Sunday, July 25, 2021

Test Sheet II

                                                                          (C) 2021 Dale DiMauro
 

In previous posts I have profiled the value of using test sheets. An artist may use a piece of scrap paper or a piece of watercolor paper, left over, after being trimmed down to size, during the framing process.

First of all, it always worthwhile to experiment with different papers as the pigment will mark differently from paper to paper. Over time one learns how to manipulate the paper to their liking. This includes learning how the pigment dries on the paper and when you can go back into a painting to add more pigment or not.

When I am trying to come up with a color for my painting it is a good idea to see if it is actually the color I want before committing it to my painting. This is a great time to simply play with pigments on the paper without over thinking it too much.

These two images are little landscape doodles which get the creative process going. In the top image I mixed colors(raw umber and burnt umber) which I don't usually mix together to create a brownish sky which brings out the color of the water. In the lower image I am forever combining blues and yellows to come up with combinations for vegetation which can distinguish the foreground from the background.

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