Spring is here and it felt like time for a picnic! The stuffed animals were eagerly awaiting the arrival of the food and they stayed still long enough for us to paint them.

I suggested that the students look for ways to simplify the toys into their component shapes (legs, paws, faces, ears, etc.). Each shape could then be painted using a soft-edge approach. I also stressed a ‘light to dark’ and ‘big to small’ approach. For example, the larger shape of the face is painted first and the darker eyes, nose and mouth are painted last.

Many of the students enjoyed the subject but seemed to find it a bit daunting. Adversity often brings out the best in us, though, and we had some very colourful and playful results.

Tuesday AM Critique

Tuesday PM Critique

Bob Sivak and Ron Mabee are Co-Workshop Conveners.

Bob Sivak (L), Me and Ron Mabee (R)

Our first ‘Cubist’ project was a value study in sepia. We drew a sheet of fruit shapes, from memory, in our sketchbooks. The next step was to make a composition. The goal was to make it non-traditional and the shapes were supposed to be very distinct and strongly delineated, as in a colouring book.

These are the four steps of my demonstration. First, the drawing. Second, a middle tone wash that covers everything but some randomly selected shapes that are left as paper white. Third, a darker middle tone wash. Finally, some darks.

This exercise helped distance us from traditional realism and made us aware of the importance of a strong pattern in our paintings.

I divided the participants into four groups named after the four key Cubist artists; the Picassos, the Braques, the Grises and the Legers. Let’s have a look at their value studies.

Picassos

Braques

Grises

Legers

Interesting, aren’t they? These were done on quarter sheets (11 x 15″) of watercolour paper. I recommended absorbent papers. I used Curry’s 200 lb., CP for all of my demos.

Our next project was in full colour and the theme was ‘wine and cheese’. The new Cubists were allowed to use colours of their own choice. The compositions were simplified to about two dozen shapes. These were also done on quarter sheets. Resist materials were allowed. I used some wax in my demonstration.

This exercise took us until the middle of Thursday, our second day. The new Cubists did a great job. We don’t always allow ourselves to let loose with colour when we paint. As you can see, the new Cubists didn’t hold back.

Picassos

Braques

Grises

Legers

Our final project was a ‘Cubist’ watercolour on a half sheet (15 x 22″) of paper. We spent time on thumbnail compositions in our sketchbooks. Colour was discussed. I suggested that the new Cubists use two groups of complimentary colours. One group could be green and red, for example, and would cover the most shapes in the painting. The second group might be blue and orange or purple and yellow. The second group would cover less area.

We also used whites and off-whites, neutral greys and, at the very end, black. Various resist materials such as wax, masking fluid and salt were employed. Collage became a part of these watercolours, as well. Check out the wine labels.

Our workshop concluded at the start of a long holiday weekend. It’s a Canadian tradition to celebrate the birthday of Queen Victoria on the third weekend of May. Some of the new Cubists had to leave early due to their holiday plans but we still had lots of watercolour paintings to enjoy. I dissolved the Picasso, Braque, Gris and Leger groups and we looked at the work four at a time.

I worked on a half sheet, too. We all followed the same basic steps but there was plenty of room for personal and individual interpretation. The new Cubists of London, Ontario outdid themselves. They were willing to take risks and venture into unknown territory. Their cheerful and vibrant watercolours were a treat to look at by the end of the day on Friday. I’d like to thank the London Brush and Palette Club for inviting me to lead their annual three day workshop. It was a lot of fun.

‘Cubist’ Still Life
by Barry Coombs

ORANGE WINDOW
by Barry Coombs

Hamilton Artist Inc. is having a fundraiser this weekend. Artwork can be viewed and/or purchased on Friday, May 17 from 12-6 and Saturday, May 18 from 12-5. The exhibition will be followed by the Fundraiser Art Party at 7 pm on Saturday.

All artists were invited to pick up a 12 x 12″ wood panel from the Inc. The artists were encouraged to create an artwork on the panel using the medium of their choice.

All work is sold for $100. Sales are donated to the Inc. Artists can donate 50% and keep 50% or donate the full 100%.

I’ve been painting watercolours all winter and, as much as I enjoy it, it felt good to work on something different. My piece, ORANGE WINDOW, is a painted low relief made with cardboard and acrylic on a wood panel. I’ve exhibited my cardboard reliefs in the past and plan to do more in the near future.

Hamilton Artists Inc. is located at 155 James Street North, Hamilton ON (at the north west corner of James and Cannon Streets). They can be contacted at 905.529.3355 and
info@theinc.ca.

Well, maybe these pails and shovels are child’s play for little kids at the beach but this still life posed some tough problems for the watercolour painters. One student described it as “fiendishly difficult”.

Drawing seemed to be the biggest concern with the rakes and shovels being the main culprits. I left my pencil lines quite dark. You might be able to see them well enough to understand my analysis of these objects.

