I painted this last July though never posted it. Realizing that the colors of the German flag are very much in evidence in the dramatic sky, this watercolor is one way for me to express to those in Germany that my thoughts are very much with them today.
“There are a number of very simple yet amazingly effective ways in which you can create effective landscapes in miniature inside your studio that will enable you to sketch and paint as if you were perched on that cliff. What’s more, if you’d like the view to offer more or less of the valley, you can shift the mountains around a bit. It’s easy, and the materials are probably beside you right now”
Tony Smibert from Chapter 11: Idea Starters, in Painting Landscapes from you Imagination
This has been one of the most enjoyable and rewarding exercises so far, and as Tony writes it was remarkably easy. It began by taking a sheet of white paper and crumpling it to create an imagined mountainous terrain complete with soaring peaks and distant valleys, which became further defined with washes of color.
Once I was happy with my miniature landscape it became time for some creative fun. First I placed it in front of a landscape I painted for one of the earlier exercises in Tony’s book,
which you may remember in a post entitled imbued with possibilities.
Then I tried it against one of the dark ceramic tiles I often use as a
backdrop to some of my photos in the studio.
Finally, I took the landscape outside as Tony suggests and photographed it against today’s beautiful blue sky, “shifting the mountains around a bit” to create different views.
It’s been a great day as you can see. I very much hope yours has been too.
Worldwatercolormonth Day 21
Palettescape 20.7.16
The details of today’s palette demonstrate how serendipity
can so often create the best landscapes of all.
Worldwatercolormonth Day 20
“I’ve always loved the dry landscape gardens of the Zen Temples. In these tiny gardens a small rock in a raked area of sand may represent a mighty mountain in a vast ocean,
which in its simplicity encapsulates the essence of all mountains.”
Tony Smibert in Chapter 11 of Painting Landscapes from your Imagination.
This second exercise in Chapter 11 was entitled “Using rocks to suggest mountains.” Tony describes how he developed a great affection for Japanese gardens during his travels in Japan and suggests using interesting rocks to create imagined mountainous landscapes. It just so happens that some years ago I produced four drawings of the Sino Himalayan Garden at VanDusen Botanical Gardens here in Vancouver.
Inspired by Tony’s exercise today I thought I would create an imagined landscape of mountains, sky and water using the drawings as a starting point.
Fortunately I didn’t leave these drawings behind thirty four years ago and it has been a treat to revisit them today, thanks to Tony’s exercise.
Worldwatercolormonth Day 19
“Watercolor is a voyage of discovery and, as corny as it may sound, the most satisfactory results are often achieved by taking what comes – not only in terms of painting technique,
but also in terms of your individual creative energy”
Tony Smibert from Chapter 11: Idea Starters, in Painting Landscapes from your Imagination.
Back in the studio after a wonderful weekend with our beautiful granddaughter, Tony Smibert’s exercise today was all about creating an original landscape from random blots. The blots were first created using crumpled plastic wrap painted with a wash of paynes gray and indigo pressed gently onto the paper.
Land forms magically appeared from the blots which were further developed with different coloured transparent washes. Finally, “dry-brush” work created the effect of rapids flowing through the imagined valley and the rock faces darkened to provide distance and depth.
Welcome to my Monday “voyage of discovery”
Worldwatercolormonth Day 18
No studio time this weekend so instead an excerpt from Day 12 of my journey through Tony Smibert’s Lessons from the Great Masters last July for Worldwatercolormonth Day 17 today.
Weekly Photo Challenge: Details
These close ups of my watercolour palette become
unique pieces of abstract art.
Palette de Jour 16.7.16
The Right Road 14.7.16
When I was a young boy my beloved grandfather said to me:
” In life Andrew there are always two roads, the right road and the wrong road.
Make sure you always choose the right one.”
His advice has stayed with me all of my life and echoed in my mind over the years whenever an important decision has needed to be made or a life-changing direction to be followed. It has been the best advice a young boy could have ever have hoped.
To complement this week’s Discover Challenge, and particularly as this month I am working through Tony Smibert’s Painting Landscapes from your Imagination, and also painting as part of Worldwatercolormonth, I thought I would continue the exercises of Chapter 8 in the book with imagined images that reflect the spirit of my grandfather’s advice to me.
Tony suggests making small loose drawings and washes as notes, and not to worry about the consequences. Some are very abstract but some became quite specific and more detailed as they developed, as you can see. Each was intended to convey the sense of a fork in the road with a choice of direction between the light and the dark.
This last image is perhaps the darkest of all and reflects what might have been.
Dedicated to the memory of my wonderful grandpa from his grandson,
now a besotted grandpa himself.
“I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by…”
A revisit to this day last year on Day 9 of my journey through
Tony Smibert’s Lessons from the Great Masters,
another inspiring book of his.
“You can learn from teachers, fellow painters, books, videos, seminars and so on. But you won’t really understand the medium until you can use it. Hence, the key to understanding is
practice, practice, practice.”
Tony Smibert, from Chapter 1: Painting Landscapes from your Imagination
Taking this advice to heart today was just that, as I finished Chapter 8
with more of Tony’s exercises in composition, color and confidence.
thechangingpalette 