The base of the door has been completely painted. I added shading to the door so it wouldn't be one flat color. The panels will be done after the masking comes off.
PROGRESSION OF A PAINTING 12
I really like this color for the door as it contrasts to the skates but also picks up some of the pink colors in the skates. It is almost the same color that my front door used to be before we painted it orange! Because I need a lot of paint of the same color I mixed the color in a small dish to make sure I will have enough for the entire door. If I ran out of the color before the door was finished I would never be able to match the color. So if you are painting a large area of the same color mix it in a small dish but check the color because more quantity means more water which means a lighter color. Notice how dark the color appears in the dish but when painted on the door it is much lighter. Because there is a lot of water in the dish it is really much lighter than it appears. Always test your color on a scrap piece of watercolor paper before painting. You do not want to paint a lot of unnecessary layers.
PROGRESSION OF A PAINTING 11
Those of you who attended my Watercolor Exhibit Opening yesterday (Thank you for coming!) were able to see this painting finished!
At this stage I am experimenting with the door color.
PROGRESSION OF A PAINTING 10
I have masked parts of the door to keep them white so that I can freely paint the door color. Leaving light parts on the door panels will add dimension.
PROGRESSION OF A PAINTING 9
I am adding deeper values to the skate, detailing the sole, painting the hooks and laces, and painting the blades. In the final image I have removed the masking so I can add to the laces and boot.
PROGRESSION OF A PAINTING 8
I am adding more color, more intense. I have painted more on the skate and the heel. Notice on the heel and on the sole there is still some white. That is the masking in place resisting the dark color of the heel.
PROGRESSION OF A PAINTING 7
STARTING TO PAINT!
Once the masking is dry I can start to paint. I start by putting down the lightest colors that I will use. I start by painting the creases and shadows of the skates. Because the skates are white and by most anyone's eye the shadows appear to be gray. I don't use a lot of gray but rather try to get the values in my paintings with more interesting colors, purples, blues, pinks, etc.
PROGRESSION OF A PAINTING 6
In the next two images I have applied the masking (the blue areas). The masking will preserve the white areas on the skates so that I can paint freely and not worry about painting areas by mistake. When the painting is almost finished I can rub off the masking and the areas under it will still be the white of the paper. I can then work those areas or leave them white.
PROGRESSION OF A PAINTING 5
The next few images show the final drawing of the skates and the addition of the drawing of the door on which the skates are hanging.
PROGRESSION OF A PAINTING 4
I continue to draw the skates as accurate as I can in the next two images.
PROGRESSION OF A PAINTING, 3
After the quick initial sketch (previous day) I evaluate my composition for proper scale, proportion and balance. Now I begin to tighten up the drawing by making it more detailed and accurate. I started with the foreground skate and gently erase the extra lines I don't need with a kneaded eraser. A kneaded eraser will not ruin the watercolor paper's surface.
THE PROGRESSION OF A PAINTING, 2
Because I set up my own composition I did not need to use a view finder to select a composition. A view finder can be a simple cardboard frame that zeros in on what you want to include in your composition. I could now start my initial sketch. I indicate the perimeter of my composition on my watercolor paper, the highest, lowest, farthest to the right and farthest to the left areas of my subject. This tells me that I will work inside those marks and that I will fit everything on my paper in a balanced way. I am always instructing my students to do a quick, 30 second sketch of their subject on their paper within the designated perimeter. This will guide you in balancing your composition and help you to achieve the proper scale and proportion. This is a very light sketch (I hope you can see it!) and can be tweaked as needed. (will continue)
THE PROGRESSION OF A PAINTING
My students are always curious about how I work a painting - from beginning to end. I thought others might be interested in this progression, as well. This is going to be a long blog so it make take a few weeks. I will illustrate with text and images the progression of the last painting I created.
THE IDEA. How do I decide what to paint; what do I look for in subject matter? I look for things that show structure or strong three-dimensional quality. I look for subject matter that is very spacial, including a foreground, middle ground and background. I like contrasts in textures, colors, and shapes. Simply, what does this mean? It includes subjects that have angles, turns, fronts, sides, backs; things that have layers and do not appear flat. If the subject matter also evokes a personal feeling, all the better. My profile image on this website, my painting of ice skates, has all the above mentioned qualities. And, besides, ice skating has always been one of my favorite sports. I learned to skate when I was 5 years old when my brothers built a rink in our backyard. Growing up I was always skating in ponds or at the local rink. While an undergrad at UNH we were required to take a physical education class every quarter. My roommate and I always signed up for ice skating. After college I even earned 5 skating badges! So it is no surprise that ice skates would appeal to me as a painting subject. I loved the creases in the leather, the contrast in the boot and the metal blade, and the way the laces wove through the holes in the skates. Having painted the skates in gouache, I wanted to paint the skates again in traditional watercolor. In my first painting the skates were lying down so I wanted the new painting to have the skates hanging up. I set my art bin on my work area, put a hook on it, and hung the skates from it. I put a black backboard behind the skates so that the busy background would not interfere with my view. I had a plan to make the skates appear as if they were hanging on a door. The door would be added later, but I had a PLAN. It is important to always have a plan for your entire picture and not add on as you go because it will most likely look piecemeal and disjointed. My plan was to draw the skates and gather photos of a door that I could add later. Now I could work from my still life. In the next blog I will begin the drawing for my painting.
