WATERCOLOUR TIPS

  

There have been a number of requests for guidance in using WATERCOLOURS and whilst I am by no means an expert in this, I will pass on what I know and have tried, to offer some guidelines.

Why do I say “Watercolour painting is for patient people”?  Well unless you buy heavy 300 gsm paper you have to go through the stretching process, preparing a day in advance. You also need to plan your painting and sketch it in very lightly and accurately in pencil with minimal disturbance to the paper (yes, I mean rubbing out!) The exception to this would be if you were doing wet in wet accidental type paintings with no drawing.  Generally you have to wait for each wash to dry before continuing to paint. (You may find it is good to work on 2 or 3 paintings along together to avoid being idle while you are waiting, or use a hairdryer.)

 You need to be pristine clean, with 2 water tubs – 1 for adding to the paint (distilled preferably) and another for washing your brushes. If you are concerned about maintaining the acid free quality of your paper, you should only handle it with gloves and wear them while you are working.  Adding clean water to a wash can be done with an eyedropper to avoid sullying the water as you might if transferring it with a brush.

Finally, when you have completed your beautiful translucent masterpiece, it will need very special framing.   Watercolours need to go behind glass, with a mount so that the painting does not touch the glass.  Also a waterproof backing is needed.  This is to prevent mildew over the years.

Now I’m not trying to put you off, because there is nothing so beautiful as a well executed watercolour painting - but you need to have the right temperament to handle all this. Personally, I haven’t – although I have tried to give you a few demonstrations below. OK so lets get into it…

                     Various water based paints have different qualities, such as:

Acrylic – which is no longer water soluble when dry and comes in transparent, opaque and fluorescent varieties.

Gouache – which is opaque water based paint, water soluble when dry – much like the early poster paints.

There is even a range of water soluble “oils” available these days.

Watercolour pencils which give drawn lines or shading, but can form a ‘paint’ when wetted with water via a brush

and lastly, PURE WATERCOLOURS – which will be the subject of this Post.

The term “Watercolour” usually relates to pure finely ground water soluble pigments, used on special Watercolour paper and without the use of white…the transparency of the paint allowing the white of the paper to glow through instead.  Occasionally, some artists use a small amount of white (called Chinese white) but the purist approach is not to use any.

Watercolour paints come in tubes and in pans…see illustration.  A Palette needs to have dishes for mixing different coloured washes before applying.  If I were using the tubes, I would put out the colours needed in the small hollows and mix washes from them in the large ones by taking a little paint across and adding water.

Brushes need to be soft (usually synthetic these days) and hold plenty of paint.  The larger the painting, the bigger the brushes needed – although some small ones for detail re always necessary.  Large “mop-like” round ferrule brushes are best for big washes – always care for them by pointing them up after washing & blotting dry.

When you buy watercolour brushes, some come pointed up with a soluble glue in the bristles to keep them in shape. You need to thoroughly wash out that glue before use.  Should your brushes need it from time to time, a wash in hair shampoo and then conditioner can restore them.   Another tip is to dry them flat to avoid water running down and being trapped in the ferrule. This can rot the wooden end of the handle over time.

There are also watercolour pencils available which offer a drawn line to a “paint” when wetted.  These are handy for small travelling  studies.

The little stack pack of pan colours  looks like the picture below when put away and is also very convenient for travelling.   Some of these come in a box with a palette inside the lid which is even better.  If I think I’ll be using most colours in a block range like the ones below (not in a tube) I spray them with water to begin the softening process – then it is much quicker to work the paint up when I am ready.

Here are the warm and cool layers unscrewed so you can see…

Watercolour papers come in different weights, qualities and textures (rough, medium and smooth). Most are acid free to help avoid mildew in the future.  Anything lighter in weight than 300 gsm needs to be stretched so that it will not buckle when washes are applied – so personally, I only buy 300 gsm.  However if you do need to stretch your paper, here is the procedure…

1.  Soak your paper in water well – many soak it overnight.

2.  Take the paper out, holding it up until it stops dripping – then spread it onto a backing board, smoothing from the centre out with a soft rag.

3.  You need a special gummed tape to secure it (available from Art shops).  Cut 4 lengths to fit your paper.

Take each one at a time and slide through clean water quickly then apply to paper and board.

4. Overlap the paper to form a border and smooth the gum tape out well as you go.

5. When you have finished with the gum tape, be sure to put it away in a plastic bag to store so no moisture will enter and spoil it.

6.  Now your paper needs to dry thoroughly before you start painting.  As it dries it will pull taught as the water evaporates. It is now stretched.

With opaque paints such as acrylic and oils, it is usual to work from dark to light in establishing your composition…however with watercolours it is the other way around.   You need to work from light to dark, preserving the transparent integrity of the washes and avoiding “making mud”…so creeping up on any dark areas is the way to go, leaving them until last.   Thinking tonally is important in all paintings.  Here is what I mean by tone:

TONE IS THE DEGREE OF LIGHT TO DARK, AS IN THIS PICTURE.  IT IS EASIER TO SEE TONE IN BLACK AND WHITE GRADIENTS.   TRY TO KEEP THAT OBSERVATION WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE RANGE OF LIGHT TO DARK WHEN COLOUR IS INTRODUCED…

A PERSONAL TIP:  WHEN I PLAN A COMPOSITION TO PAINT, I THINK IN TERMS OF 3 TONES ONLY – VERY BROADLY….LIGHT, MEDIUM & DARK.   JUST PLANNING WHERE THESE AREAS WILL BE GIVES ME A CLEAR PLAN TO WORK TO.  THIS MAY WORK FOR YOU ALSO.  IF YOU CHECK OUT POST 18 YOU WILL SEE HOW  I USE THIS PLANNING.   RIGHT NOW HOWEVER, LET’S GET BACK TO OUR FOCUS ON WATERCOLOUR.

