Sunday, October 5, 2008

Metroheads and The Big Draw - Young Man, Girl meditating

The Big Draw day 4 and 5

The young fellow in the Métro, hidden behind a suited man looked like someone from the early 19th Century...a brother of Franz Schubert, perhaps? :)



GIRL MEDITATING IN A FUR CAP

Today's Motto: Perseverance

This is a glimps into my watercolour-studies-experimental book. I am working with several books on colour, in order to understand and experiment with colour because I would like to step into a new dimension with my watercolour paintings. One has to work very fast, with much water, "lay on" pigments on paper in the right moment, keep your brushes and the palette clean. It has to be found out which is the right moment, and this can only be done by practising all the time.

For this study, (on 300 g paper) which is drawn from a metroportrait, I worked with a limited pallette, you can read the list of the colours on the painting, if you click on it. I find the study a bit too heavy and the furr cap is the result of my messing up the girls hair:) ......but all in all it points in the direction where I'd like to go, and I know that I have to persevere in order to get where I want to get...

Have a nice weekend

Copyright ©cestandrea - All rights reserved

20 comments:

sukipoet said...

Even as he is napping the young man looks so serious.

The painting is gorgeous. The colors, her face. So peaceful and serene. I think you are already quite a fine watercolorist. But I agree with you and am glad to read that you say practice is needed. This maybe be why my watercolors are limpid. I dont do it enough.

Unknown said...

Suki, thanks so much for your encouraging comment! Every day I find myself in front of limits and obstacles, when it comes to painting, with whatever medium. I guess, we are all like that, which makes our art such an adventure too, and challenge. And the process is giving us what we need: Serenity. Even if we are not quite satisfied with the outcome of this or that study, it makes us happy to do the next one, trying again.

I find the "watercolouringprocess" specially rewarding, it's so wonderful to look at the fusing colours and the happy little accidents which happen all the time:)

love
Andrea

Lynn Cohen said...

I love the face on the girl...you have captured her delicate nose and mouth beautifully. I love the colors too, and funny how the big hat came to be. Nice we take our "mistakes" and make them into wonderful art. You are always so good at what you do, practicing making you even better...wow...how good that will be!

Anonymous said...

i often come back to the watercolour technic but i find my colours not vibrant(?) enough.

Unknown said...

Lynn, thanks for the great comment and yes, our mistakes are great, they help us to step forward:)

Unknown said...

Choule, thanks so much for commenting here. You know, I have the impression that strong contrasts make the watercolours vibrant, which I find most difficult to do because the paper can be so quickly overloaded with fusing colours which makes that at the end we have only darkness:) Every day I practise this technique and feel as if I just began swinging my brush:)

Andrea and Kim said...

Andrea, I really love the sketch of the sleeping metrohead. It is funny to watch people sleep on a commuter train as they are so upright, but they want to be horizontal.

And the watercolor experiment is wonderful. The faces you paint are so peaceful and that was the first thing I was drawn to in this painting. I know the hat was a huge focus, but for me the hat drew the focus into the face. I love it!

As you can imagine, I am eager to see and hear about these wonderful watercolor experiments. For me, experimenting is the most fun of all.

Thanks Andrea for all of your generous sharing.

Anonymous said...

just a great look a like from
Franz Schubert...
amazing:-)

the girl with the fur cap is an absolutely beautiful watercolour, i like it very much...

Anonymous said...

What a wonderfully inspiring blog! You truly capture peoples moods and stances. I look forward to my next visit here. :)
amanda

Anonymous said...

Your watercolor girl is so vibrant and at the same time, her face is so serene. I love it. So this is where practice can lead me - thanks for the inspiration and the beautiful work.

Anonymous said...

The watercolor is wonderful! I've been trying to get up the nerve to try that.

Unknown said...

Kim, your comment is so interesting and funny too, I love the thought that people are upright but all they want is to be horizontal:):), that's how one feels when really tired, isn't it? I have never felt enought tire on the métro to sleep or to doze. I'm much too alert because of all the people around me, who also can be weird sometimes.

The girl's hat:) that was really something. I had planned a big shock of hair but then it got out of hand and I messed it up and, in a kind of trance, I put this colour on and then the only possibility was to give her this hat, LOL:)
love
Andrea

Unknown said...

klaproos: so very motivating, you comment! Thanks a lot and Schubert is someone I would have loved to meet for tea:)
love
Andrea

Unknown said...

Amanda, thanks very much for visiting and you encouraging comment, nice to meet you:)
love
Andrea

Unknown said...

differenceayearmakes: you know, it is so very satisfying just to let drop some watercolour pigments from your wet brush onto the very wet paper, let's say three colours, and then incline the paper and watch everything fuse...it's like Christmas:)

thanks so much for visiting and your nice comment,
love
Andrea

Unknown said...

belleenchanted, oh, practise always leads us to more practice:) and more obstacles and challenges, which is great because we are never bored, aren't we? Love
andrea

~Babs said...

Ah yes, the joy is in the process.
Your watercolor work is beautiful,,I find it to be very hard,,,but then, like you said,,,much practice is needed.(which I never do enough of)
I like the vibrancy achieved with acrylics or acrylic inks,,,,used as watercolors.
At least when I make mud with those, it's nice dark, vibrant mud!
:-)

Cris, Artist in Oregon said...

Oh these are great. I will have to come back to see them again. it is late here but wanted to come see them. the colors of the watercolor girl is awesome.

Unknown said...

Babs:) yes I know what you mean, that is why from time to time, when I really want to "stir" colour, I take my acrylics and create a mess:)

Unknown said...

Cris, thanks for your comment and I hope you slept well:)