Plan a Watercolor

I don't bother, I just copy what somebody else painted and people call me a good Artist. This is what I hear from my students all the time.

Whether you are going to paint in Abstract, Realistic or in another style, a plan creating a Blue Print is essential.

Good Artist's from all over the world, Chinese, Russian,and Japanese, Artist's, yes, everyone starts with a Blue Print (plan).

WHAT DO YOU DO?

CREATE A PLAN OF ACTION  -  NO.

Skip this idea altogether, most do. I hear this "well I copy other Artist's work, so I don't need one".

Would a Home Builder need a plan, you know the answer.

I know it's a pain, but you do need a plan. Put it this way, 95% of Professional Artists make a plan, 95% of "copy" Artist's don't. We just copy some Professionals work.

Don't get me wrong there is absolutely nothing wrong for students to copy works of the Masters when you begin to paint. But just keep two thoughts in mind, copyright laws, and don't do it most of your painting years.

So lets start (painlessly) in organizing a plan you don't need to spend a lot of time ten to thirty minutes might work. A small 3"x4" value sketch is a minimum.

First quickly decide, does a vertical, square or horizontal format suit the idea you might have in mind. Basic rules for a Home Builder are place kitchen close to dining area. Similar for painting, place "impact area" (center of interest) in a STRATEGIC position on the paper.  WHERE?  THIS IS IMPORTANT.

Divide the picture into thirds, vertically and horizontally, where they cross (you have four choices), choose only one. THAT'S THE CENTER OF INTEREST.

Center of Interest the spot that the eye (brain) goes to first when looking at a painting. But Jim how do I show the "Center of Interest" to the best advantage. EMPHAZIE.

This is where you need your brightest colors, the highest contrast, the sharpest edges, and the most detail. Total area should be about 1/16th of the total area of the painting (plus or minus).

TIME OUT, RE-CAP.

You make a thumbnail sketch, showing the shapes, where darks and lights go. Decide where the Impact Area goes. Decide on color scheme (more about this latter).

LAY THE FOUNDATION

"Values" (lights and darks), is the foundation of a painting PERIOD! NOT COLOR.

Like the rooms in your house the "shapes" must be linked together. The builder creates a flow pattern, linking an area with a hallway to the next area. YOU DO THE SAME. Linking the light and dark areas together for rhythm, balance and movement.

NOW DO THIS.

Simplify your painting idea into a few major shapes that will form the overall design. Big large joining shapes. No little "non-joining" shapes scattered all over the painting. Now we have the plan and foundation in place.

PUT UP THE FRAME WORK FOR THE HOUSE (PAINTING).

Once your values are "planned", you are ready to construct the frame work, the Color Plan.

Ask yourself what color or colors sets the stage for the mood of the subject. Those should dominate the painting.

This formula works for me, (1) mostly, (2) some and a (3) bit. Also, have seen it expressed as Papa Bear, Mama Bear and Baby Bear.

The color distribution should roughly follow these proportions.

• (1) "Mostly" the colors should share the same characteristics.
• (2) "Some" should differ from the "Mostly" main color.
• (3)The "Bit" should be completely different from "Mostly" and "Some".

Perhaps the Mostly, Some and Bits, is most obvious in color; But remember there is M,S & B in values, temperature, and intensity.

EXAMPLES FOR "M,S&B"

1. Mostly Dark Colors
2. Some Middle Tones
3. Bit-Light

1. Mostly Blue
2. Some Yellow
3. Red

1. Mostly Warm Colors
2. Some Cool Colors
3. Neutral

Please note you can inter-change the order or arrangement of the examples above i.e."Mostly" - middle tones, "Some" dark and "Bit" light.

WHY DOES THIS IDEA WORK?

There are two ideas at the heart of this strategy.

FIRSTLY    It makes sure that all color properties in your painting are not all the same.  All greens every where (I know you have seen this) will be boring.

