Personal Art Blog

Sharing the lessons I teach at the Artist Guild and the personal discoveries in my art.

Thursday, December 4, 2014

Callas and Roses - Correction Made



Roses and Callas
12x9 watercolor on Yupo paper

Artist Note.
It was good to read all the positive 
comments on my last post
and I thank you for them.
I agree and do believe that there 
may have been more 
energy it that version, but once I saw 
something 
I did not like, I had to make the change.
Culprits... the two
facing callas, left and right,
I thought of "horns" when I finally "saw" them
(see below)
To make the change I became cautious.
I painted some paper I matched with 
the general background
 color and hovered over the two shapes
to decide which one I would change.
The dominant right one had to go
.

Hats off to clever Sea Dean who 
spotted my  problem with the first
version. Sea put it this way
" PS I bet it's the clone Callas left and right,
 but sometimes these aberrations are what gives
 the painting it's quirkiness and prevent the
chocolate box effect. 
That's where artistic license comes in.

Excellent -  Now I have to figure out
if they are  too chocolate boxy 
Any thoughts anyone?

Check out Sea Dean on DPW




22 comments:

  1. That's really interesting to hear how your thoughts transpired on this piece, Julie! I like it both ways! It's so intricate with each flower boasting its own personality... yet they all work together as one, in perfect harmony. It's a symphony of flowers!

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    Replies
    1. Hi Katherine. Your post on taking the extra hour is great...I should have listened. It could have prevented the extra work on this one!
      Thanks for the beautiful comment - I do appreciate it.

      Delete
  2. I see now, wow, it did look like horns but still beautiful. This does work better and no chocolate boxes here Julie!
    Thanks for the tips!

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    Replies
    1. Good to hear from you, Celia. I just visited your blog and saw your wonderful watercolor sketches.
      Thanks for visiting.

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  3. Julie, I love everything about this painting! Yupo is a very challenging surface to work with and keep any semblance of control, and you did an amazing job here. Thank you for sharing your setbacks with us and for reminding us all that the creative process is not always a smooth, one way street to success. But succeed you have-- I could gaze at those roses all day long!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Ann.
      Congrats on the new gallery. You deserve to be up there with top artists.

      Delete
  4. So nice catching up with your blog. Love your new pansy pictures. Glad you reposted the picture and lesson about painting the focal point first and then abstracting from there. Wonderful lesson.
    I like the latest version of the lilies the best. Best to you and thanks for your kind comments on my work. Appreciate you taking some of your valuable time to encourage!

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    Replies
    1. Good to hear from you Carol and am so pleased you enjoyed the pansy posts as well as this one.
      I enjoyed your post with the swimmer and the dog. A pleasure to visit and I agree -thank for visiting me with words of encouragement. too.

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  5. Every time I see your work on Yupo I am inspired to try some. haven't painted on it for more than a year and maybe gave up too soon. I like your arrangement and would not have noticed the horns most probably but that is the advantage of this surface as your modification is seamless

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hope you try it.
      The modification could not have been as easy on a large area.
      I do like the Yupo enough to keep working in learning it. It has been as hard to learn as oil painting was. It definitely takes time so give it another try. I think your creativity would suit it.
      I enjoyed seeing your Geisha painting and will look forward to following the challenge you are starting.

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  6. Julie,
    I enjoy your postings especially the ones with explanations of revisions you make.
    When you paint on yupo, do you do any drawing to lay out your painting? If so what do you use. I found pencil is not a good choice. I have been using watercolor pencils.
    Diane

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    Replies
    1. Hi Diane - when I first started using Yupo I would use a watercolor pencil to sketch out placements.
      Lately I have been drawing with a thin brush, using the local color of each area to start with. On this one I did a pale pink for roses and light green for the callas and a slightly darker green for the leaves. It is so easy to wash off with a damp q-tip if it looks wrong. Hope this is helpful.

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  7. This is gorgeous and all the more impressive because you did it on yupo! Bravo!

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  8. I love the way you share a heart to heart talk! Beautiful as always!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks, Padmaja.
      Your sunset painting glows with the beauty of its happening, but your words also reached me.

      Delete
  9. Dear Julie - both were so lovely. The nice thing about painting on Yupo paper it is so much easier to redo. Just beautiful my friend.

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    Replies
    1. I agree it is easy to lift off the offending area, but you have to have a boundary to replace it seamlessly or it can turn into a disaster requiring ever-growing patience. It should get easier the more I do it.
      Your squirrel is adorable and the flowers have a beautiful watery feel to them. Lovely..

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  10. This is one of your best paintings. There's solid drawing in this and superior technique. Love it!

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    Replies
    1. Hmmmmn...superior technique....I thank you for the complement, BUT, not sure about that. I always think a solid knowledge of the tools and what they do leads to an effortless appearance which gives the professional touch to an artists output.
      I am still struggling with Yupo. Unlike oils, where I find a small painting is much harder to do well than a larger one, I think small on Yupo is easier than large. A vignette is always easier, too.
      Thanks for the visit and let me say I am enjoying visiting the Caribbean through the magic of your watercolor sketches.

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  11. I love it and am just catching up on the 'chocolate box' comment. She had a good point and you resolved it perfectly. Now I am seeing more of one flower leading through to the next ,instead of looking at edges....funny how the eye works!

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  12. I truly find this piece stunning. I agree that it is better in the second incarnation, though I didn't really notice the problem originally. That vase; its colors and brush strokes...So redolent of Van Gogh...!

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I love that you are taking the time to comment and thank you for it. I am sure other readers will enjoy them too. If you cannot comment through this format then email me at juliefordoliver@gmail.com
Cheers,
Julie