BIN ART
You may recall my mentioning bin art in my blogs about preparing for an art exhibit. Usually an artist is limited regarding the amount of paintings one can hang on the gallery walls during a particular exhibit. And for the most part, all work hung should be original. Some artists have additional work, perhaps smaller and less expensive art work, for sale. They may even have prints made of their original paintings. These additional works of art will not be framed but will be presented, matted and protected in a cellophane "sleeve". They are offered for sale in the gallery near the artists' art work which is hung on the walls and located in an artists' bin. The bin is usually a piece of fabric slung on a frame waist high so that visitors can easily browse through the selection. Maybe the artists' larger pieces are out of your price range. Bin art pieces are great opportunities to own a print or a smaller original of a favorite artist. I will have several original paintings offered in my bin at my upcoming exhibit.
FINAL PREPARATIONS FOR AN EXHIBIT
Well, as my exhibit draws near (opening March 6) most of the preparations are in place. I just finished my last piece for the show and I will be picking up the postcard invitations soon and mailing them out. I know, everything is digital now with email, Facebook, etc. but there is something about getting a hard copy invitation in your hand that makes an event a little more special (I hope!). The GPS address will be on the invitation so I hope no one gets lost.
Preparations to be completed are: windexing the glass on my paintings, ordering the flowers and refreshments that I am bringing to the opening, and delivering my paintings.
I will post pictures of the event and updates after March 6.
MASKING IN WATERCOLOR
Watercolor is a unique medium apart from oils and acrylics in that you do not use white paint. To make a color lighter you add water to watercolors. To show white areas you leave the paper white. This method in watercolor painting requires some pre-planning because once you paint a color you can no longer get the white back. Therefore, you must be aware of the white areas before you begin your painting. The colors in your painting will be painted around the white areas. If you have very small or intricate areas that need to stay white this process of "painting around the white areas" can be tedious and difficult. There is a handy tool that many watercolorists use to alleviate the difficulty of painting around the white areas. It is called masking fluid. Masking fluid comes clear or tinted. What you do is "paint" the masking fluid on the areas on your watercolor paper that you want to remain white. The masking fluid will dry and create a barrier over the white areas that will resist the watercolor paint that you paint over it. With that in place you can freely complete the painting of your picture without worrying that you will accidentally cover the white areas. When your painting is complete or whenever you are ready you will remove the masking by gently rubbing your finger over it. Your white areas will appear and you can then work more on the painting if you need to. Masking fluid can also be used over an area that you already painted if you need to protect that area from other colors. Masking fluid applications come in many forms. I particularly like those applicators that are very fine and allow you to "draw" in on in a fine line. For larger areas there are applicators that will help with that. Be careful of using a good watercolor brush to apply masking fluid because it will dry on it like glue and ruin your brush. In a pinch you can use a toothpick to apply it or another disposable tool. Jerrysartarama.com has some great choices for masking fluid.
PREPARING FOR AN EXHIBIT (IV)
In preparing for an exhibit there are many things that need to be in place for a successful show. The Rhode Island Watercolor Society provides a Hanging Committee for all shows including Member Shows. Our 3 Person Exhibit, opening on March 6, 2016, had its meeting with the Gallery director and Hanging Committee chairperson recently. Things that needed to be discussed with the Hanging Committee were: our hanging format (our paintings will be hung in a mixed fashion), designated feature wall painting and bio, lists and prices of our paintings to be hung, as well as, bin paintings (Paintings in a separate bin are not framed.), condition of our paintings (wired, clean, and framed properly), and the drop off date. Things that the Gallery director needed in place were: the dates we will Gallery sit, publicity information, and forms and fees. Things that we as exhibiting members needed to discuss were: arrival time on day of opening, the layout of the refreshment table and decor, and what refreshments each of us will be responsible for. Because each of us artists have exhibited before the meeting went very smoothly. I remember how overwhelming it was for me the first time I exhibited, but the Gallery director presents all the necessary information to exhibitors in a well organized list of "things to do" with the appropriate due dates. I will keep you updated as the show nears.
