Innholdsfortegnelse for April 2019 i Watercolor Artist

The best portraits, as we know, do much more than capture a likeness. If we only want to record what a person looks like (and there’s a need for that, too), we can—as artist Jamie Wyeth reminds us—simply take a snapshot. If it’s something more meaningful we’re after, though, it doesn’t matter whether the model is the Queen of England or the Queen’s gardener, the truly memorable portraits are those that capture our attention and transport us—as only great art can do. “When painting portraits, a lot of people say, ‘Why not get a photograph of the person?’ Photography is wonderful, and it is an art form in itself, but ... my portrait is a culmination of elements ... a truer image of a person than just the ‘click’ of…

Toolkit PAINTS: • Daniel Smith perinone orange or MaimeriBlu orange lake• Winsor & Newton cobalt blue BRUSHES: • Creative Mark Harmony squirrel mop No. 6• Mimik synthetic round No. 4 Step 1 I started with a simple line drawing of the overgrown ruins of Ta Prohm at Angkor Wat, Cambodia, based on a photo I took years ago. Step 2 I painted the shadow areas first using a dark palette, continually alternating between warm/cool and neutral passages. While the paper was wet, I dropped orange lake and cobalt blue into a few areas to create intentional blossoms. Step 3 I created the mid-values by color charging orange into still-wet areas of cobalt blue. I lightly darkened the sky with a neutral gray palette mix. Step 4 At the base of…

St. Louis artist Ali Cavanaugh grew up drawing and painting portraits, beginning in her teenage years. She earned a BFA from Kendall College of Art and Design in Michigan in 1995. Her artwork has been exhibited nationally and internationally, and is included in more than 400 private and corporate collections worldwide. Her work has been commissioned by Time magazine and The New York Times , and has been featured in a number of art publications. A book of her artwork, Ali Cavanaugh: Modern Fresco Paintings , will be published this spring by Unicorn Publishing with pre-order available on Amazon or Cavanaugh’s website ( alicavanaugh.com ).…

SURFACE • “I paint on cold-pressed or 140-lb. rough paper and tape it directly to the board. Painting wet-into-wet gives me greater freedom to exaggerate my strokes. I think watercolor produces its best results when the paint is left to dry naturally.” PAINT • “Mijello watercolor is currenly my favorite brand, especially the ultramarine, burnt sienna and cerulean blue. I often mix it with other brands to achieve my desired color palette.” BRUSHES • “I don’t use masking fluid; instead, I paint around the reserved white area of the paper using flat brushes. The effects produced with these flat brushes are similar to a palette knife loaded with oil paints and placed on a canvas.”…

Ibe Ananaba ( ibeananabart.com ) was born in Belgium and raised in Aba, Nigeria. Ananaba began making art as a child, and later studied fine and applied arts at the Institute of Management and Technology, Enugu, in Nigeria, where he majored in painting and graduated with distinction. He also works as the chief art consultant and coordinator of studio programs for Girl Child Art Foundation. The artist has exhibited in Nigeria, South Africa, Israel, the United States and England. He lives and works in Lagos, Nigeria.…

Elaine Daily Birnbaum Madison, Wisconsin Enough (mixed watermedia on paper, 30x22) Fang Yi Chen Tainan City, Taiwan Shirakawago and Gokayama Villages (watercolor on paper, 20x27) Zhou Tianya Shenzhen City, China Tibetan Old Amah (watercolor on paper, 22x15) Xi Guo St. Augustine, Florida Tangle No 9 (watercolor on paper, 29x20) William G. Hook Seattle, Washington Light Rail Construction 1 (gouache on paper, 15x11) Be a part of next year’s Watermedia Showcase! See page 58 for more information.…

Reference Because this antique shop still life featured mostly cool undertones, I knew I could rely on Canson Mi-Teintes steel gray paper for the main subject—the kettles and cups. Sketch and Highlights I drew the reference scene on Canson Mi-Teintes gray paper using a 2B pencil. Next, I defined the highlights using the Faber-Castell PITT artists pen in white. Final I painted the kettles using a light glaze of cobalt blue. Beneath them, I used a dark value mixture of French ultramarine and lunar black to define the ledge. I then painted above and around the kettles using green gold and a touch of lunar black. I added the final touches on the handles and the dark accents using burnt sienna and lunar black for Kettles & Cups (watercolor and…

Most of Cavanaugh’s paintings are portraits of close friends and family. Each begins with a photo shoot during which she attempts to capture the unique presence and inner beauty of each individual. “I’m most excited to paint people who have an honesty to them,” she says. “Children are the benchmark. They possess an openness that’s hard for adults to match. As I photograph my subjects, I try to get them to open up and be present with vulnerability—like a child.”…

Jasmine Huang TAIWAN Jasmine Huang (zh-tw.facebook.com/public/Jasmine-Huang) graduated from the Department of Fine Arts, Taiwan Tung Hai University, in 1996 and has been painting in watercolor since she was 22 years old. During her early years, she taught art and had other jobs until her big art breakthrough in 2014, when her paintings drew attention in watercolor circles. Huang never looked back and is making her mark with her award-winning art in international exhibitions. FOLLOWING THE SUN When Huang first exploded onto the art scene, she was a floral and still life painter. Now that she travels to attend exhibitions, she uses the opportunity to hone her plein air skills by painting landscapes of the places she visits. “Working en plein air provides a strong focus of expression,” the artist says,…

