Exploration

About two years ago I asked for some watercolor painting supplies for Christmas so I could expand my painting media. Well I got it, but after a few puddled attempts I quickly retreated to my oils. I learned very quickly that you can't paint with watercolors the way you paint with oils. So until recently my watercolor supplies have sat forgotten in my small closet/ studio. I still very much admire the medium when it's handled right, and after seeing some particularly impressive work by an artist named Keiko Tanabe, I decided to try again, this time taking the time to learn techniques and practice some patience as I 'learn'. This has lead to a very exciting plan of mine that I'll talk about in a month of so. For now I'll just say that this will guarantee that 2010 will be the best art year yet! So far on my watercolor exploration I've finished a few practices to post. I must say that it is very convenient to work with something that dries so fast and doesn't make as much of a mess! Its been nice to be able to sit down and pump out a painting while relaxing after dinner. So here's where I'm starting...
(Sorry the scans aren't the best quality)



Cider in my favorite mug



Pumpkin



In defense of screaming. Its crazy how ideas can stick with you and combine with whatever else is floating around in your head. I first sketched this 2 or 3 years ago, and it has shown up as a doodle or sketch since then, changing a bit along the way, but it wasn't until I thought of the random title "In defense of screaming" that I got around to painting it. The title was just a random phrase that popped into my head, but it immediately linked to this sketch and fit perfectly. This is a venture into more abstract, and I might add very fun, style reminiscent of how I first started drawing and thinking. Taking the time to do more traditional oil landscapes and still life subjects disciplined me and taught me a ton, but now I'm all for revisiting this side of things. Watercolor will let me explore some concepts and ideas that definitely wouldn't ever end up in full oil painting, so I'm excited!