Friday, October 21, 2022

The Paint Itself

In addition to the usual elements of a realistic painting in progress, such as color distribution or the illusion of light, a watercolor painter  often needs to pay attention to and make decisions about the look of the medium itself.  Is the paint worth looking at as a collection of brushstrokes apart from what it is a picture of?

Look at this watercolor by Georgia O'Keefe. The paint has been set free to flow and the transparent strokes are encouraged to allow light to pass through the subsequent layers. See how setting the strokes free  demonstrates that the subject matter can be made from nothing but the beautiful paint



 
Not every watercolor is first and foremost about the paint..
Here are two from John Marin : one that Scratches it's way across the page 
and another that swims gracefully.





How about making two versions of an image from one of these painters or another of your choice

and consider, for example,
how would Arthur Dove have painted the scene or object?
How about Marsden Hartley?
Charles Burchfeld?
Helen Frankenthaler?

   


 






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