Intermediate homework 1/26/11 Three value study

Look for an image in which the major shapes are apparent. These are the shapes that must be separated from each other for the illusion of space to be effective.

Make a drawing of just the outlines of the shapes (no texture, no detail). Assign one of 3 values to each shape: white, middle gray, or black.

Now paint a monochrome study as simply as you can. It will probably be necessary to round your values up or down to avaoid using more than three. Make your decisions according to what you think will enhance the illusion of space.
If you've already done this in class, and you plan to work with the same image, feel free to skip this step.

The finished study, overly simple though it is, will serve you well as a "map" of what must remain obvious in the proper painting that it informs. As you develop a painting from the study, check often to make sure that the basic value pattern is similar to the monochrome version. Squinting helps.
Have fun

Beginning watercolor homework 1/26/12 Color Mixing

If you haven't yet gotten your good paper, you can do this exercise on just about anything. The object is two-fold: to awaken your instinct for color mixing, and to strengthen your awareness of the role the primary colors play in creating neutrals. The first part we did in class, so repeat it, or not, depending on your degree of confidence.

Part one:
Choose one red, one yellow and one blue, with an eye toward the ones that will "go both ways". Look for the yellow, for example, that will make good greens and good oranges.
Mix together two of the three colors, adjusting and fine-tuning until neither one dominates. Make a small patch of the new color on your paper.
Now add the third color to the mix, until none of the three dominate. Make a patch of the new color on the paper.


Part two:Make the darkest version you can of the three color mix, making sure no one color dominates. Just keep adding pigment to the puddle (but no more water). When the paint is so thick that it looks shiny even after it's dry, you've gone too far. Add a little water, and try a patch on the paper.

Part two:
Look in magazines for pictures with areas of solid color about 1 1/2" square, or bigger. Cut some out, paste them onto your paper, and try to mix a perfect match. Use the same limited palette you used for part one. Make patches of your attempts beside the cut-out.
Now try to match the same colors using a different set of primaries. Write down the colors you used near the patches.
Have fun