Many people are enchanted with watercolour because of “wet in wet” effects…

In the illustration below there is a combination of wet in wet blurred edges in the leaves, wet on dry for the flower petals and stems and a waterproof pen for black detail.   The extra lines around the blossoms are done with watercolour pencils – which are great for detail…

The trick with watercolours is to START WITH THE LIGHTS AND GRADUALLY WORK TOWARDS THE DARKS (The opposite of oils or acrylics as a rule).  In this illustration below, please look at the beautiful transparency in the shadow within and on the side of the boat…that is the beautiful simplicity and purity of Watercolour painting…     

Below is another example of washes, thinly applied – using warm and cool shadows and leaving the light areas clean.

Sometimes it might be useful to use masking so that you can apply washes right across over (in this case, the house shape) and later peel off the mask to reveal white paper.  Mask comes as film frisk in sheet form and masking fluid in a bottle.  The house shapes have been cut out and put down from film frisk and the foliage texture applied with masking fluid here.  You can see where I have removed some of the foliage mask to show the white paper.

Note: It is important to remove masking fluid as soon as practical – if left too long (overnight for instance), it may damage the paper when rubbed to remove.

Below is an example showing a clean roof line contrasted by the darker foliage behind. The roof has a nice “dry brush” edge created with stronger paint/water ratio and a flat brush dragged horizontally to the paper.  Then with a clean brush & water, the colour is softened out away from the roof into the shadowed areas.  It’s all about contrast – you can’t show up light against light can you?

Below is an example of Australian Flannel Flowers where I had to realy concentrate on painting the negative spaces between the flowers to show up the flower shapes, leaving the white petals with minimal paint…the idea of cutting one out and letting it escape over the mount was to give the feeling of growth and freedom instead of being contained in the rectangle.

It might be useful here to show you how I went about painting these wildflowers…

 First, sketch your flowers lightly in pencil.  I would normally sketch much lighter than this, but in order to photograph it I had to go a bit darker…

With a medium round brush and plain clean water wet the areas between and surrounding the flowers, going over the stem areas.

(Many artists used distilled water and wear plastic gloves to keep their work acid free – as most watercolour paper comes acid free. Acid can enter the paper through our fingers, paint and the water used.  The benefit of this is that once framed properly with a mount under glass, the finished painting should resist mildew in years to come.)

Next. mix a wash with plenty of clean water.  Incidentally, always have 2 tubs of water – 1 clean to add to washes and the other only for washing out your brushes.  That will help keep your watercolours clean and pure.

Drop the wash into the wetted areas, tipping the paper to get it to flow into details areas. Please yourself as to what angle you wish to have your paper as you work for different effects.

  

Keep adding a little more paint until the shapes of the flowers are defined more clearly.

Next, being aware that white flowers are never all white, look for the shadows on the petals and apply these…also some colour to the centre of the main flower.

Flannel Flowers often have darker tips to their petals so my next step was to paint these…

 I must apologise for the discrepancy in photo colouring in this exercise. It is a “sunshine and showers” day and the light in my Studio keeps altering, which affects the camera pickup. In this next stage I have finished defining the flowers, gently creeping up on the darks.  Knowing when to stop with watercolour is the hardest part!  Just try to keep each area as transparent as possible, yet have still have enough definition.

Ah!  The sun has come out!  Now I photograph the finished example in full sunlight for you to see! I have added the stems and leaves with a fine brush.  I think the stems are a bit heavy lookng so I might carefully wet only them and blot gently with a rag to bring back the translucency.  Because watercolours are soluble when dry, you can do this with any area where you have been a bit heavy handed.

OK so I hope that was helpful.  This process could apply to many subjects and with watercolour more than any other medium, I think you really have to be aware of the negative shapes between the objects and contrasts in tone.   Rather than drawn lines, a defining edge is created by different tones meeting.  Even though you may need a light pencil sketch to begin with, it’s good to remove it where you can and just let the paint tell the story.

Here is a simple study for you to try – 5 daisies at different angles. Sketch them in lightly, then create a background wash around the drawn shapes. Let happy accidents stay as part of the effect. This is the first stage.

Next, add some soft shadows to the petals and paint in the flower centres. Then a bit more definition to the foliage.  That’s it!  Don’t overwork it…keep it fresh!

 Just a personal hint re watercolour paper, if you buy heavy weight 300 gsm I can honestly say from experience that is is worth every cent. Not only can you use one side, but if that doesn’t work out – you can use the other as well and there is no need to stretch it.  Then if your second attempt on the side doesn’t work out, you can undercoat the paper with acrylic and use it for an acrylic painting (or if rough texture, even pastels).

The painting below was a demonstration in using a plain candle to rub on textured watercolour paper where I wanted the paint to resist – so in putting a wash over the water and rocks, there remains a broken sparkly efect.    In this painting I used acrylics instead, which can be used as thinly as watercolour or as opaque as you wish.

Next here is a slide show of a simple landscape in stages that I prepared to try to impart some method to you. This example was done on 185 gsm watercolour paper, properly stretched..

