MEMORIES

This sunlit facade near a lake in Italy caught my eye a couple of weeks ago. We were traveling in northern Italy and spent that day on small Lake Orta, in a charming town chock full of paintings ready to be painted. Six of us were on a journey to explore and enjoy one of the most beautiful areas of the world.

We sat down to paint on the back stoop of an old but beautiful building, surrounded by a cobblestone street, and spent over two hours trying to create what we'd been experiencing. Below you can see my interpretation that day of the photo above.

The work in progress here shows the point when I didn't like how the painting was going. It looked too 'coloring bookish,' so I took a one inch brush and washed water over the whole thing. Of course, the darker areas bled a little but the overall effect helped soften and tie the painting together better. I threw some table salt on and let it dry.

At that point, I was thinking the picture was a lost cause even though the day was wonderful. I put it aside. However, that night, pen and ink worked its magic on the painting and really helped it along.

A few days later, I gave the finished pen and ink watercolor to Laura, who owned the villa where we were to stay while we were in Varenna on Lake Como. I think she really liked it.

I plan to paint this scene again, spending more time on the drawing and composition and focus on the things that made me want to paint it in the first place. While we were in Italy, I painted many days, completing about a dozen small paintings. But once we got to Venice, all painting ceased as I immersed myself in the incredible beauty there. I have enough photos to paint from for a couple of lifetimes and memories to last forever.

"LAURA'S GIFT" Transparent Watercolor on 140#CP Arches, 12 x 9" COLLECTED

YET ANOTHER OLDIE

Using just two colors to paint with is one way to simplify and bring unity to a painting. The focus can then be on the shapes and the movement created by the lights and darks.

This painting has only Raw Sienna and French Ultramarine in it, both paints by Winsor Newton. Painted over ten years ago, it helped me see the importance of strong value patterns in a painting.

"NEAR BRIDGEROCK" Transparent Watercolor on 140#CP Arches, 11 x 7" COLLECTED

TAPING AN OLDIE

Back in the 90's, I began to use masking tape to help control where the paint went and where it didn't get to go. This was one of the very first ones I attempted, but never really pulled off. Parts of it I liked a lot, so I kept it for quite a while, hoping something would magically change while it was stored in a drawer.

See the original sized picture (shown smaller) where I painted the sky in a traditional watercolor way before I used tape for the rest of the painting? By incorporating two distinctly different styles in two very separate parts of the painting, I was guaranteed of NOT achieving unity in the painting. No No No! Shouldn't have done it.

Once I cropped off the sky (bigger pix,) it did help. My brother, Roger, took the photo in Cancun, I think. It may be one that I try again someday, too.

There's so much to paint, so much to express. My hope is to be able to let others see how I see the world. We all have so much to share!

Never titled or completed - done on 140#CP Arches