Gouache, can you pronounce it?

“Gouache (/gu:’a:,( gwa:)/; French: (gwa), body color, opaque watercolor, or gauche, is one type of watermedia, paint consisting of pigment, water, a binding agent (usually dextrin or gum arabic), and sometimes additional inert material.  Gouache is designed to be used with opaque methods of painting.”  wikipedia

When painting a watercolor, one values using the white of the paper, or going from light to darker.

Gouache is sneaky and it takes lots of gray before you find the value needed to make the painting speak.

I monitored a class last week at WIFAS, instructor was Mike Hernandez, Artist, instructor, Plein Air painter, Art Director, Production designer DreamWorks Pictures.  I’d like to add patient, relaxed instructor who also paints beautifully in oil and on the computer.  You can find Mike on Facebook and see some of his beautiful paintings.

We painted small 5x7 and 4x5 on special board by Cottonwood Arts, or in my case Canson board.  Its and acid free cardboard-like surface that can be popped into a mat easily.  Mike recommends not putting these paintings under glass.  

The images are low key; a gray day is celebrated for its moody effects.  Today, I plan on trying to paint a little brighter.  Here are a few images from last weekend and yesterday, painting on the cliff across from Camano Island in the mist.

Pat

McLeod Cabin 3x5

From Sea Wall park Langley looking Northwest?

Camano from Edgecliff Dr.

Sea Wall Park looking South

Camano Island, Picture is a little slanty 8-(

Gouache, can you pronounce it?

“Gouache (/gu:’a:,( gwa:)/; French: (gwa), body color, opaque watercolor, or gauche, is one type of watermedia, paint consisting of pigment, water, a binding agent (usually dextrin or gum arabic), and sometimes additional inert material.  Gouache is designed to be used with opaque methods of painting.”  wikipedia

When painting a watercolor, one values using the white of the paper, or going from light to darker.

Gouache is sneaky and it takes lots of gray before you find the value needed to make the painting speak.

I monitored a class last week at WIFAS, instructor was Mike Hernandez, Artist, instructor, Plein Air painter, Art Director, Production designer DreamWorks Pictures.  I’d like to add patient, relaxed instructor who also paints beautifully in oil and on the computer.  You can find Mike on Facebook and see some of his beautiful paintings.

We painted small 5x7 and 4x5 on special board by Cottonwood Arts, or in my case Canson board.  Its and acid free cardboard-like surface that can be popped into a mat easily.  Mike recommends not putting these paintings under glass.  

The images are low key; a gray day is celebrated for its moody effects.  Today, I plan on trying to paint a little brighter.  Here are a few images from last weekend and yesterday, painting on the cliff across from Camano Island in the mist.

Pat

McLeod Cabin 3x5

From Sea Wall park Langley looking Northwest?

Camano from Edgecliff Dr.

Sea Wall Park looking South

Camano Island, Picture is a little slanty 8-(

Figurative drawing

I like to draw people, but don't obsess over the exact features.  I guess its because I can only concentrate on so much at one time and lately it has been Still life, Sketching or Landscape.  So when Cary, (WIFAS) invited my to push myself and come to the all day model drawing,  I accepted the challenge.
It was a peaceful afternoon in her garden; a warm day for Whidbey, but cool under the trees.  The models I sketched were, Isis, beautiful and classical and Olivia, tiny and doll-like with creamy skin. At the last minute I decided to do a quick sketch of Chris our favorite bartender.

I say I sketched these models but it was with the brush. I started trying to draw them with a flat graphite, but then went to my tried and true dark and light wash pencil.  Once I started forming the shapes from pencil drawing, it was a hop, skip and a jump to just using the one inch brush with watercolor.  I can set in shapes, looking for the dark shapes that make the lighter values stand out, when I am finished, I add pen lines for definition.

Chris, sorry about the hair, it got away from me!  I loved the shirt! 

Isis, I had to define your dress more because you blended with the chair.  This was drawn with a dark wash pencil(the reason her hands are so dark 8-(.

Olivia, wearing a dress from the Shakespeare festival.  

Re-tuning the brain

Self Portrait, Fairfield Porter

Pink house F P.

I spoke about Duane Keiser's class and how he had us return to basics.  I think we were all saying to ourselves, what do you mean, basics!  Here is how it went.
He set up a long rectangular table in the center of the room with our easels surrounding.  On the table were a lot on still life possibilities, fruit, tall bottles, saki jug, flowers, large and small, not arranged specifically for a person to choose and say I will do, so and so.  Our goal, after watching a  Fairfield Porter slide show, was to view the items and paint exactly what we saw.  We could choose short distance, long distance, the items were to be flatly painted.  We were to loosely put in shapes then work on some values.
Duane had prepared some gessoed paper and I have learned, Class=paint on the paper!  No masterpieces coming from class, just good training.

Approximately 12 x 16

The rough scraped out painting to the left gives you an idea of the separation and type of unconnected items on the table. The flowers in the right hand corner were from another bunch in a vase out of my sight. I added the apple shape to replace the wine bottles I had already painted- below.
The vase with the clematis is very close to me; the bottles toward the far edge of the blue tablecloth.  Everything is flat with no real dimension.  Tomorrow, I will tell how we blocked in; used a palette knife and paper towel as a paint brush.  Stay tuned!

about 6x7.

Still life

I recently watched a demo of Still life painting at Whidbey Island Fine Art Studio.  The demo was by Jeff Legg and I decided on the spot if there was room in the class for me, I was in!  Fortunately, there was and I spent the rest of the week learning more about the art of painting and setting up Still life. 

This first painting was composed during the class; the setup was in a three-sided box with controlled lighting.

The next two are the same painting; the first version is after receiving a critique from Jeff to enhance the darks and shadows.  The version below is the original painting using a tensor lamp and ambient light

More:  As a former watercolor painter, I had to get it into my head that it was okay to use black.  No, not just black, that deadens the color; Black with Alizarin, or black with yellow; black and raw umber make a beautiful background, add white and yellow ochre and you have a lighter more neutral foreground.  Whew!  Once I got my head around this, I was off and running.
More to come....

Quince (done in a controlled setting)

After (darker)

Two pears and a bowl, before a bit of color change

Sunny flowers

There is nothing like yellow to brighten a gloomy rainy day.  We have been having quite a few watery days this week, all for the good of the garden, but seeing the yellow and red bushes in the garden and painting summer adds quite a bit of cheer to the gray.

This week I'm taking a class with Jeff Legg at Whidbey Island Fine Art Studio.  Jeff is a beautiful painter, I particularly admire his still life paintings.  He makes painting fine details and the set up of still life look so easy, and the results are truly beautiful.  I'll talk more about the results of this class in the future and show a finished painting of my own.  Please check out Jeffs' website and WIFAS for some wonderful art teachers.

Sunny side view

Sunflower swirl