I am a representative watercolour landscape artist, but I am painting exclusively in acrylic at the moment. Why so? Well, I want to paint big and a little more abstract, and when you get to larger sizes in watercolour, you begin to meet problems, especially when framing up.
I had painted a few small acrylics over the summer, these went well. Then, I started to ramp up the sizes. I went for 70x50cm. The subject chosen was a lake, and it was to be a minimalistic scene, with the only real detail being some marker buoys and a beacon.
I immediately began to appreciate the issues of painting big in acrylic. The one big advantage – quick drying – became a big challenge. I started with a grey sky, hoping to blend it nicely, but the paint was drying too fast, so I had to think again.
I bought some slow drying medium, this helped. However the main lesson was to work fast. I learned that it is good to carefully plan the process, choose the colours you need, get the place ready and then work furiously until the blending is done. I think it is a good idea to have a little more paint than you need because the time it takes to find/open the tubes is time better spent on the blending process itself. Leftover paint can be used to prime the next canvas!
To get the place ready, I laid an old throw on the floor, so that I didn’t have to worry about splashes, and I laid the canvas flat on the floor, on this. I used a couple of plastic food packaging trays to mix the paint. I used some of the slow drying medium and a large brush. The colours chosen were – white, cerulean blue, burnt umber, a little ultramarine and a small bit of crimson. I painted the sky and the lake together each a mirror of the other, with a patch of the sky blue reflecting in the water. Working quickly, it was much more strenuous that I had imagined.
Next I painted the distant shore, hills, and islands. I did this on a large easel. I found it is important to mix the colours in the tray, as it is not easy to mix them on the canvas (with watercolour – you can and should mix them on the paper). I used the same colours, darker, with a hint of blue for the distant hills and a hint of green for the near shore, and greener for the islands. Lastly I painted in the beacons and buoys, and the ripples on the water, this was more detailed, but considerably easier for me. I found the business of creating a smooth blend across the whole 70cm the most challenging part.
I was pleased that the painting was accepted for An Chead Tine Annual exhibition, running until the 8th November on the mezzanine in Dunnes Stores in Kieran St., Kilkenny. It is called Benjamin Rock.
I have since started an even bigger piece!
