The Ruins III

Another rendition of the Ruins.

Close to the original sketch but on 'real' paper.

I think:
the Jack pine (the tall skinny one) has to go

the shadow colours are getting muddy

the background is too cluttered but I am not sure what to do with it..

Alan

The Ruins at Rockwood

Winsor and Newton watercolour (Cold Pressed) BLOCK (a real block)

Wash of burnt umber to tone the whole sheet

Some area's I pulled the wash off to represent the snow

Some area's I used just a little white gouache

Reasonably happy with this except for the white / Jack pines ...
Resisted the temptation to ink in the ruins

Next rendition is going to be on plain paper -)

Back in the Day

Going through a pile of old stuff I found this..
My first watercolour attempt on cheap paper (I didn't know any better)

Painted in about 1987 ...

Not a  very good scan because of all the wrinkles but I think it deserves a place here if only to show where I came from and to preserve it digitally.
Alan

All along the Watchtower ..

Last weekend, on a freezing cold morning we visited Rockwood conservation Area and avoided the wind :-)
I wandered off down an unvisited trail and found this view of the "ruins".
No this wasn't done on site it was done later in the warmth of my kitchen!
Strathmore 400 toned tan paper probably was the wrong choice but I wanted to warm it up a bit. Adding the watercolour caused the paper to wrinkle badly... Oh well.
I think I will re-do it on something more substantial.
 However the memory of that cold morning with good friends lingers on.

Alan

"drifting snow" watercolour experiment

During the week I was kicking around an idea.

It started out as a snowdrift with a tuft of grasses all very simple, very 'Zen'.
But I got carried away, all the way to trying to create 'snow' using W&N permanent white gouache spattered from a toothbrush (yes and old one!)

I even used a little Grumbacher Gouache on the tree's
Well here is the result on Strahmore 400 series 140lb, multimedia, 6" x 8" paper.
It warped a little with the washes but settled down quite nicely.

I was quite pleased with it especially as a first attempt.
I think I will try again on larger paper :-)

Alan

First Light 2015

First Light 2015

I have put out a challenge for many years now.

My "First Light Challenge" is to capture the morning sun, or in this case a lightening of the grey clouds, on New Years morning (In my area that is 7:54 a.m)

This sketch was not done on site as the ink would have frozen along with my fingers.
It was drawn from memory of that day in the warmth of my kitchen ;-)

Hamilton Steelworks from across the bay at LaSalle Park.

Strathmore 'Toned Grey" paper.
Pentel Brush Pen (Black),
Noodlers Carbon Black ink in my TWSBI fountain pen,
white crayon,
2B pencil.
White highlights using a Uni-ball Signo rollerball.