If slideshow needs activating, click on X at the top RH corner or “View all images”…

One lady emailed asking for a seascape demonstration in watercolour – so here is my effort.  Now I am making this a combination of what to do and what NOT to do in that I am using  185 gsm paper in a pad and not stretching it!  Let’s see what problems it brings and see if I can find a way out… 

Wet the sky area with plain clear water ready to apply a wash. If you don’t do this you may end up with hard edges you don’t want.

I decide to apply a warm wash first to make sure I keep a sunny look…

It looks bright in the pan, but it is so diluted that when I apply it the colour is very soft.

While I have this colour handy, I apply it to the sand area as well, a bit stronger because it is in the foreground and colours are always stronger closer to you.

 

Oh oh – the paper is buckling somewhat so I put a minimal amount of the wash on the water and rocks to marry up the sky and beach  and try to even out the wet and dry areas on the paper.

Next I mix a purply wash for the sky and apply it gently over the soft orange. The first wash needs to be thoroughly dry before you do this.

Once again, while I have this colour in the pan, I deepen it a bit (I am mixing red and blue together to make the purple) and apply to the headland + define shadows along the water edge.  I have to apologise for photo colour discrepancies once again – the light in my studio is varying on this “sunshine and showers” day.  Where possible I photograph in strong sunlight.

Next I add some blue to the water.   You can see here how the unstretched paper is responding to the varying areas of moisture – not good, but I will keep going and see what I can do to fix it later.

I continue defining, trying to keep the overall transparent.  It’s not easy!  The colours tend to dry paler than they look when applied wet so allowances have to be made for this.

I am nearly there, but the painting lacks life.  With a small brush I add 2 seagulls to add interest. There is a nice airiness in the sky around them – I am pleased with that.

Here is the finished result…probably a bit heavier than it should be in the darks, but that’s my nature – I like drama!

When it was completely dry, I ironed it on the wrong side with a warm iron which reduced the buckling to practically nil. It’s probably not “proper” procedure of course, but this blog is about sharing experiences and helping each other.

Next I tried a wet in wet approach to try to establish the atmosphere of the Australian bush early morning…

When the above was dry, I then removed some of the wash with a wet sponge & blotter where I wanted tree trunks to be.  After painting in the gum trees in the foreground and loosely suggesting some grasses, I decided to create the focal point of a magpie perched on a stump and another flying away.  I was pleased with the overall atmosphere achieved in this painting.   The pale branches in the soft background were achieved by wetting the paint with a thin stiff brush and then blotting straight away.

Tony also painted a loose watercolour impression of the Australian bush near where we live. He began by sketching in the main tree trunks and applying masking fluid to them.  When the rubber mask was dry, he was then free to paint the background in washes and spatters with a toothbrush.  After that background had dried, he rubbed away the mask and painted the trunks, choosing to contrast most of the cool background colouring with warm colours.  This is an excellent approach for handling a difficult somewhat chaotic and complex subject.

Below is Tony’s next study – a Central Australian scene using strong colours…

Next, here is an arrangment of POPPIES for you to use as reference if you would like to…

Tony and I each had a go at painting this study in watercolours the same day.  We didn’t peek at each other’s work until we finished and were surprised to find we had both ignored the vase and focussed on the flowers only (not because it was gold – we could have painted it any colour we wished, but because we felt the flowers were such free shapes we wanted to keep that free feeling and not put anything with a solid structure in).

We both sketched in the shapes of the flowers with pencil first, then painted the background in washes, avoiding the sketched areas. Here is Tony’s painting.  He didn’t use any masking fluid to retain the white areas and carefully avoided them.

Next, here is my effort.  I approached it the same way as Tony except that I used masking fluid on the white bits, removing it later with a rubber.  I also put masking fluid on the stems so that I could continue my background right across them without cutting in.  The rubber mask is rubbed away with an eraser when the painting is dry. I wanted to keep the lightness in the flowers and so made the white blooms into yellow ones rather than put darker shadows. I like the effect Tony got but it didn’toccur to me to put green/grey shadows. I feel happy that I am getting better at handling watercolours.  It takes practise and a different way of thinking to using opaque paint. You have to be able to draw well or it shows (unless you do abstract I guess) and I love the freshness of the transparent colour don’t you?  

  

  

All for now then and once again “Happy Painting”!

Julie

 

FLOWER PAINTING & COMPOSITION

Hello everyone!

Once again, by popular request, here is a Post about composition and in particular, flower studies.  I don’t profess to be an expert, but there should be something here to think about.

Because of copyright, I am mainly using my own paintings & photos here to illustrate. although Tony has lent one of his. Before we get stuck into this subject, here is a little flower power fun…

It’s a strange thing, but most artists when they begin painting flowers, never consider leaving out the vase.  Also, they almost always paint the vase first and then put the flowers in later.   Of course, this is our logical brain at work because in real life, this is what we do isn’t it?  We get a vase out of the cupboard, put water in it and then arrange the flowers.

OK so that’s fine in real life, but if you are going to PAINT flowers, they aren’t going to need water OR a vase are they?  So that’s the first thing to realise – we don’t need to put the vase in.  After all, if you were painting flowers in the wild or in a garden, you wouldn’t be painting them in a vase, would you?

Now with that out of the way, lets have a look at composition…and we must bear in mind that we all have different preferences in what pleases our eye.  Giving thought to various options will help you discover what it is that YOU like!  After all, art is a journey of self discovery and appreciation of everything around us at a deeper level.

