What media to pick. - Watercolors.
Being unsure what area of painting I wanted to try out I watched the TV art shows and read some magazines to decide what to do. I loved the look of oil paintings but it just seemed too formal and "stuffy". There was also the concern with those unknown "dangerous chemicals" that come with oil painting. I lived in a house with two birds and myself and I didn't want them (or me) to be exposed to this unknown variable.
I decided that water color or acrylic paints would be my choice as they don't require anything other then the paint and water to start with. As there wasn't many acrylic painting shows on TV but I did love watching Terry Madden so much I decided this would be the one for me.
I got a few books and watched as many shows as I could. They all stressed how watercolors are the most forgiving and easiest to get started with, I felt I made the right decision. I was wrong. I found them very unforgiving and so difficult to control. Imagine trying to juggle a pot of cooked rice without the pot. :(
I made one or two paintings I felt "ok" about but the others were just nightmares. Here are a few that I don't mind displaying:
The two parts of watercolor painting I didn't care for was if you want to have a white in your painting you leave the white of the paper exposed. Watercolor paints are transparent which can add to their famous "glow" as light hits the painting, goes through the paint, and gets reflected off the paper back through the paint. If you want a white highlight on a window just don't paint that spot.
The other is the wetting of the paper. One of the typical painting techniques with watercolors is to paint with the paper wet. Very wet. When someone has the ability to control this it can make some beautiful paintings but I found I just didn't care for this technique myself.
I stuck with watercolors for a month or two but it just never "clicked" for me. I decided that it wasn't for me, I was going to give acrylic painting a try. After all, that was so much closer to oil painting I was sure to love it.
I decided that water color or acrylic paints would be my choice as they don't require anything other then the paint and water to start with. As there wasn't many acrylic painting shows on TV but I did love watching Terry Madden so much I decided this would be the one for me.
I got a few books and watched as many shows as I could. They all stressed how watercolors are the most forgiving and easiest to get started with, I felt I made the right decision. I was wrong. I found them very unforgiving and so difficult to control. Imagine trying to juggle a pot of cooked rice without the pot. :(
I made one or two paintings I felt "ok" about but the others were just nightmares. Here are a few that I don't mind displaying:
The two parts of watercolor painting I didn't care for was if you want to have a white in your painting you leave the white of the paper exposed. Watercolor paints are transparent which can add to their famous "glow" as light hits the painting, goes through the paint, and gets reflected off the paper back through the paint. If you want a white highlight on a window just don't paint that spot.
The other is the wetting of the paper. One of the typical painting techniques with watercolors is to paint with the paper wet. Very wet. When someone has the ability to control this it can make some beautiful paintings but I found I just didn't care for this technique myself.
I stuck with watercolors for a month or two but it just never "clicked" for me. I decided that it wasn't for me, I was going to give acrylic painting a try. After all, that was so much closer to oil painting I was sure to love it.
posted by jhodyl at 8:37 PM
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