I have spent better part of the day agonizing over the first "Petal Light" series of bird of paradise today. On the reference photo most of leaf shapes are in shadow, therefore in the dark to mid-dark value range. Even the ones that are in the light have mid-value local colors, and the only light shape in the photo is the flower. To avoid a straight bull's eye effect, and make the composition more interesting, I need to find a way to make the leaf shapes more interesting. I have experimented with adding more colors of blue, yellow and even purple into the leaf colors, greatly exaggerate the color tendencies I saw on the reference photo. But I'm now at a point that the entire painting looks colorfully disintegrated. The lacking of unity coming from painting the leaf shapes as patch-work of color patterns makes me not sure of what to do next. It's been a struggle, but I will stick with it -- I believe this reference photo has great potentials of becoming an interesting painting, plus solving this problem would allow me to eventually do projects of similar kind in the future. So I am determined to fight through...
Petal Light #1, Watercolor on Arches 140# Cold Press Paper, 10"h x 8"w, WIP 4
I also worked on "Peppermint Rose" a bit more, darkening the shadow shapes in the center of the flower. The flower now looks much more three-dimensional. It's a different kind of struggle for this one, since getting those dark shapes to look soft and diffused is not an easy task on the Fabriano paper, as I have complained in previous posts. I did enjoy the capability of lifting any color, even the staining ones, to almost white on this paper though. This allows adding and subtracting both light and dark shapes in the painting process, giving me more flexibility in changing the design of shadow shapes on the go. I am letting go of the reference photo at this point, reacting more to the shapes that are emerging on the paper and trying to arrange them into a more pleasing jigsaw puzzle of lights and darks. 65% done for this one, maybe?....
Peppermint Rose,
Watercolor on Fabriano Artistico 140# Cold Press Paper, 8"h x 8"w, WIP 5
I took my painting "Island Beauty" from the "Secret Garden" show hosted by Pacific Art League in Palo Alto today, and was happy to learn that it has got an Honorable Mention. I am very surprised and happy about it -- it's a national juried show with some great artwork, most of which very conceptual. It's a great encouragement for me to keep on improving, and explore difference venues...
Island Beauty - White Plumeria,
Watercolor on Fabriano Artistico 140# Cold Press Paper, 6"h x 6"w, 2012 #12
Congratulations on the Honorable Mention -- very exciting! :) I understand your concerns with the first painting . . . BUT given that they are all analogous colors and somewhat cool, they will recede once you put your focal point in. I had a similar issue recently with one of my paintings. The background pattern ended up competing too much with the subject. The colors needed to be closer in value and overall darker to make my subject pop. So even though I was working on a patterned wallpaper background, on hot-press, I HAD to darken my shadow and risk spoiling the pattern. Well as it turned out, it was the best move I could've made. With just a hair more work after practically washing out all the detail, I got it to a place that it never could've been if I hadn't done that step (or mis-step?!) :) . . . I think your painting will tell you what it needs as you continue on it. Going to your classes and getting away from it will help. You will come back at it with new eyes. For me, I knew my painting needed something drastic and even if it failed, I felt the risk was necessary for it to be a successful painting. I think you will feel what it needs. Your background is beautiful and rendered so well. It may even work the way it is once you put in the flower . . . but if you feel like there's competition or a disjointed feeling, try a darker wash - that violet maybe - to unify it and push it back even more. You will still get the leaves, but more muted. And that rose -- AMAZING! All your work is incredible . . . the "Petal Light" will be lovely too -- it already is. :) (Wow -- I wrote a lot -- I hope you don't mind my unsolicited advice and story.)
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