                       (Note: Text generally relates to the picture below it)

Now first of all, unless you really want to go for symmetry for some reason…

Having a focal point arranged evenly and in the centre doesn’t leave anywhere for the eye to explore or imagine because everything is fully explained. Our eyes seek VARIETY in shape – not only the shapes of the objects, but of the spaces as well.

Now lets look at some Gerbras in a vase below. The vase colour relates well with the flowers, which is something else to consider in planning overall compositional effects.

We can add some foliage to link up the flowers, add variety to the shapes and group the flowers in a more interesting way by linking some together and overlapping some flowerheads.   Also we can get rid of that hard line suggested as a table edge and soften it into what could be a drape - that will make it unimportant and take away an obstruction as the eye flows up the sides of the vase. The soft shadow of the vase and flowers indicates that the vase is close to a backdrop of wall or similar.  So that has been some improvement, don’t you think?

Still the vase is very much in the centre. Would it be better set to one side a bit? 

Let’s try adding a bit more space on one side and playing the shadow out to the side instead of onto the back wall.  Have a look at the picture below. Do you think it is more interesting this way? 

 

Hmmm.  I think there is too much space in relation to objects now and as a result, I feel I want to be more intimate with the flower shapes and enjoy them more closely.

 

 

I find I can now enjoy the shapes of the flowers and the negative space shapes too – but maybe you like the earlier compositions better(?)

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                  POSITIVE & NEGATIVE SHAPES

OK now I hear some of you say “What does she mean by POSITIVE & NEGATIVE SHAPES”?

Well here is a simple example below…

  

Now to relate this to a flower study, the areas BETWEEN the flower and vase shapes shown in white in the example below are what we call NEGATIVE SHAPES.  The shapes formed by the flowers, vase and shadow are the POSITIVE SHAPES.

SO – ONE OF THE SECRETS OF A GOOD COMPOSITION IS TO HAVE THE NEGATIVE (AS WELL AS THE POSITIVE) SHAPES VARIED AND INTERESTING EH?   Well why haven’t we taken more notice of these negative shapes before?

Because the logical part of our brain cannot name the negative shapes, it gives them little or no importance in our thinking. When you start observing them through an artist’s eyes, you will see them everywhere and enhance your enjoyment of everything around you!

Why should you bother? Because these negative spaces often take up MORE SPACE on the flat surface of your painting than the so called OBJECTS! Therefore they must be of the UTMOST IMPORTANCE when we compose a picture! 

TIP: Don’t be afraid to let your “objects” touch the sides of the area you are painting in, because that creates really interesting negative shapes, and include the borders of your paper or board (which of course can be any shape you choose: rectangle, square, oval, circle)

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                                 SHADOWS!

Another thing our logical brain doesn’t recognise very much is SHADOWS, which play a very big part in the overall arrangement of light and dark areas. These need to be included VERY MUCH in your analysis of shapes.  In fact, in the picture below the shadows of the green and white flowers & leaves are stronger and darker than the objects that are casting them!  Often however they are softer when the objects are not in a strong light – but they are still VERY important! 

Here are some pictures I just took in my studio of SHADOWS ONLY, caste onto a white board. They make very beautiful flat pattern designs, don’t they? Can you see that the shapes of the shadows (dark) are forming positive shapes, leaving the areas between them (white) as negative shapes?  When you look at those negative shapes, they are all different to one another – giving our eyes much to play with!

  Actually, its good to view your composition reference through a little window cut out of cardboard – or use your camera rectangle to help zero in on the best angle and composition.  Make sure your rectangle is the same ratio you plan to paint on, or be prepared to crop it.

Below is a photo of some lovely Western Australian wildflowers my daughter gave me recently. If I were to paint them, how would I improve on this composition?  I’ll just share my thought process with you in case it is helpful.

Well I would start by moving that vase a bit to one side and eliminating anything detracting – like the place mats and bits and pieces.  Lets do that below…

Hmm. but there is not enough contrast to show the flowers up is thre?

Because these are STRONG bold flower shapes and not delicate, I would consider painting them with a darker background and elinating the vase altogether, like this…

Below are some paintings I did of Proteas previously, choosing to zero in on just the flowers…this next one was done with soft pastels on black paper. (The black areas are the negative shapes.  Are they varied and intersting?)

Here is the same subject again, with a white background, painted in acrylics.  (This time the white areas are the negative shapes.)

We have so many options don’t we?  Its all about choices!

                THINK BEFORE YOU START!  PLAN A LITTLE!

Let the flowers speak to you by imagining them drawn or painted in different ways before you begin -  maybe do some little thumbnail sized studies first.

In this next study, I created a circular ’sunburst’ design.  I don’t think I needed to have suggested the vase really – after all I could have been looking straight down on the bunch!  There’s that logical interference at work – “What is holdig them up?” my silly brain said…and so I put in the vase!  Still, it is soft enough not to destroy the sunburst effect.  A circle or an oval are terrific ways to contain and hold the eye.  If your paintings aren’t working in their rectangular shape, just try an oval/round mount on them … you’ll be surprised!

