PITCHER PLANTS - 2

 

Another version.  Wanted it to look somewhat like a fence behind it.

PITCHER PLANTS

 

From photos taken at a garden center during a recent walk.  Pitcher plants were in a large orange pot with black fence railings behind them, but I didn’t want to do it that way.  

I’ll try another version and see how it turns out.

PLAYING WITH COLOR AND SHAPE

 

A couple of small pieces on scraps of watercolor paper. 

Just playing with colors and shapes and seeing what happens.  

No rhyme or reason in mind when I start.  They still look pretty organic to me so that seems to be my thing.

A LITTLE VASE - JUST FIDDLING

 

Just a little vase using watercolor dabs and some oil pastels here and there.  

Trying to play to get myself back in the mood.

EVEN MORE UNSURE

 Since this wasn’t going to work out anyway, I took some inks and played with this painting.  I guess it’s just practice with the inks but now I’m not sure when or if I’ll use these inks - what made me buy them in the first place?  I should not purchase art supplies when I’m not feeling well - I make rash decisions about wanting things!! ha ha

But Laura wanted some line work on the trunks and this is what I came up with, spending the most time and effort on the central trunk.  

UNSURE

 

The ink is going to take some getting used to as the 2 dip pens I have tend to drop blobs of color down every so often so just trying to learn with the green and yellow ink on the leaves.  I don’t think marking the trunks will do anything but be a learning experience.  May just use the inks for sketching.

CURVES

 

From a photo taken in Florida of beautifully colored and shaped banyan (?) trees outside our rental that year.  I’ve cut it down into a square to get rid of unnecessary stuff at the bottom (leaf litter I could not create to look right) and the top (more green) so the focus is more on those few leaves and the tree color and shape.  I need to darken the tree trunks more to show the sunlight was behind them.

But I think I’ll get out my new inks and play with the leaves a bit and see what happens, just to experiment. I have 2 pens and some odds and ends of things (sticks, bamboo stick pen, etc.) to use with the inks and I’ll play with those.  

I’ve been in a rut with painting and drawing lately (haven’t even finished my weekly lesson in the Strathmore Artist Series online course).  But might be coming back and it seems playing with the new inks will help get me back in the mood.  

I did read on the boxes of inks and found they are not lightfast - so…maybe they are just for quick sketching or learning rather than for finished works?  

ART SUPPLIES

 

Sometimes you just need new art supplies.  Have never tried the inks, but I think they might add interesting elements to my paintings.  And have always wanted to try a Lamy fountain pen.  We’ll see.  Also, just a couple of well-loved colors and 2 new ones (small 5 ml) to try.  

WARM AND COOL IRIS FINISHED

Went ahead and finished it.  I think the variety of yellows and oranges give it a nice glow.  

Now I wish I had made the violet/purple blue - might do this again and change that color and be more delicate with the white lines.