Creative use of many watercolor techniques in one painting can spice up your painting practice. In this video demo you’ll learn how I use many watercolor techniques to finish a watercolor painting/study.
Starting a painting on a white, empty piece of paper can be a daunting task. It’s hard to even begin and it’s easy to get lost once we do. Having a good plan always pays. It’s been said that if you fail to plan, you plan to fail.
Therefore better understanding of the creative space should be our primary concern. Thinking in terms of patters will improve our seeing, thinking and painting significantly. Since these topics are too complex to be covered in a video format, I encourage you to keep an eye on my website www.ateliernovotny.com, where I discuss them in more depth.
What can be observed in this video demonstration, however, is that I have a clear “vision” of what I’m going to do. I see my pattern even before I begin. This allows me freedom of expression. I am not concerned with copying details as they appear in real world, I make symbols that suggest and represent, all the time focusing on my overall picture, my tonal values and their placement on the page.
I begin my painting with a wet-in-wet wash which already demonstrates my concern with a design pattern, rather than a rendition of actual objects. I combine positive and negative painting as I go along. Finally, I apply calligraphic brushstrokes to add further definition to my shapes, and to tie the painting together. You can notice that this approach not only frees me to explore various techniques, it also allows me to use color that is expressive and most of all, personal. Personal color is not concerned with local color of actual objects, it comes from within. Color in creative composition can be anything as long as the value pattern is intact.
Combining several techniques in one painting poses some challenges but can be a very powerful way to enrich your everyday painting experience.