PAINT • “I often mix watercolor brands to achieve my ideal colors. I especially like Winsor & Newton for its blue hues, Holbein’s lavender and Daniel Smith’s sap green. No white paint or masking fluid for me, though, because I believe in leaving the white of the paper to make a statement.” BRUSHES • “I primarily use Chinese brushes made from various types of animal hair. Most of the Chinese brushes can hold lots of water and paint, which is ideal when painting on a really large surface.”…

BEST OF SHOW Stephen Zhang Plano, Texas Q What was the inspiration behind your painting? A As an artist with portraiture as a main focus, I’m constantly looking for people with distinctive individuality. The person in this painting is an artist in Detroit. I met her during a project there and was captivated by her grit, talent and attitude. The title, Fire and Metal, refers to the metalsmithing in the painting, but it also speaks about the artist. It’s a privilege to paint inspiring subjects like her. Q What was your painting process for the work? A I worked on the composition of the painting first in drawings. Then, painting directly, without a light wash or underpainting, I let the paint flow, and then responded to it accordingly. Because I…

What’s the most important thing for a painter to do to capture the spirit or essence of a human subject? Bev Jozwiak Paint shapes, not objects. By that I mean instead of concentrating on “eyes,” “nose” and “mouth,” paint the structure underneath. I like a really strong dramatic light, so I can paint the shadows. I used to worry about a likeness, but when I started painting the big shapes, I found it looked more like my subjects than when I worried about every little detail. Debra Edgerton In capturing the essence of a human subject, an artist must have the ability to empathize. I know that sounds a bit cliché, but for me, I need to find a way to take in what I might know about the subject,…

“One of the nicest compliments I’ve received,” says Tim Oliver ( timoliverart.com ) “was from someone who said: ‘You seem to like scenes that the rest of us just drive by.’ I am, for whatever reason, drawn to ordinary and ubiquitous things. I love the land and the sky, but I really love the place where they meet past or present human activity. There’s always a story there that I’m drawn to. For this sketch, I was on my way home from Midland, Texas, to Lubbock, and I was struck by the image of these two oil rigs drilling close to each other late in the day. Never without my sketchbook and kit, I pulled over and captured my impression from the tailgate of my pickup.” YOUR TURN!…

Color-mixing studies are invaluable because they take a lot of the guesswork out of color mixing, providing a road map for successful paintings. These five exercises can be completed in a matter of minutes. You’ll need at least one dark color and its complement; I used cobalt blue and orange lake. Take notes and keep a journal for future reference. Mixing on the Palette Mix a dark gray-black directly onto the palette using the two colors. Paint a 2x1-inch vertical rectangle on the paper using a neutral mixture. Next, create a warmer and cooler version of the dark mix. Wet-Into-Wet Paint a 2x1-inch rectangle of each color, leaving a 1-inch space between them. While both colors are wet, take a brush loaded with clean water and join the area between…

Mary Whyte ( marywhyte.com ) was the recipient of the Portrait Society of America’s Gold Medal in 2016, the society’s highest achievement. She was also the recipient of the Elizabeth O’Neill Verner Award, the highest honor given to an artist in South Carolina. Her groundbreaking exhibition, “Working South,” was featured on “CBS Sunday Morning,” and traveled to museums throughout the South. Whyte was an exhibitor and presenter at the Foreign Countries International Watercolour Summit in Nanning, China. Her paintings are shown in major exhibitions and collected nationally and internationally. She’s the author of six books on her life and art instruction, and also the subject of a biography by curator and historian Martha R. Severens, entitled More Than a Likeness, The Enduring Art of Mary Whyte…

PAINTS • Daniel Smith: Payne’s gray, perylene maroon, pyrrol orange, ultramarine turquoise • Golden QoR: Indian yellow, quinacridone gold, transparent pyrrole orange • Holbein: sap green, shadow green • Sennelier: phthalo turquoise SURFACE • Custom-made clay-surface panel (applied to hardboard) BRUSHES • Blick Scholastic Wonder White synthetic rounds, sizes .03 to 12 • 1- to 4-inch synthetic housepaint brushes • Sponge brushes (other sponges) • Inexpensive synthetic craft brushes. “My brushes aren’t fancy at all,” Cavanaugh says.…

“Art materials in Yangon are expensive and scarce, but I use the best that I can obtain.” SURFACE • “I work on Arches and Saunders paper. I don’t soak the paper; I just tape it directly onto the board.” PAINT • “I prefer Winsor & Newton and Daniel Smith. I can’t paint without Daniel Smith’s ultramarine blue.” BRUSHES • “I use Chinese-made brushes that are made for calligraphy and traditional watercolors. I find that I prefer them so that I can make soft strokes.”…

John Salminen (johnsalminen.com) is a world-renowned watercolor artist and teacher. A signature member of many art societies, including the American Watercolor Society, the National Watercolor Society and the Transparent Watercolor Society of America, he has won more than 200 awards in national and international exhibitions. Salminen has exhibited his work in many one-person and small group shows in the United States and has been an invited artist in more than 40 international watercolor exhibitions and small group shows in China, Taiwan, Singapore, Thailand, Turkey, Russia, Mexico, Italy, Belgium and Australia. The artist lives in Minnesota with his wife, Kathy.…