Orchid Painting - 15 x 22 inches
I have gone back to continue with the orchid watercolor painting. It is done on a 15 x 22 inches sheet of cold press watercolor paper using Winsor and Newton Professional watercolor paint. The background was done in a wash as the orchid area being blocked off by frisket. Later on the orchid was painted in one by one using gradated wash over several layers. I noticed that the background could be darker especially around the orchid.
Orchid watercolor painting - 15 x 22 inches
I am painting green plants again. Although orchids are not green, it is a plant. This continuing orchid watercolor painting has been done on 15 x22 inches cold press watercolor paper. Mostly wet in wet wash was used in the flower sepals and petals. Some dry brush watercolor technique was used in the darker areas of the pollinia. It was quite interesting when painting any subjuct especially the orchid. As I study the orchid, I am beginning to know the various part of the plant and as I paint more orchids I hope I can get the feel of the property of the flower. I think orchids are very fun and delicate plants to paint in transparent watercolor.
Orchid watercolor painting - background wash still wet with mask
Done a background watercolor wash with the mask on the orchid. It is a gradated wash and was done using a mixture of Yellow Ochre and Quinacridone Gold. It was done in serveral washes when the other one is dry. I want to try a simple watercolor wash background for this painting. The key to the gradated wash was to mix more color than you will need for the wash, have a clean bucket of water and use a big flat brush. Those three things are essential for doing a great watercolor wash. It is good to use a wide big brush for the wash if your watercolor paper is larger than 15 x 22 inches. Below is the result with the mask removed.
Orchid painting - Gradated wash and mask removed
Watercolor painting on green plant - A Green World
Trying to finish this painting with adding more layers of watercolor on to the existing. I have painted some areas a darker value so as to give more contrast on the watercolor painting. Still feeling this watercolor painting is not quite finished but I shall put it aside and start with a new one. I shall come back to this when I look at it for a while to determine what is missing or may be it still needs another layer of watercolor wash in some areas.
Daily Watercolor - A Green World - Final #1
More work has been done on the watercolor painting A Green World over the weekend. Most of the work is done on the left side of the painting where darker shade has been layered on which add on to the value of the leaves and it’s shadows. Watercolor painting is very challanging because many times it will surprise you with the result. It is the control of the amount of paint and the water in the brush that counts. After I have done adding on the darker shade on the left side and let it dry, I found that it is still not dark enough. So I will be doing more watercolor layers to add more contrast to the left side.
Watercolor painting on green plant - A Green World
I have covered the whole 15 x 22 inches cold press watercolor paper with paint but it does not mean the painting is finished. This is just the start of the final stage of the watercolor. Many areas need to be painted over with watercolor wash to achieve a darker value while in other areas colors needs to be lifted in order to produce a lighter shade. Color in certain areas need to be change as well. Usually the next step will be to leave the painting on a display easel and examine it for a few days so that I will know which areas need to be adjust. The painting won’t be finished until then and at that time a location for the signature will be determined. I find it important to determine the location of the signature because it is essential for the final balance of the whole picture.
Green plant watercolor painting - A Green World
Having lots of fun continuing the 15 x 22 inches watercolor painting of a green plant. Although I can see there are areas in the painting that I need to change, I feel that this painting is progressing along quite well. These changes will be applied later at the end. One thing I found that the texture of the leaves are a challenge to show on the painting. Some areas I need to do more with the dry brush and the watercolor medium just would not allow errors in that regard. Also I must make sure that the underlaying value is correctly placed before I can work on the details.
Daily Watercolor Painting on Green plant - A Green World
More done on the 15 x 22 inches watercolor painting of the green plant. Transparent watercolor is used throughout. I found that it is easier to layer a light wash of watercolor and let it dry and then more layers are put on top. The degree of wetness of the paper is also important as many areas are done wet in wet. To achieve a consistent green for the plant I use only three greens for this painting and a yellow. Winsor and Newton Winsor Green is one of the green pigment used here.