I’ll stretch this picture above into an oval, just to see how it looks…

Here is another option – painting the proteas loosely and freely…

or how about a stylised version – going for more a flat patterning of design…

and yet another version, using light outlines for a ‘neon’ look…

However, if your flowers are delicate with petals that show the light through them, you may choose to paint them in something like watercolour, allowing the white of the paper to glow through the washes… below are some old fashioned dog roses from my neighbour’s fence. I got carried away with softly suggested leaf shadows to add variety and a little mystery…

Speaking of roses, here is a tip I was once given for an approach to multi petalled open blooms…

Next I tried painting some white poppies! White flowers are a real challenge!  When you study and paint them, you realise that there are hardly any true whites anywhere!  Instead, there are many subtle shadows on the petals.   I remember an early study in my college years was to paint an all white study – a white jug, cup and saucer on a white cloth!  I learned so much from that exercise about tone and form.

With these white poppies (painted in acrylics) I decided to allow the background colour to come into the shadows on the petals as a means of unifying the painting.  Not wanting to bring in an new alien colour for the vase, I just utilised the greens already present in the leaves.  The secret here in keeping the composition interesting was to choose 3 or 4 blooms for the main focal point and play down all the rest.  If they were all of equal importance, then the painting would be boring and there would be nothing left suggested.

Below is a bunch of colourful poppies dancing across the page –  this time treated with transparent watercolour (Note: no vase!)  Don’t worry about finishing the stems – just let them fade away or disappear into the cluster.

Here is another of Poppies in watercolour – Tony and I both had a go at painting them one afternoon recently… here is Tony’s finished work:

Now here is my effort.  I used masking fluid on the stems and white parts, rubbing it off after the painting was day.  Tony avoide his white areas carefully while painting and didn’t use any mask.  You can see more about these 2 paintings on Post No. 36 (watercolours).

 There can be 2 light sources with something translucent like flower petals – one shining on the form and another from behind it. A sunny walk in a garden will soon point up the difference.  If the light is shining THROUGH the petals, you will need to paint it thinly whereas light falling ON the petals can be painted more opaquely.

 Sometimes it is nice to experiment with strong design and play with shapes, as I did with these pointsettias below.  This is an area the fabric designers explore fully, playing freely with the shapes and not worrying about photographic realism.  I am actually fairly new to this and Tony has awakened me to a new level of awareness in this area. Thanks Tony!  Lots more to explore in this way of seeing!

 

In the painting below (acrylics) I decided to barely suggest the vase. It is a study of Singapore Orchids, brought to me fresh from Singapore by Adrian one Christmas!  I tried to create a feeling of life and movement with a suggested “cartwheel” within the shapes. Did it work?

At other times, its nice to experiment with different materials. Here I have used gold paint patterning on the vase and table and strong design in the treatment of these mermaid roses below…

Because the flowers were all clustered at the top, I balanced the light shapes by adding a few fallen petals on the table – so there’s another trick you can use!  Either petals, or a bloom laying on the table would work and relax a study that may be too ‘tight’.

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                             BE THE BOSS!  EXPERIMENT!

The biggest thing to remember is “YOU ARE THE ARTIST – THEREFORE YOU ARE THE BOSS!  YOU CAN MAKE CHOICES AND NOT JUST BE A SLAVE TO THE REFERENCE YOU ARE WORKING FROM, BE IT PHOTOGRAPHIC OR REAL.”   SO – “TAKE CHARGE, FORGET THE EGO, EXPERIMENT AND ENJOY!”

OH YES – & ONE LAST THING – ALWAYS PAINT WITH LOVE & FEELING FOR YOUR SUBJECT MATTER AND LOVE EVERY BIT OF YOUR PAINTING -  IT WILL SHOW!              (Unfortunaely, it will also show if you do not!)

Cheers!   

Julie

 

 

PAINTING SECRETS – GLAZE & MIST

It has become apparent from online painting lessons being requested that a post covering glazing and also misting effects is needed.

                          Let’s first look at GLAZING:

Glazing in this instance is another term for thin washes of transparent paint, mixed either with appropriate solvents or Retouching Varnish (if using oils).

Sometimes we might finish a painting only to find it is not quite what we hoped for – colourwise – maybe it is too cold, too dull or the colours don’t relate to one another as a whole.   This can often be helped by putting a thin wash over the entire painting (or parts of it if you wish) using transparent paint.  Not only does this unify the painting’ s overall colouring but it can brighten or subdue as needed.

Oil paints are best for this, although you can glaze with acrylics, but not as effectively in my opinion.  Both oils and acrylics come in transparent and opaque colours and all of course are transparent to a degree when you thin them down with the appropriate medium.  Here are my favourite transparent oil colours suitable to glaze with, along with directions…

Here is a painting lacking in warmth and needing a little “sunshine” washed into it.  The painting is largely blueish so I will glaze using the complementary opposite to blue on the colour wheel, which is orange.

I am going to apply a soft orange glaze with a brush first to the left hand side and will use a mixture of Indian Yellow and Crimson Alizarin oil paints, diluted with Retouching Varnish. Can you see how it is bringing this little painting to life?   

As well as providing a protective finish,  Retouching Varnish gives a sheen to the paint, bringing up any flat areas and enriching the darker colours.  It is, to my knowledge, the only varnish safe to use on oil paintings prior to 6 months after their completion.  This is because it is turpentine based and allows the paint to cure by drying out through it.  It is best to apply this varnish with plenty of ventilation to avoid inhaling.

