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| (C) 2016 Dale DiMauro |
When preparing to lay out a painting I try to make the composition as strong as possible. On occasion, if it is a natural scene, there is nothing I feel I can do to improve on the composition. For example, the natural light can be spectacular, casting brilliant reflections on the water, and these abstract patterns I can't make up. There are times when I sketch what is literally in front of me, and I develop the picture from this initial start.
I often take a photograph as a reference because of time constraints or because the outdoor light is continually changing. When I take photographs, I am thinking of the composition in advance by framing my picture to take advantage of a particular angle or subject.
As depicted in the above sketch, I consider the placement of elements of great importance. Should the focal point be in the center or off-center? What is the value range of the composition? In another words, what is the darkest or lightest subject in the picture. These questions lead to further questions based on my subject matter, which may lead me to paint at a certain scale. A larger painting takes more time, provides more impact to the viewer while requiring greater detail. Sometimes I evolve slowly by starting out with a small study, and then I realize some modifications would make a big difference. This is when I become inspired to start a larger painting.
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| (C) 2016 Dale DiMauro |
Recently, I have been going on late afternoon walks where the sun on the landscape has been spectacular. This time of day brings out the warmth of the sun, which casts a glow on anything in its path. Conversely, the areas devoid of the sun seem to have a cool yet transparent quality to them. Even the sky and shrubby growth, absent of its foliage, has a warm color which makes it very appealing.
The colors out in nature can be quite vivid, even at this time of year. Lately, I have paid greater attention to the colors I see on my walks, which is challenging as the light changes rapidly due to moving cloud cover and the shortness of daylight. I have been trying to mix colors on my palette that I see on my walks or that have been inspired by these experiences.
This is a watercolor I started based on one of these afternoon walks. I like how the shrubbery, in all its different colors and forms, frames the composition. Often I neglect to use brown madder, the reddish color in the foreground, but this scene called for it. In addition, the shadows have begun to define the geometry of the buildings, which always is an exciting stage of any painting for me.
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| (C) 2016 Dale DiMauro |
This is a little study I worked on between watercolors last week. I worked on several pictures recently at various stages of completion including a larger picture(18" x 24"). Thus, there were literally moments when I was caught waiting for the paper to dry.
This winter whether it shows or not, I have been expanding my color mixing palette. I purchased this little color mixing guide(titled: Colour Mixing Guide: Watercolour, by Julie Collins) before the holidays at the Toadstool bookstore in Keene, NH. For sometime, I have pursued a greater variety of darks which I find bring out the light in a painting. In addition, there are a great range of warm and cool grays which I had not capitalized on.
In this image for the sky, I combined winsor blue(red shade) with raw sienna which created this creamy- minty green color. For the structure of the tree I used sepia and ultramarine while aspects of the water utilized ultramarine and burnt umber. This expanding knowledge of color is providing me with a greater resource to draw upon. I find subtle differences in color can portray significant atmospheric effects in watercolor. So much that I am considering reorganizing how I array my colors on my palette.
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| (C) 2016 Dale DiMauro |
On a recent walk through a local corn field, I happened upon this patch of a former season, peaking through the snow cover. These tangled grasses remind me of Albrecht Dürer's "Large Piece of Turf" although shrunken under the weight of winter. The snow cover here in southern Vermont, has been thin all winter as such, with some earth poking throughout.
I like the idea of focusing on one area of the paper and leaving the rest pretty much void. This picture was painted with ochres, sienna's and umbers, all earth colors. However, I did use some ultramarine around the grass to give the snow some dimension.
The challenge was zooming in on the clump of grass and defining the various forms of growth without becoming absorbed in every little blade of grass. I admit it probably is an odd little picture.
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| (C) 2016 Dale DiMauro |
This is a watercolor I started a few hours ago. I wasn't sure which way I was going to go with this picture. Was it going to be a study or a finished picture? I have been eager to paint a watercolor portrait as I have done several pencil portraits lately. Part of this thinking reflects the extreme cold we are experiencing here in Vermont and the other factor is that I am recovering from rolling my ankle playing racquetball last week. So I guess it is a study since it is not complete.
