lyric on it or something… despite my 80’s Hair Bands pedigree, the Princess is a country girl. Suggestions for improvement always welcome.

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How awesome is that pink cowgirl boot? Great job! Nice grounding with the blue under it, too.

Nothing wrong with this other than your spacing issue, and you already know you did it. Did you paint this on the fly, or sketch it out in advance? That's the only way I know of to avoid doing it myself (I've had to start a sketch over many times!).

It's a fun painting! Glad you're having fun with the classes.

 

[SquarePeg]

How awesome is that pink cowgirl boot? Great job! Nice grounding with the blue under it, too.

Nothing wrong with this other than your spacing issue, and you already know you did it. Did you paint this on the fly, or sketch it out in advance? That's the only way I know of to avoid doing it myself (I've had to start a sketch over many times!).

It's a fun painting! Glad you're having fun with the classes.

I made several sketches prior to starting the painting, but I did not sketch it out on the canvas prior to starting. That is where I went wrong. And by the time I noticed it, it was almost finished. Flying by the seat of my pants as usual.

 

[snowbear]

Awesome boot!

Sometimes I will rough in a drawing space, like an oval, to get the framing I want. It might help.

 

[terri]

Awesome boot!

Sometimes I will rough in a drawing space, like an oval, to get the framing I want. It might help.

Great idea!

Along similar tactics, I would sometimes put small horizontal lines in soft pastel on either side of the frame, to give myself a little visual of a faux top line not to cross into.

@SquarePeg: Depending on the subject, it doesn't always matter - your landscapes never look crowded. It's the centered subject matter like florals that can fall prey.

 

[SquarePeg]

Class last week was about building depth in landscapes. This is my attempt to follow another relatively bland photo from the instructor. Depth wise I think it works for the most part. Added the distant birds to perk it up a bit. Used just the 3 colors he uses for everything - Ultramarine blue, Alizarin crimson and Nickel Azo yellow. I’m learning a lot about mixing colors. I think my blending washes is getting better. It’s a bit overworked along the bottom. It was too light and my attempts to darken it went a bit off the rails…

Thoughts and advice always welcomed.

 

[smoke665]

, the Princess is a country girl. Suggestions for improvement always welcome.

What goes with pink boots....here you go for an idea.

 

[snowbear]

Class last week was about building depth in landscapes. This is my attempt to follow another relatively bland photo from the instructor. Depth wise I think it works for the most part. Added the distant birds to perk it up a bit. Used just the 3 colors he uses for everything - Ultramarine blue, Alizarin crimson and Nickel Azo yellow. I’m learning a lot about mixing colors. I think my blending washes is getting better. It’s a bit overworked along the bottom. It was too light and my attempts to darken it went a bit off the rails…

Thoughts and advice always welcomed.

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Nailed it!

 

[SquarePeg]

What goes with pink boots....here you go for an idea.
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I ended up adding a couple of small flowers right below the heel of the boot to balance it out a little bit. I’ll grab a picture of it at some point.