RENDERING SHADOWS
I am always reminding my art students to use as many values as they can in their art work. I stress the importance of a value (lights and darks) study chart to make sure that they are aware of the many values in reality. If you have a great range of values - from light to dark - your work will have more depth, thus look more "real". By applying a full range of values to your drawings or paintings your art will take on a more 3D ( 3 dimensional) appearance. I always reiterate that if you limit your value range your drawings or paintings will look flat, and you don't want your subject matter to look flat, EXCEPT for shadows! Think about it, shadows aren't real, they have no depth, hence they are not 3D. So, it makes sense to render shadows with the same value - not a range of values. You DO want your shadows to look FLAT because they are! I often use my painting below to illustrate this concept. Notice the shadows in the painting, those of the hanging plants, barrels, and the light fixtures. They are flat against the house, thus they are painted in the same value. They only time they change value is when the colors of the house change. If these shadows were rendered with a range of values they would take on a life of their own and appear 3D. That would lose the effect of the shadows.
PREPARING FOR AN EXHIBIT (III)
One of the requirements for my exhibit is to supply a bio which will be hung with my feature painting in the Gallery. I thought I would share with you my bio.
Elaine M.R. Gauthier
The theme in Elaine Gauthier’s artwork reflects the realism in everyday life. She emphasizes the striking, geometric shaped shadows, and sometimes exaggerates their values. A watercolorist for many years, she sometimes works with Prismacolor (colored pencils).
Mrs. Gauthier received a Bachelor of Science degree in Art Education from the University of New Hampshire. She also received a Masters of Art in Teaching with a Watercolor concentration from Rhode Island College. She has studied at Rhode Island School of Design, the University of Rhode Island, and Providence College. Mrs. Gauthier has retired from teaching art for many years in the Smithfield School Department at both the elementary level and at Smithfield High School. Presently, she is teaching drawing classes at the Lincoln Town Senior Center and painting classes at Lyn-Art Studio in Greenville.
Mrs. Gauthier has exhibited her work at the Rhode Island Watercolor Society, the Bannister Gallery, Providence, the Greenville Library, Gallery 297, Bristol, the Mishnock Barn, West Greenwich and Lyn-Art Studio. She has had several paintings selected into open juried exhibits at the Rhode Island Watercolor Society and at Gallery 297. One of her drawings is part of a permanent collection at Hasbro Children’s Hospital.
In addition to her artistic interests, Mrs. Gauthier enjoys athletic sports such as, figure skating, in-line skating, swimming, walking, biking, snowshoeing, and tennis. She is a member of Rally Point Racquet Club.
Mrs. Gauthier resides in Greenville with her family, husband, Jack, producer/manager/recording engineer/owner of Lakewest Recording Studio in West Greenwich, RI, and her two sons, Jake and Jesse, a professional singer. Both of her sons are Rhode Island College graduates.
HOW I NOW FOUND MYSELF TEACHING ART AGAIN
Let me explain how I came to be teaching art classes after retiring from public school art teaching. In my high school teaching career I worked with students who were developing their portfolios for college entrance. I had worked hard to develop a drawing curriculum that was very successful in preparing these students. From my own experience as an art student and also in my teaching I realized how essential drawing is as a base for other media, such as, painting and printmaking. After I retired, more and more, I came into contact with other retirees who were taking various painting classes. What I heard from them over and over was how frustrated they were in these classes. As I further learned, most of these art students were taking painting classes but they had never learned how to draw. Painting without a drawing foundation can only take you so far. It was no wonder they were frustrated; they could not progress beyond the simplest of paintings. Understanding the drawing process teaches one many things beyond just duplicating an image. In her book, Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain, Betty Edwards reiterates my feelings about drawing and painting with this quote, "The use of color primarily requires the ability to perceive color as value. This ability is difficult, perhaps impossible, to acquire unless one has learned to perceive the relationships of lights and shadows through DRAWING". (I added the capitals for drawing - I love this quote!) So, I sympathized with these struggling artists and I knew that I could help them. I also felt that I still had so much more to share with others regarding the drawing process. Because most of the frustration I heard came from retirees I thought, "What better place to reach them but a Senior Center?" I found the perfect fit at the Lincoln Town Senior Center. Presently, I teach a Beginners' Drawing Class and an Advanced Drawing Class there. I also teach at a local frame shop, Lyn-Art Studiio . There I teach a Beginners' Watercolor Class and two open studio type classes. In future posts I will explain what these classes consist of. Stay tuned!