Pours, Pollock, & Painting (I need a maid now)

I am taking a break from painting class for the summer for a variety of reasons, mostly having to do with my current stress levels. As part of this bargain with myself, however, I have committed to paint every Tuesday or Wednesday night. I think it’s going to be Wednesday from now on so I can go to volunteer training at SEO.

I have a lot of works in progress, but I have been holding off doing anything further on “Follow the Leader” because I didn’t want to trash someone else’s house (you’ll see what I mean.)

To remind you all, “Follow the Leader” is a painting I started a few weeks ago inspired by tundra swans I saw on my March Sauvie Island trip.

"Follow the Leader" - Masking fluid onlyStep 1: Composition and Masking

A few weeks ago I had drawn out my painting and masked off the white swans.

step1Step 2: Paint

I put a good size blob of paint in small containers. I decided to use Ultramarine Blue (my favorite), a combo of Gambouge and Azo Orange, and Pyrethol Red.

 

 

 

 

 

step2
Step 3: Add water

I mixed water into the paints until they were about the consistency of skim milk (thick for watercolors.)

 

 

 

 

 

spatters2Step 4: Pour

This step had a name that is a little misleading. I started by sucking up my mixture into a big syringe (not a needle) and squirting it onto the paper that I had propped up against the wall. Then I splash with brushes, moved paint around with brushes and my fingers, and generally had a grand old time. Unfortunately, it’s hard to get photos of this step, but here’s the end result.

 

 

 

step4Step 5: Let dry

Watercolors created this way will dry lighter than they start. Because I used flash, the difference between step 4 and 5 is not too obvious, but hopefully you’ll get the idea of the “finished” product.

paintsplattersStep 6: Clean

Really, this was step 5. While I was waiting for the painting to dry, I cleaned… well, everything. The floor, the door, the wall, If it was within three feet, I had to wipe it off.

twilightAfter all this, I had a lot of paint left over, so I quickly drew, masked, and started another painting. I had another title for this, but I’m liking the way the colors look that I’m thinking about the title “Twilight Flight”. It’s loosely based on some reference photos of snow geese I took on the same Sauvie Island visit.

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