Next I take the glaze right across, covering the entire painting evenly, then with a soft rag, wipe back some of the cream highlights. Because the glaze takes about a half to 1 hour to dry thoroughly, I can remove some of it with a rag before it dries if I have have overdone the effect.  Some people apply the glaze with a rag, rubbing it in a circular action all over – but I prefer to use a soft brush, only using the rag for any removal.  Here is the painting fully glazed…

Now here is a picture showing the painting before and after glazing.  You be the judge.  Has glazing improved it? I would love to hear what you think! 

 

This painting needed brightening up, but supposing you have the opposite problem - a painting that is too bright or strong in colour.  If you take the main colouring in the painting as a guide, you can then SUBDUE it with a glaze using its complementary opposite colour on the colour wheel.  There is much about mixing and using colours in Post 11, but here is a basic colour wheel to see here…

                  Next, lets look at MISTING effects…

Misting in this instance is like glazing, except with opaque colour instead of transparent, mixed with a little Retouching Varnish.

Sometimes as artists, we would like to soften and fade back distance in landscapes or play down parts of a painting so as to draw attention to focal points.  This can be done by misting.   First, here is one of my paintings in oils which has an effect of broken light in a bushland setting – to give you an idea of what I mean…

The foliage behind the trunks has been misted softly and rays of light added for drama.

How was it done?  Well here is an example…the oil painting below I had discarded as a failure, being too dark and lacking in atmosphere.  I decided to do what I could to save it by “rolling in the mist” and maybe some shafts of light.

First, I prepared a mix of 2 oil paints – white + indigo (a dark cool grey). I also had handy some Retouching Varnish and a soft rag.  You can apply this method over oils or acrylic so long as they are dry to the touch.

There are many different greys you can use – you need to choose whether you want warm or cool grey and just how pale to mix it for your particular painting – I do suggest however that if you mix a grey with just black and white, add a little colour into it so that it doesn’t have a ‘dead’ look.  The warmer the grey, the more dusty or sunlit it will look.  Cooler greys suggest mist or smoke.

Can you see the soft grey at the right, which has been mixed from the 2 at left? That is the grey I will pick up on a rag to apply over the painting. I like to mix with a painting knife for a clean mix and easy wipe clean.

First dampening a small part of the rag with Retouching Varnish, I put my finger behind that part and rub it into the grey mix on the palette and begin applying it to the painting, starting at the top right hand corner…

Working my way down & picking up more paint mixed with Retouch Varnish as needed, I begin to create an effect of shafts of light as well as overall mist, by stroking with the rag at an angle… 

I continue over the rest of the painting, heartened by the effect being achieved!

I realise that I’ve now overdone it and too much detail has been lost in the mist – so taking a clean dry part of the rag, I rub to remove some of the pale grey – still working at the same angle. If I need to take more off, I moisten the rag with clear retouch varnish only and rub.

I have seen an opportunity to focus on patches of dappled light as a feature in this painting and build up some softly sunlit areas.  Sometimes we see this effect with early morning mist or with smoke. 

 

Here is a close up to show the effect, which I have seen all too often in my childhood in my “little home among the gumtrees” (not unlike this one) in the Australian bush.

Ok now lets take a look at the before and after pictures and once again – you be the judge! Did misting improve it?

 By the way, this is a great way to put in a whisp of smoke from a chimney or campfire in a painting or if you use a warm grey, suggest dust rising – for example around the feet of cattle or horses.  I remember one of my classes were thrilled to learn this, as some were painting horses at the time and this meant they could disguise their feet, which they were having a lot of trouble with!  Actually, I’ve seen some marvelous innovations by students to deal with this problem: water splashing up, dust rising, snow and long grass!  Anything rather than learn how to paint their hooves properly!  It has been a great source of amusement to me over the years.  I’m sure in my earlier stages of learning I was guilty of it too!

Below is a diptych I painted in 2007.  It has been on my wall opposite my easy chair so I have looked at it a lot.  Slowly I came to wish it were softer and more mystical with cleaner lines to suit my meditational state when I sit in that chair.   So, after some deliberation – down it came off the wall…

At first I set to and eliminated a fair bit of detail between the trees with a light cream paint.  Then I felt the need to contrast the warm colours with cool and “let the mist roll in” to this Australian bush scene.  It have loved the bush in morning mist so often as a child with the magpies carolling, that I decided that this was the effect I would try to achieve…so here it is:

Ah – now it can go back up on the wall and I know I will feel more peaceful when my eyes wander over this softened image.

Which version do you like best?  After all, we are all different – so lets rejoice in our differences  as we enjoy our growth and embrace all positive change.

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How about some overall feedback from you? Do you like these effects? Are they useful to you?

I have found them invaluable over many years, both when using oils and acrylics. It’s a great way to achieve atmosphere in paintings.

All for now and Happy Painting to you all!  Don’t forget, feedback and suggestions are very welcome, as this is all in the spirit of free sharing.

Julie

Note: To view or leave comments you may need to click on “Continue reading” below.

 

 

 

Katerina Korolkevich-Rubbo (1960) Artist

EACH POST IS ON A DIFFERENT TOPIC & REVIEWED REGULARLY.

VIEWING:  TYPE TOPIC FROM INDEX AT BEGINNING OF WEBSITE INTO “SEARCH” & PRESS ‘ENTER’. 

 

Greetings all!

It is with the greatest pleasure that I introduce to you talented Artist, Katerina Korolkevich-Rubbo (Born in Moscow on April 26, 1960.) who will relate something of her artistic journey – beginning with her earliest inspiration growing up in Russia. Married to Film-maker, Mike Rubbo, Katya (as we know her) thrives in the creative environment of a home full of vibrant paintings and artifacts – surrounded by the beautiful bush and beach of NSW’s Central Coast, north of Sydney.  

