Wednesday evening is watercolour night at the Dundas Valley School of Art this fall. It was the third class of eight and I’m still sticking to basics. The first evening of this course, I discussed value. Last week, I presented soft-edge techniques. Yesterday, my demonstration focused on creating even washes over larger areas. In this case, that meant not only the two baskets but the spaces between the various objects.
I started the baskets with a yellowish wash that covered both baskets at the same time. I then added darker values which helped to distinguish the baskets from each other. I kept it simple and used only three values.
The tabletop and the background were painted with even, ungraded washes. Graded washes might offer more visual appeal but let’s walk before we run. Creating an even wash without streaks and blossoms/backruns takes thought and practice.
Most of the group are working in fairly small formats. I don’t mind as it gives them a chance to resolve their work in the alloted time. That way, they can complete all of the shapes in their paintings and get a sense of how all of the value and colour relationships work together. I can see progress over our first three classes and I’m looking forward to next week.
Wednesday Critique
Barry Coombs Art Workshops 