Watercolor 101 | The Way I See It

Every painting I create is different. I work one way for a while, for months, 

maybe years and then one day things just shift a little or sometimes a lot. 

Quite honestly the change is not always a seamless transition. I don't know why. 

Sometimes it's the subject matter or the materials that dictate working a certain way.

Maybe I get bored and it is simply time for something new. 

All I know for sure is that it keeps things interesting and keeps me from becoming stagnant. 

The way I see it is that you have to be an explorer and follow the visual tangents. 

So many of you asked questions about how I work,
and I thought I would try to reply to some of them today. 
As you read my answers, there are always exceptions and 
while I may work one way today I could very 
easily approach things differently tomorrow.

***

Do you have a sketchbook? 

Yes, I keep a sketchbook, but I have to admit that I do not use it very often. 

I draw in it, paint in it, paste into it and save fragments of torn up paintings in it. 

Yes, I tear up a lot of paintings. All the time. You should see my shredder. It's very colorful.

Do you paint from life, photos or both? Where do you find inspiration?

Sometimes I paint from life, create a little still life from bits of nature that I have gathered. 

I take lots of pictures as you know, but I don't often work from them directly, they just inspire. 

I gather snippets of inspiration from everywhere. I love patterns and color, 

vintage field guides and herbariums. I visit museums. I love pop culture and fashion. 
I read a lot. Words tend to inspire images the most for me. 

All of these things get jumbled in my head and influence my paintings. 

I'm obsessed with pinterest right now and arrange all of my pins by color.

Do you sketch with pencil under your paintings?

No, not usually. Every once in a while. I usually just go for it. 

I let the washes take me in a direction. I sometimes don't know what the painting is going to be. 
Sometimes I know precisely what I want to do, but watercolor isn't an exact medium, 

so things hardly ever turn out as planned! Working spontaneously keeps things fresh 

and in the moment. That said, I will be drafting a bit more for surface pattern designs 

I am working on right now, so it depends on the project too.

Please tell us about your calligraphy. Does the typeface have a name?

I just love calligraphy, lettering and handwriting and like to incorporate it into my work, 

Old letters and ledgers with elegant penmanship make me swoon. 

My lettering is done with a dipping pen, black ink, and quill type pen nib. 

It's not a particular typeface, just my handwriting which is slightly exaggerated. 

It's not true calligraphy at all. I'm also left handed, so If I can do it, anyone can. 

Changing the angle and the pressure creates beautiful lines and 

makes any old handwriting quite pretty, I think.

I hope this watercolor series has been helpful.

Don't be afraid to take risks and make mistakes. Enjoy your adventures with watercolor!

Please post any questions you have below.