Piano and paints are always “at the ready” for Katya and she is a gifted pianist who plays with great sensitivity.   In visiting their home, one is aware of the combined sense of peace, joy and excitement that creativity can bring.  You get the feeling of an underlying buzz – something creative always “on the boil” when in the presence of this artistic couple.  Here is Katya enjoying drawing flowers…

In direct response to her environment, Katya’s appreciation of the gifts of nature is evident in her delightfully pure watercolours.  

Let us first have a look at some of her paintings…then we will follow with husband, Mike’s very interesting interview with her…

Above:   “November Lilies”

Now, let’s take a walk along Avoca Beach with Katya, from south to north, as she records her impressions in paint…

“Avoca Beach (the rocks)”

“Avoca Beach (middle of)”

“North Avoca”

I think you will agree that katya has an eye for capturing the essential in minimalist style with her use of beautifully transparent watercolours.  If you have ever dabbled in art, you will realise that this is something deceptively difficult to achieve. 

“Dancing Camelias”

“Easter Lilies”

“The cat is lying on the sun”

“Peach Blossom”

“Table in my kitchen”

Thank you Katya, for those lovely glimpses of your work. Now let’s go to Mike’s interview to learn more about you!

 July 2008             *************************************************

Mike:   “Katya, now you have to tell me how did you start painting?”

Katya:  “I started painting in my young years. I was growing up in Moscow in a city full of history and art and I guess I took everything for granted around me - hardly noticing grand columns, powerful bronze horsemen and festive fountains.” 

Mike:  “You had access to a lot of art when you were young…”

Katya: “Yes. Everything was steeping in history and art.  As I remember nobody would stop and say ‘What an amazing building it is!’  Nobody was admiring buildings unless they were tourists.”

Mike:  “Do you remember what painting in particular had an effect on you? Some early paintings you remember?”

Katya: “There was not one painting.  There were visits to the gallery.  Realistic paintings…”

Mike:  “What?  Snow scenes…?”

Katya:   “18th, 19th century. There would be portraits of some aristocrats, or landscapes, scenes with peasants etc.”

Mike:  “What artist had an impact on you?”

Katya:  “Many artists and among them were Repin, Savrasov, Levitan, etc.  They had an impact on me.”

Mike: “What did you like about Repin?”

Katya:  “His drawing style, full of detail expressing character – he really would get into a personality…”

Mike:  “And what about the content of his paintings?  What did you like about his subject matter?”

Katya:  “He would put people and nature in some sort of a correlation.”

Mike:  “Was he a social commentator in some way?”

Katya: “He was, but not in an extravagant way.  Painters at that time would portray wealthy or poor people realistically but without making comments.  You would just feel pity for a child dressed in rags or see aristocrats sitting on a high chair with a background full of statues and amazing draperies. What attracted me most is that I did not know anything about this…”

Mike laughs…

Katya: “So there was a kind of silence that constantly accompanies your visit to the gallery. I like that.”

Mike:  “Maybe that was your church…”

Katya:  “No. I was not religious.”

MIke:  “That was a replacement of church…”

Katya:  “No, not sure.  I think it gives you an opportunity of exploring yourself without being told what to do.  And unless you have a guided tour you can do whatever you like.  You can go to contemporary, classic or ancient art and spend time there.

That was a striking moment!  I could stop in front of a painting and find my own interpretation of it or emotional involvement.  I remember one particular painting by Levitan “March”.  When you look at it you see a horse standing in the yard near the log house and the forest nearby.  The artist captures the snow, slowly melting under the rays of the sun.  When you look at this painting you could feel the smell of the melting snow.  It is absolutely incredible.”

Mike:  “Who was the artist?”

Katya:  “Levitan and the painting is called ‘March’. This is one of my favourites.  and here it is!”

 

Katya: “We have a number of extraordinary painters and the Russian school of art is one of the best. I always felt sorry I could not pursue art as a profession.”

Mike: “You loved realistic art.”

Katya: “I admire abstract art but I think I have to understand what the artist wants to say.  Just a splash of colour would not interest me very much.”

Mike:  “Did you have access to paints in Russia?”

Katya:  “Oh, yes.  There was not a big variety of paints.  You definitely could get watercolours, temperas…I found out that the St. Petersburg watercolours are some of the best watercolours in the world as they are produced with real pigments.  Good brushes made from squirrel … and you could buy them really cheaply.”

Mike:  “Do you remember your first images that you did?”

Katya:  “I did a bit of copying I would say.  I looked at faces and tried to get the same expression or did drawings from imagination.  I wanted to copy the gesture.”

Mike: “Did anybody encourage you?”

Katya:  “Yes. My mum and dad encouraged me to do it.  They looked at it as a way of passing my time.  Once when I was 10 I did a drawing completely from my imagination of some French women dancers.  I had this idea of some beautiful women in fine clothes dancing.  How on earth I came to this idea I do not know and I did not see Toulouse-Lautrec’s paintings.

A family friend, Konstantin Glagolev saw my drawings and said he would like to take them to show to an artist friend. In a couple of weeks he brought the paintings back and said that he showed my drawing to the artist and the artist’s opinion was that I expressed a lot of movement in my drawings.  I think it was an encouragement for me to continue.”