Undaunted, the students waded through sand and surf, with their buckets full of colour and imagination, and made some very exciting sand castles…er, paintings.

Tuesday AM Critique

Tuesday PM Critique

The baked goods are relatively simple forms so I paired them with the checked basket and cloth. They add some visual interest and colour to the still life.

I discussed some basic watercolour guidelines such as ‘light to dark’ and ‘big to small’. It never hurts to have a reminder about these principles. The seeds on the bagels are a more specific challenge. I created the lightest, white seeds by using criss-cross strokes of my brush as I applied the first wash, avoiding small areas of dry paper which became light seeds. The darker seeds were the last addition. Big to small and light to dark.

It may not seem obvious from the results but a lot of the students struggled with the subject. There’s nothing wrong with adversity. I’ve been struggling with watercolour for decades!

Tuesday AM Critique

Tuesday AM Critique

My gouache on paper, YELLOW TREE, is featured in the Spring 2013 issue of Interiors Magazine. My thanks to the team at Interiors for the nicely written profile and for choosing my work. Here’s a look at YELLOW TREE in it’s entirety.

Spring is definitely here but we’ve had a lot of grey, overcast days. A colourful still life, with a picnic-like feel to it, inspired the Tuesday students yesterday.

Watermelon is fun to paint but the perspective of the slices can be tricky. It’s a bit like drawing boats. As I almost always do, I started my drawing with straight lines and I find that helps a lot with a challenge like foreshortened watermelon slices.

The green skin of the round melon was painted with a graded wash, lighter in the upper area and darker lower down in the shadowy area. When it dried, I added the stripes and I darkened them as well in the lower part of the melon.

I bought seedless melons but how can you paint a watermelon without it’s black seeds? They add a sense of detail and the contrast draws the eye into the red fruit.

The students put a lot of thought into their compositions. We’ve talked quite a bit lately about the importance of thumbnail studies and it’s paying off. Also, I continue to emphasize the importance of the ‘figure/ground’ relationship. In other words, choose a colour for the background that works with all of the other elements in the painting.

The work looks great. Bright and cheerful; just like a spring day

Tuesday AM Critique

Tuesday PM Critique

I like to mix up the still lifes from week to week. These terra cotta objects are very classical looking and make a nice contrast to the soft forms of the baseball caps from last Tuesday and Saturday.

The ‘figure-ground’ relationship was the subject of my morning and evening demonstrations. How can we maximize the relationship between the objects and the surrounding areas of the painting? What is the best colour choice for the ‘background’? Can we create a quality of light? So many questions.

I suggested, as I do over and over again, that the students start thinking about these considerations while doing their thumbnail sketches.

The response was very rewarding. The Tuesday students gave a lot of thought to their compositions and colour choices and some lovely work was the result.

Tuesday AM Critique

Tuesday PM Critique

I rearranged and added some new ball caps to the pile for the Sustained Saturday students. You may recall these caps from last Tuesday’s classes.

My talk and demonstration covered the same general topics. Simplification of form and soft edge techniques were the main focus. Again, we discussed some different ways to approach this challenging subject.

If you’ve followed the Sustained Saturday posts, you may have noticed that there is almost always a pen and ink drawing surrounded by the watercolour paintings. The dedicated pen and ink artist is Trish Leacock. She had to leave a bit early yesterday so I thought it was time to feature her drawing. Trish uses cross-hatching to gradually develop the values in her drawings and, as you can see, she also enjoys to play with her design.

BALL CAPS
by Trish Leacock

Hard to believe but that’s the last Sustained Saturday until the Fall term. As May rolls around, most people are preoccupied with gardening and cottages so I don’t usually offer any Saturdays after the end of April.

I’ll miss the enthusiasm, energy and good humour of the Saturday regulars. I’ll miss their solid watercolour paintings, as well.

Sustained Saturday Critique

It’s baseball season so out came the caps! Last week, I touched on thumbnail studies and reminded the students yesterday of how important they are to an artists’ process.

Here’s a thumbnail sketch of the cap still life. It’s done in pen and ink in my 5 x 7″ sketchbook.  Three steps are shown here.

1) SKETCH – My preliminary lines, all straight, are done in orange ink. I then refined the drawing, using curved strokes, with black ink.

2) FRAME – I’ve zoomed in and decided on a vertical composition. The proportions are about 3 x 4, the same as most watercolour pads, blocks and sheets.

3) SHADE – I’ve shaded with hatching; parallel strokes. Studying and simplifying the shadows in this thumbnail is a great help when it comes to the watercolour painting.

It’s time for the watercolour demonstration. Again, I stressed simplification and soft edge techniques. I also distributed artistic licenses. The students were encouraged to use whichever colours they desired with their caps.

Sometime, during the night, my blog had it’s 80,000th view. Thanks, as always, for supporting me with your likes and comments and by following our endeavours. Now, here’s what you really want to see….the student watercolours.

Tuesday AM Critique

Tuesday PM Critique