Watercolor Washout

This is Pickle.

He asked to host the blog today.

I met him in the shrubbery one day

conversing with Chunky Squirrel.

I would show you a picture of Chunky,

but he is a bit camera shy. 

I have been paint deep in my

 watercolors lately.  Something about

the lightness of Spring....

I came across some watercolors by
Rose Ann Hayes that inspired me to
try my hand at some floral arrangements.

Cheerful yellows and purples
in a simple glass jar.

I loved the shape of this teapot that I found
in a magazine.  Why not put flowers in that too?

See the red and green spots on the surface of
the teapot?  You get those by loading your 
brush with a lot of juicy water and paint.
Then you back up  and flick it onto the paper.

You can't predict where it will land.
Exercises like that add a small element of
danger to the process.  It's good for the 
perfectionist in me to experience a 
little serendipity!  Sometimes that ends
up as my favorite part of the picture.

I like to sit outside in the summer reading and

watching the birds feast at Shade's Snack Shack.

This little guy was inspired by another

Rose Ann Hayes painting.

I think this one is my favorite so far.
I love how aged the flower pot looks,
and the flowers look like butterflies. 

(For some reason there is great big gaps
between these pictures and it is driving me crazy!
As the British say..."Mind the gap".)

 
While I'm expounding on the virtues of
watercolors, check out this Raven by 
John Holdway.

 

 I took a class that he taught at
Oregon Art Supply.

 

 

 
The orange in the background is much
more vibrant than I captured.

 

He's got quite the personality and it only
took John a little over one hour to paint.
He sure seems like he needs a name.

John teaches regularly at Oregon Art Supply.
Check into his classes if you are wanting to
learn how to paint.

 

Before I go....May is ALS Awareness Month.
Please read my last post if you haven't seen it yet.
there is a way for you to support those with ALS
that will take less than a minute and not cost
you a cent.  Thank you faithful readers!

Have a great weekend.....