Watercolor Workshop Day 1 (Plus some doggies)

I am exhausted! LOL!

Artist was: Designer, Painter, Calligrapher | Jim Bray

I feel like I learned a lot! I have absolutely ZERO instruction in watercolor so that was new... I got some really great feedback on my work. He was very encouraging and thought I had a good eye for it. He told me not to fret the technical stuff now, that it would come with experience and more time working with the medium. And also to remember that he and a couple other people in the workshop have been painting 30+ years instead of my measly couple. I may have been convinced to try doing some 'real' pieces to try to enter in some shows. I haven't been in an art show in 6? years. Kind of a scary prospect. I don't think I'm ready. I just keep coming back to something my high school art teacher said to me which was: "Okay, so you can draw. Now what are you going to do with it?"

My answer is still, I don't know! But I want to do something worthwhile...

I gathered up all my work to bring tomorrow to show the lady running the workshop. I'll be gone from 7 am to 10 pm tomorrow.

Anyways, just 2 today, most was demos.

I've never done a landscape before... I had no reference. No freaking clue what to do. lol I guess it could have gone worse. I really needed another color to fade between the one grey and blue but I didn't have it. So I bought it today LOL.



I thought about not posting this one because it sucks lol. I'm not done so it could be salvageable maybe. Right now his left ear is obnoxiously long and he looks crosseyed because I didn't get to finish the eyes. I do like the color though, trying to use less colors because I tend to go crazy. There's only 3 colors here. I think I can fix it. I know what to do, just got to work on it.



Tomorrow I am bringing reference pictures. Btw.

While I'm here...

I'll probably post these in the sketch a day thread too later. (Once I get better cropped pictures) All these are inked pretty much directly with very minimal sketch (some have no sketching done). So that was different for me. I think drawing without being able to erase is good practice for me to just go with it.

Not done yet:




I love this one: (the green on the left is NOT that green in RL)





Just ink



Oh and those are actually watercolor pencils and I did them a few days ago before the workshop.

Laur--you have phenomenal talent--seriously. (and I see my Wilson boy! )

Izzy is amazing and SQUEEE Dekka! That is so her, you have captured her smug satisfaction perfectly!

Thats pretty awesome. I have never had the skills for water colour.

Thanks! It really helps to get good feedback.

I don't know if it's that we look at our own work more critically than others but I feel like my stuff is either overworked and too tedious or too messy. I still don't think I've quite found the exact right balance. I dunno. I am starting to feel like I'm finally 'getting' colors so they're not so flat anymore. Finally brave enough to try some different combinations instead of the same old same old.

Wilson was actually the hardest drawing on the whole page! I don't know why but he really was. I'm going to color him like the others eventually.

I like watercolors a lot, but they're kind of a rough medium. They're so hard to do just right. So easy to overwork them and turn them opaque (which is the biggest problem I've had and people were having today). And SO easy for them to run and muddy up. Not nearly as forgiving as acrylics or oils. But I really like the feel they have. Watercolor pencils though are GREAT!

Izzie was the most fun to draw. Not gonna lie. :lol-sign:

Izzie!!!!! Omg Laur you're awesome!

OMG. PLEASE try Ozzy in watercolor! That would be AMAZING to see. You are so freaking talented it hurts.

Those are amazing! You should totally do commissions.

I'm definitely going to be borrowing some more dogs later on! The little watercolor pencil ones only take a few minutes each. (The Izzie one was a bit longer). After this weekend's over I'll have a lot to practice with!

I have three more workshops in the next month though so it's going to be busy. 2 oil painting ones and one charcoal. Can't wait for the charcoal workshop.

If you need/want some schnauzers or poodles, lemme know! Your work is just amazing and I LOVE the watercolored landscape.

I really like the landscape one, something about it really draws me in

Oooh poodle or schnauzer hair would be fun! I've been just pulling pics off here: http://www.chazhound.com/forums/t131254/

I'm trying to get at least a sketch of everyone's dogs done but they take a while. (a few minutes each for a sketch but they add up)

I'd like to do commissions eventually. We'll see... I need to work out some kinks on some things.

I posted in your other thread. A bunch of pics I hope are what you are looking for in regards to foreshortening and perspective.

Thanks! Perspective and DOF have always been my struggling point.

You guys should've seen Jim paint, it's incredible. He can turn out a landscape in 8 or so minutes. He just slaps that brush against the paper and it looks crazy and like absolutely nothing. He does a lot of his work with a razor blade scraping the paint away. (I tried and failed LOL). I watched him paint for 3 hours and I could've watched him paint a lot longer.

Oh my goodness, you are INCREDIBLE!!! You have a really amazing talent!

I can't believe you're able to do that with just a one day work shop, having never painted landscape before. It looks like you've been doing it for years! Wow!!

Those are freaking AMAZING!

I can't even believe that some "are not finished." That kinda blows my mind!

I'm in.freaking.love. with your style. You're amazing, I'd do anything to be able to draw that way. I used to draw all the time, but never did much with it.

How'd you learn the different techniques and stuff?

I'd love to take some kind of class eventually.

Sooo just a shot in the dark here... Would i be able to acquire that adorable painting of my Izzie?

Pretty Please?

Love seeing the works develop -- thanks for sharing them as you explore new mediums and try new things

Awwww! Ok, I'll do a trade for a pic of my three. Anything you want, you just name it!!!