During the painting of this picture I experimented with color mixes new to me. Since there are many warm and cool grays in this picture it was fun coming up with the colors that I did. The shirt was done with a combination of burnt umber and ultramarine blue. The shadows on the shirt utilized burnt sienna and ultramarine blue. Some of warm grays in the hair are the combination of raw umber and cobalt blue.
The dark area to the right of the face has speckled pigment of ultramarine blue. This is called granulation when colors separate after being mixed, providing a grainy, textured appearance. I also like the texture of this paper which I don't use that often. This paper is called Stephen Quiller watercolor paper.
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| (C) 2016 Dale DiMauro |
When I work on a watercolor I use test sheets. Test sheets are scraps of watercolor paper leftover after painting a picture. They often are postcard-sized scraps of paper to test color mixing and to practice various techniques before applying them on a larger watercolor. For example, when working on a portrait one needs to mix the correct skin tone.
Since watercolor paint dries lighter than when it is wet, it is a good idea to get a sense of how the final pigment will appear. In addition, some pigments stain the paper more than others. Therefore, you cannot lift these pigments as easily from the paper if you need to.
In the above photograph, I tried out several painting techniques. The scratchy areas of small white spots in the blue, were created using a razor blade. This technique is effective for creating whitecaps on the surface of a body of water or to suggest glare. Another technique shown above is called wet-on-dry. That is where a wet brush is applied to a dry surface. These areas depict a pigment with a strong contrast to the neighboring color which displays an irregular edge.
Watercolor painting is known for it's transparency properties which can be seen, to some degree on the top of the sheet, where there are many dark vertical marks under a wash of gray.
I may have mentioned using a test sheet in a prior post. However, since I am often mixing different color combinations based on practice and learning from others, my color knowledge is continually evolving.
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| (C) 2016 Dale DiMauro |
This is a picture I started this past week. I was really taken by the composition of the natural landscape in the background against the individual and the definitive snow line at the bottom. I have found by expressing subtle variations of value in paint, the background develops greater depth and character. As a result, your eye is drawn into the scene in a more pleasing manner.
The post in the foreground with it's faded red color I find fascinating as it echo's the man's skin tone. The snow was painted with both ultramarine and cobalt blue. To give the snow in the foreground some warmth I added a drop of red.
Reflecting on the pictures I did this past year, my progress has shifted in many ways. Now I use a greater variety of pigments in my mixes as I almost never use a color straight out of the tube. I have been doing larger watercolors and am eager to do even larger ones. I seem to prefer simpler compositions yet am ambitious in taking on more complicated color schemes such as found in and around reflections etc. Also, I have an increased desire to put figures into my landscape paintings. For some time, I have been drawing figures and dogs in my sketchbooks, until I find the right situation where I can put them into a picture.
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| (C) 2016 Dale DiMauro |
In a post from last year I mentioned purchasing jumbo charcoal pencils from Jerry's Artarama, an art supply store in North Carolina. Jerry's Artarama is the only place I am aware that sells these smearless charcoal pencils. The above drawing, was done using jet sanguine, one of the four colors I purchased. The other colors are jet black, jet white and jet sepia. I find they do not smear at all which is truly amazing. It is handy to be able to use a bound sketchbook where there is page after page pressed against each other and you do not have to worry about ruining a previous drawing. It is also a benefit to not get your clothes accidentally soiled by charcoal or its dust.
I have long admired the master artists from centuries ago such as Leonardo da Vinci or Albrecht Durer who drew with rich earth colors. This past summer when we were in New York at the Metropolitan Museum of Art touring the Sargent exhibit, there was a gallery full of lovely portrait studies drawn in chalk, charcoal and conte'. In addition to black, some of the pigments they used were sepia, sanguine, venetian red and terra cotta.
The above drawing took about twenty minutes.
