Sunday, January 6, 2013

Hidden Path (30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge: Day 5)


Hidden Path, Watercolor on Arches140# Rough Paper, 6"h x 8"w, 2013 #6

Sold!

This is the painting that gave me much problems a couple of days before, and caused the frantic wipe-outs in the end. I tackled it again today after some hesitation, deciding that if it fails again, I will leave it alone and start again some days later, instead of trying to wipe it off and repaint to save the paper -- after all, it is just a piece of paper! (That said, the Mr. Clean magic eraser sponge really works wonders, and all of you watercolor painters who wants to repaint a failed passage on a overall good picture should definitely try it!) Well, maybe it is the relaxed attitude, maybe it is the failed practice runs a couple of days ago, maybe it is the fact that I've accumulated quite some mileages on my brush in the past few days, it went smoother than before. Maybe I am still not totally satisfied with the results, but I liked it enough to put it here to share with you, my friends...

When I first finished this painting, it looked like this:



However, it somehow just did not look right to me. I could not tell why so I put it aside and went out to my gallery for the hanging of our upcoming show, "New Year, New Work". And when I came back to look at it with a fresh eye, I immediately realized -- the little sapling in the foreground was way too dark and therefore did not read to be at a distance from the viewer comparing to the fence posts on the right. I took a soft squirrel hair brush and gently wet the sapling, waited a couple of seconds, then dabbed it with a facial tissue -- just enough color came off and it instantaneously read as "receding". Nothing speaks of spacial relationship more than value changes -- strong value contrasts tend to advance while diminished value contrasts speaks of atmospheric perspective and distance. I did a bit of subtle cosmetic work like this in the fence posts to lighten them respectively and the image now reads much better as a misty, snowy winter day... What do you think?

... Well, I just could not help doing this -- redo this painting another time. I eliminated the wires on the fence to create a more time-worn feeling, which I think suits the overall mood better. I am also happier with the wet-in-wet shapes of the trees better this time -- but that's just more of a happy accident than any skill improvement I guess... :-P



Hidden Path (Version 2), Watercolor on Arches 140# Rough Paper, 5"h x 7"w, 2013 #7

You can purchase my 2013 wall and desk calendars here:


3 comments:

  1. you have such an eye! the subtle change you made is incredible! beautifully done arena!

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  2. I've had such fun looking at your paintings today. Your work is amazing! Looking forward to seeing much more. Happy painting!

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  3. Thanks Suzanne and Darla! You are very kind. I am totally enjoying this challenge -- it gets me out of my comfort zone and paint with more abandon. The results are not always what I have imagined, but in a way only for the better! Sometimes I know the little changes may not be evident to anyone else but me, but it was sort of fun to nitpick your own work sometimes... I just have to remember not to overdo it...

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Thank you so much for taking time visiting and commenting on my blog! Your feedback and encouragements are things that keep me going with I am feeling down or frustrated... I will try my best to reply to every comment ASAP but sometimes life gets in the way and I am a bit slow in my response. I would like to apologize if that happens...

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