Painting with all similar values will look bad, try it.  Paint a landscape some green in the trees same green in background and foreground.  WHAT A MESS.  Also full intensity colors would be overwhelming (bet you have seen those).

SECONDLY  Contrast which when carefully applied can be the key to a compelling visual image.  The "Bit" is especially important.  Bit is a perfect choice of the Impact Area (C of I).

RAISE THE WALLS.

Use a large brush to keep it simple.  Start with a "Broom" and finish with a "Needle"

Don't get hung up in the details yet.  In other words don't put the wall paper on a half built wall.  Paint large shapes first, then and only then, paint the details.

WALLS UP

Only now can you decorate your structurally sound painting to your hearts content, even with a small brush.  Can be left impressionistic or developed to photo realism. You will find that a good painting does not require a genius. ALL IT TAKES IS A GOOD BLUE PRINT.

A HOUSE WITHOUT A PLAN?

A PAINTING WITHOUT A PLAN?-------GOES NO WHERE.

LIGHT VALUES

All subjects have light values.

Surfaces have different amounts of light falling on them, depending on whether facing or facing away from light source.

Increase or decrease of light on colors creates changes.

Increase the light the color appears lighters eventually becoming white a reflection of the light.

Likewise decrease the light, get darker

Using a range of Light Values you can create form (volume).  Let's try a pepper.

Wait a minute changed my mind, don't skip if you have a hard time painting the value scale.  Shown here.  Not as easy as it looks.

STEP O

This is where the student attempts to paint a shape and form in one wash.  Instead of glazing different values over the Bell Pepper to form a three dimension look.  You will need a Bell Pepper or a photo or copy mine.

STEP #1

Start with glazing value #1 over the complete pepper.  The areas of reflected light value are left unpainted.

STEP #2

Mix value 3, look very closely to see to locate value 1 and paint the rest of the pepper in value 3.

You do not have to rinse and clean the brush after each wash value. Because you are going to go darker as you go along.

STEP #3

Mix value 5, look for value 3 and paint the rest in 5.  Notice it is starting to look three dimensional as I add values.

STEP 4

Value 5 is on the brush - don't rinse, I mix value 7.  Now look for the shadow shapes to paint.

STEP 5

Value 7 is on the brush.  Mix value 9.  Now you will have to look very closely at the shadow shapes to locate area 9.

Frankly at this point you should have a good "guess-to-mate" where they go.

STEP #6

You should have a fairly "weighty" looking Green Pepper.   Now look back at step "0"

You will not need as many steps and value range if you paint a smooth object. Got that remark? No place for shadows, but the values will change us it turns from the light.

Demo

Started with 1/2 sheet of 140lb. Cold Press Arches Paper.  House drawn in.  No other pencil marks.

Used very large round brush to wash weak coat of Raw Sienna on all the whole area.

This will give some idea of the size of the brush shown above, on the left is a number 12 round, on the right is a number 4 round

Ultra Marine Blue, Cobalt Blue for the sky, brushed on still wet paper.

Used Burnt Sienna with Ultra Marine Blue for any Grays you might see.

Paper was dried, clump of trees painted behind house. Masking fluid added for the tops of the blue bonnets

Worked on foreground, as I don't carry a tube of green all greens were mixed in the palette or on the paper.

My palette

Is Ultra Marine Blue. Cobalt Blue and Antwerp Blue.

YELLOWS:    Winsor Yellow and Aureolin (Cobalt Yellow) Winsor and Newtons Never any other manufacturers they might fade. 

REDS:              Permanent Alizarin Crimson, Winsor Red, Cadmium Red Light, Burnt Sienna

                         and Paynes Grey.

Antwerp Blue and one of the Yellows produced 75% of the greens in the picture.

Trees on the left side painted in.

Foreground developed, there was some masking fluid to save the white paper (top of Blue Bonnets). House painting in

Removed trees completely from behind house.

This was done with Magic Eraser, see the website for details under Techniques (left side of Home Page).

Replaced trees behind house and developed more of the foreground.

Added sky and other details.  Finished Painting