Mastering Color – Simple Exercise To Help You Become a Better Painter Overnight
Are you an artist who struggles with color? Do you find yourself unable to achieve color harmony in your artwork? Well you are not alone. Did you know that over 70% of artists admit that color is one of their biggest obstacles? Chances are that you are amongst those 70% or you would not be reading this article right now.
If you take the time to work on the exercise below, you will have a new appreciation and understanding of color, and it won’t take years of practice either. You can become more knowledgeable about color after only one session.
What exactly am I talking about?
Artist Spotlite – Joe Cartwright
Artist Name: Joe Cartwright
Location: Sydney, Australia
Website: www.paintingwithwatercolors.com
Title of Artwork: Venice Sunset
Dimensions of Artwork: 22″ x 32″ unframed
Medium: Watercolor
Support: Paper
Describe this Piece: Venice Sunset – watercolour by Joe Cartwright. Venice is such a wonderful place with a painting around every corner! I spent two weeks there in May 2010 and loved every minute of it. I wanted to capture the beautiful sunset and people walking around enjoying the atmosphere.
Artist Spotlite – Michael Mackellow
Artist Name: Michael Mackellow
Location: Rojales, Costa Blanca, Spain
Title of Artwork: Tiger for Samtec
Dimensions of Artwork: A3
Medium: (Oils, Acrylics, Watercolor, etc.)
Support: (Canvas, Paper, Board, etc.)
Website: http://tyger888.blogspot.com/
Describe this Piece: One of four tigers in watercolor, painted for my friends at Samtec USA
Artist Spotlite – Christine Kane
Artist Name: Christine Kane
Location: Chicago, IL USA
Title of Artwork: Before Dusk in Deep Snow
Dimensions of Artwork : 16×20
Medium: Watercolor and Pastel
Website: http://letspaintnature.com
Describe this Piece: This picture was inspired by a hike at Maple Lake in Willow Springs, IL after a heavy snow. I stopped at this particular location to admire the the soft evening colors and deer tracks that lead into the deep forest. Suddendly, I heard crows “cawing” in the distance. I always wanted to remember that moment so it became eternal in my painting. Nature is the greatest teacher.
Artist Spotlite – Jonathan Kwegyir Aggrey
Name: Jonathan Kwegyir Aggrey
Title: The Heart of Katapor Village
Medium: Watercolor on Paper
Size: 19” x 27”
Location: Accra, Ghana.
Background:
The Heart of Katapor Village
“Katapor is a small traditional town in the central part of Pokuase in the Greater Accra Region where I live. The main occupation in the town is farming and stone cracking by hand. The opened space in the painting is the Heart of Katapor Village where traditional drums are beaten to summon the people to hear an announcement about a festival or any important village matters.
I captured this scene late one morning using a limited palette in a combination of earth colors and greens. I left the areas lit by the sun as white paper and emphasized on the shadows to show the time of the day. The figures and birds in the foreground shows the typical movement of the people and the type of domestic animals commonly found in the village. I infused several colors during the painting process to capture the mood and atmosphere.
I added graceful frontal branches with some leaves on the top left to help balanced with the foliages on the right side of the composition. The brushstrokes are very useful for balancing a painting or to fill up space that looks bare.”
Watercolor Techniques – Learn How To Paint with Watercolors
watercolor techniques.
I have also included several excellent videos that demonstration watercolor painting techniques below. Enjoy!
Basic Watercolor Techniques
Artist Spotlite – Joy McKenzie
Artist: Joy McKenzie
Location: Morwell Victoria Australia
Medium: Watercolor
Support: Arches W/C paper 140lb
Website: http://artbyjoymac.blogspot.com
Comments: This is one of my favourite paintings that I did a year ago
Artist Spotlite – Brenda Scott
Artist Name: Brenda Scott
Location: Victoria, BC CANADA
Title: Favorite Chair
Medium: Watercolor
Dimensions: 3 1/2 inches wide by 2 1/2 inches tall
Support: 140 lb cold press watercolor paper
Comments From the Artist: This painting was completed using a reference photo found on Wetcanvas.com as the subject matter however I changed the colors of the cat, curtains and chair. I really liked how the photo captured the serenity and peacefulness of a content cat relaxing in their favorite spot.
I painted a underpainting using a blue gray color to ensure that the values were what I wanted them to be. Once that underpainting had dried I added thin layers of colour on top. I also used a small amount of gaouche on the tips of the paws, nose and bell to brighten them.
Artist Spotlite – Susan Satterfield
Artist: Susan Satterfield
Location: Central Florida in travel trailer roving about the country…
Title: Peachy Iris
Medium: Watercolor
Dimensions: 7×10
Support: Fabriano Artistco Extra-White 140lb
Comments from the Artist: I have been painting with watercolors about 2 years. It never ceases to amaze me how much I learn from every work of art I do.
Artist Spotlite – Brittany Bellows
Artist: Brittany Bellows
Location: Orem, UT
Website: BrittanyBellows.Etsy.com
Title: “Counting Sheep”
Dimensions: 8×10
Medium: Watercolor
Support: Kilimanjaro 140# Cold Press
Comments From the Artist: This is a painting that really clicked for me. I did it from start to finish in about 2 hours, which is way under the time it usually takes me to complete a painting. Everything went exactly right while painting this, which is also something that almost never happens. Its paintings like this that helps to encourage me for future paintings, even when many of them don’t turn out quite the way I would want.
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