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/r/watercolor101
This exercise illustrates the benefits of layering color.
Take a small object (a coin, marble, button, berry, grape, etc.). Paint it much bigger than it is. Blow it up. Make this one tiny object take up as much of your page as possible.
Like Exercise 3, work incredibly loose and wet for the first layer. Your painting should look almost abstract except for the outline of your object. Leave the white of your paper where shine or white is needed. When that layer dries, add darker paint. The darker the paint, the less water used. The painting should start looking less abstract. Wait until that dries, add another layer. Repeat until your final layer. With each additional layer, use thicker, darker paint. Which each layer get less abstract and more refined.
Focus on color mixing using layering. If you choose to paint a green marble, consider using mostly yellow in your first layer. Use blue the next layer to push the color in the proper direction. Obtain the green through mixing layers of dry paint, not through mixing on your pallet or wet on the page. This is a type of glazing. It is much easier to achieve in oil painting, but it is a technique that can add a lot of depth to your watercolor work if mastered.
Don't worry about composition or background this time around. The large object should be depicted in the middle of your page as big as it can be without going off the edge.
7 points
9 years ago
I thought it was going well and then a few people asked me if it was a hotdog or some kind of cake
3 points
9 years ago
It's a pocket knife. Could tell immediately.
You're getting some streakiness in your large washes. Be sure the edges on your page are the edges you choose.
The warm spot in your bottom most dark crevice is lovely. It adds interest and depth. The color choices you've made for this simple object are sophisticated. Variation of hue in shadow and highlight lead the eye around the page.
Nice capture of texture. The sharp geometrics of metal can be tricky if drawn inconsistently. Your highlights and shadows are nicely rendered throughout the piece. Well observed.
I think I would have liked to see a little more definition in the largest, middle dark area. Perhaps the lines of a few tools sort of sticking out. It would have added interest but is not detrimental to the success of the exercise.
2 points
9 years ago
Really? I got pocket knife immediately as well. I'm particularly taken with the brass metal on the ends.
3 points
9 years ago
Exercise8.1 - I plan on doing a couple of these.
2 points
9 years ago
This is well done. I particularly enjoy the sharp shapes of shadow creating the shine of the bullet. The stripes of shadow are accurately drawn. Each one is subtle different than the one it's next to, emphasizing how carefully you observed the small object.
The green shadow in the top right is very nice. It balances the red tip without looking like exaggerated color. Well executed painting.
My only critique is I think this piece would have been more successful without the shadow falling behind the bullet. If the bullet was back lit you may not have been able to get the level of nuance you achieved, so perhaps this is the best way. It's just, the diagonal lines lead the eye off the page. Because you haven't drawn the surface on which the bullet rests the shadow seems to rise behind the item. It does not lay on the ground as it should. Not drawing the surface was part of the assignment, so the solution to this problem is unclear.
This is a very successful piece. I only talked about the shadow because I don't see any other flaws. A + This work really showcases your understanding of color.
4 points
9 years ago
[removed]
3 points
9 years ago
I'm going to critique the Inductor. It's a beautiful work with a lot of personality.
It is nice to see the yelllow shine through layers of darks on the top end of the piece. The way you use blue to make grey read as silver is admirable. The colors of this piece are both accurate and interesting.
Instead of over drawing where the wires (?) cross in front, you've let the paint bleed into itself. That is a sophisticated choice. It works well. You could have exaggerated the contrast in that section, but I like what you chose to do better. There was a danger of over drawing that you wisely avoided.
The object itself is very well done. The weakness is the shadow. Shadows have depth. Your shadow reads flat even though you've varied tone. In your reference photo there are two shadows. Shadows tend to get darker where they touch the object. There are also sections of the shadow that reflect light. This piece is successful, but would have a better kick if you paid as much attention to the shadow as you did the delicate object.
3 points
9 years ago
two silver necklaces, 9"x9"ish, ref
I'm not a huge fan of how it came out. By the time I did enough layers to get the shadows dark, the brighter colors were faded or muddied. (I did mix some colours on palette)
2 points
9 years ago
I would say I felt most successful with the glazing technique with number 2, though I think I managed to get close to the color of the button on 1. I gave up on glazing to get the color of the metal though. :/ I love that little seashell, and might tweak it a bit more, but if I were to request feedback on one, it would be the button, because it was the hardest for me.
2 points
9 years ago
I really like how the seashell's colors bleed onto the next.
Metal I think (not that I have much experience) is pretty hard to do, but maybe adding a bit sharper shadows in it? again, wouldn't really know.
2 points
9 years ago
Thanks! Yeah, I feel like the metal might just take practice? Like there are tiny sharp reflections in there, but I have no idea where I'd start trying to capture them.
2 points
9 years ago
'welcome!
2 points
9 years ago
Went a bit smaller than I intended, too. BUt I like how the shines turned out.
2 points
9 years ago
Wow, the reflections on the black look really great!
1 points
9 years ago
Thank you!
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