Test sheet experiments

(C) 2016 Dale DiMauro

When my painting is interrupted, as it has been many times this summer, I often experiment with different techniques on a test sheet, which are often little landscapes in and of themselves. For the past two weeks we have had masons working on our chimney, which has disrupted my painting routine.

On this little painting I have been experimenting with a neutral tint, which is a watercolor pigment, to arrive at a richer dark earlier in the painting process. The neutral tint in this picture is used in the dark tree massing in the distance. I also have been using mask, which when lifted created all those fine white marks that were left.

Finally, I am looking for a better way to sign my paintings. I do not want my signature to be too dominant as to take away from or compete with the painting. However, I like the idea of signing my paintings with a vibrant red, which to some degree is absorbed into the picture. In many watercolor paintings there are various grays such as in some of Winslow Homer's work, which is the complement to red, offering possibilities to expand upon.