Watercolor & Gouache

Today felt like a good day to get the watercolors out. The last time I started a new medium, my watercolors improved. I think it has something to do with seeing the paint in a different light. Before using pastels I only had watercolor to paint with so there was nothing to compare it to. After I started using pastels the watercolors started to become more understandable. I had another point to compare the medium and started to favor watercolor in man made objects and close ups. The pastels seemed to be better suited for natural landscapes. As I've developed my pastels toward a certain style the watercolors started to change as well. Now that I have oil as another reference the watercolors are starting to seem better defined in my mind. Working with oil there is no need to hurry or fuss over detail. It helped me relax and slow down when using the brush. While there is a certain speed required for the watercolors, I'm thinking I was over rushing things. The gradation change in the front trees would have gotten me worked up before but this time seemed different. I took my time and then used a heavier brush to push the pigment around even though it was slightly drier than typical. With it being drier it didn't push too much pigment like is typical and make the area almost bare. There is a lot of difference between oil and watercolor but my understanding of the pigments is starting to make sense. Also like last time I got out the gouache. There were areas that I thought needed lightened up and the gouache is very good for that. Mixing the gouache and the watercolor is still strange. It doesn't quite work out as well as I would think, but it is slightly better than last time. Just like pastel and oil, gouache is also another point of reference in the great scheme of painting. The plan is to learn all there characteristics and strengths. With time I think my paintings in the different mediums will start to mimic and become more like one another. Only practice and time will tell.

Lesson learned from making mistakes

The past two days have been busy here. Yesterday nothing was posted so I wanted to get something quickly done this afternoon. Quickness in watercolor is a must during certain steps but not for my entire process. It leads to many disappointments and lots of frustration. Thankfully today's trials lead me to a new discovery about my thought processes.

This painting was derived from a thumbnail I did of photos from Mt. Baldy looking toward Lake Michigan. Like the recent dunes studies I was trying to get a good map for a larger painting. The first step of this painting was getting all the shapes in there mid tones and leaving the large middle tree white because it stuck out in front of the rest. It was what drew me to do the sketch. The next step was putting in the fencing and darks among the trees. I messed up and got everything too wet which caused runs. Then to make matters worse I tried to soften the hard edges as they dried only to smear and lighten the entire mass. I took a step back and let it dry for a bit, then got to the dark tree trunks and branches. The trunks and branches didn't turn out that great. When that was done I didn't know what to do with the white trunk that I had painted over. I remembered that I had gouache so I got it out and put it on the palette. Gouache is opaque like oil and that got me interested and decided to go for it. What has kept me from using things like gouache in the past has been people telling me that some how it is inferior. It is in the same tune that I've always heard that you shouldn't add black or white to your watercolors or any other supposed rule.
Lately I've been using new methods and refining others. Sometimes it is easy to forget that what other people tell you in a field like art is nothing more than a personal preference. If you are trying to mimic or achieve similar results as someone else then you should listen as closely as possible, seeing as how there are guiding principles in art. But as far as I can tell there are no set rules. I constantly search for new artist online, in books, magazines, galleries, shows, and museums and it always amazes me how many possible styles and ways there are to do things. The amount of styles would equal the amount of artist if everyone took the time to explore and develop there own path.
Anyway I used gouche to take back the middle tree trunk and while it wasn't outstandingly successful it did give me the courage to use it in the sky and dunes which I liked. I also learned that by mixing the gouache with a watercolor you can tint it and get it closer to what you want. Now instead of looking down at gouache or any other medium for that matter, I see it as another way at getting the results you want. Will I always use gouache in my watercolors? Probably not, but it does open up new possibilities if I want the luminosity of watercolor and the opaque qualities that it can bring to the painting.