Snow Trees Complete

The bottom picture is my interpretation of the photograph. My intention is never a photograhic copy, but to capture the feel of the scene I had experienced. The finished painting is 19" X 42" in size. The edges are a ripped deckle edge. In this scene no white was used. I used frisket to reveal the white of the paper.

How do you feel about this painting?

Painting Snow Trees

I took this picture during a quiet snowfall about two years ago. I love the shot, but I didn't quite know how to tackle it. With the larger format, it made it a little easier to comprehend.

I started it this evening. I used liquid frisket to get all the trees in, then I liberally splattered the frisket across the width of the scene. Then mixed up two small plastic containers of Indigo. For the over all blue base, I watered down the indigo and quickly spread it across the water saturated, 300 lb. stock. As this layer was about 1/4 dry, I poured on a denser Indigo and a bit of Cadmium Red. It is on the floor drying at this moment.

When it is dry, after I put in some subtle shadows of the feature trees, carrying the image down below the horizon, I will platter some the indigo on to the scene, to loosen it up a bit.

Confidence with watercolour as a medium comes from careful planning. It also forces you to discipline yourself because, if after the frisket is removed, I am not satisfied with the results, I will have to start over and approach it again.

It is pretty rare that I take a picture of a scene and paint it right away. Some I've painted up to ten years later. For some reason each shot requires me to be "ready". I don't know where this comes from, but I'm used to it. What is it that gets you to pick up a brush and render a scene? When I'm finished with the painting, I will post it here and we can both see if my interpretation is good or not.

See you then.

Painter's block

Sometimes I just get painter's block. The blank canvas stalls me. I have decided recently to tackle a very difficult subject. It's a wintery scene I took a few years ago. It will take a good deal of planning. It looks on the surface to need a great deal of frisket, but there may be another way.

One thing about watercolour wash is that you really have to get it right the first time or you have to do it over. This is exactly what I enjoy about the media is the discipline. It must be planned out before I put brush to paper. If I get the order wrong I can't simply do a paint over like what is possible in opaque media.

All of January, I've been busy in my business (branding and graphic design) and so time to paint fell short. But this picture has been in the back of my head for the last few months. It's difficulty kept me from just jumping in.

February will see me taking a crack at it though.