Mike:  “Was it your only piece of expert encouragement?”

Katya:  “No. I had another friend – a book illustrator.  I still have her as a friend, a lovely woman, Tanya Gnisyuk.  She always would encourage me to paint.  She would say ‘Just do some painting’.  She will give me a small wooden board in a hardware store and say ‘You can paint what you like.   It can be a fantasy or you could look at something like flowers’.  She showed me reproductions of some Russian folk art. That is how I got the idea.  I still have my first cheese board that I painted at Tanya’s home which represents a vase with stalks of wheat and Chinese lantern flowers in it.”

Mike: “Wow!…”

Katya: “Yes! Here it is!”

Above: Tanya Gnisyuk at home with her collection of cheeseboards (and how about that gorgeous pie on the table!) She is holding a photograph of Katya’s first watercolour painting.  Here is a closer look at it. What a delicate rendition of lilies and it seems from more recent paintings above, Katya still maintains her love for these elegant flowers…

Mike: “So her guidance of you continued for many years.”

Katya: “For many years.  I remember her being encouraging, very warm, without pushing any line.  She would say ‘Do whatever you like’. I would come to her house often.   Many people would come and go in her house as her husband was a photographer.  It was an open house.  I loved being there. People would come and look and say ‘This is nice what you are doing’ ”

Mike: “Did you have any friends of your own age who would paint?”

Katya: “Unfortunately not.  I went to study physics and languages and there was nobody around me interested in art.  I got support from my mum.  

I have to explain that there were no free venues for artists in the Soviet era to display one’s work.  There were exhibitions only for artists who were part of the artists union supervised by the state.  There was no freedom of expressing yourself.  Poor artists could not sell their work – could not show it to anybody.   When perestroika happened I must admit there was a rapid change in freeing of the arts.

The first sign of this was a Vernissage – an exhibiton of art and craft in the park in Moscow.  I guess it is like Montmartre.  So in Moscow it is the Arbat street.  It was so extraordinary that little freedom that artists gained.”

Mike:  “When was that?”

Katya: “1985.  So you come out and you see people painting, somebody talking, tourists buying things.  It was absolutely beautiful. My mum brought me there and since then I would go regularly to Vernissage.  I made good friends there.  An artist offered to paint my portrait.  He did a quick pastel drawing capturing my character I think.  I still have this drawing. The artist’s name is Sergei Arto.

Mike: “You did not do any art at school?”

Katya: “Yes, I did.  I had a teacher OlgaIvanovna from year 5.  She loved my work and she gave a lot of tasks as she knew I could do really well.”

Mike:  “Was there any pressure to do propaganda art?”

Katya: “It is a very interesting question.  I felt that pressure.  There was one task in particular when I was summoned to the blackboard with another student to do a poster for the Labour Day.  There was a competition and it was unpleasant.  I lost it as I did not draw the hammer and the sickle in the right way.”

Mike laughs… “You did not remember which way the hammer and sickle are turned?”

Katya:  “No. I made a mistake”

Mike: “You were not paying much attention in your life to it.”

Katya: “No. Because I did not like this symbolism.  False symbolism.  The teacher said to me: I will still put ‘excellent’ for the term but you failed this competition.  Finally that was my farewell with propaganda. I realised I would never participate in any propaganda art.”

Mike: “Did you feel cheated in any way?”

Katya: “Yes. In a way. The other girl chose a simple thing. She did dots, stars and balloons.  We were 10 at the time.  I tried to make it symbolic and it was too hard for me.”

Mike: Did you say to the teacher it was not fair as he other girl did not do propaganda?”

Katya: “No. I did not say anything. I was just unhappy.”

Mike: “That nasty experience…what effect did it have on what you wanted to paint in the future?”

Katya: “I realised that I did not want to participate in any propaganda, anything artificial reinforced by state. We were surrounded by socialist realism everythere.  I just loved nature, observing animals.  I wanted to do something soft and unthreatening.  I still loved portraiture but not painted in socialist realism where things are pushed onto you. That put me off straight away.”

Mike:  “Not the strong worker…”

Katya: “Yes. That’s right.”

Mike:  “You also went towards romantic.”

Katya: “Yes. A sense of nature, poetic description of villages, run down churches and things like that. That was my interest.”

Mike:  “Did you see any modern art, abstractions, and big works like Jackson Pollock’s paintings?”

Katya:  “As a matter of fact we did not.  What happened in 60s I think Khrushchev criticised painters for exploring new abstract ideas, new wave of avant garde, extraordinary new shapes and forms.  So the government discouraged artists to explore those venues while underground artists continued but there were no public shows of explorative ideas.  No way. Everything was socialist realism from top to the bottom.  In a way everything was quite realist:  a still life, a view from the window, or a top official in the uniform.  I did not see much abstract at all.  The artists had to earn their living so they would paint realism whether they wanted or not.

Mike: “It’s a big interview here. You think it’s enough?”

Katya:  “I think so”.

       **************************************************

Thank you Mike and Katya for that in depth, interesting insight.  It is so interesting to look back and see the cause and effect at work in our lives isn’t it – what we do shaped not only by our environment, but our response to it.

Should you wish to contact Mike and Katya, please feel free to do so via email:   katerina.rubbo@aapt.net.au

Cheers everyone and I hope you are continuing to enjoy this website.

Don’t forget, you are welcome to leave comments or offer contributions, complete with photos at any time.