Ballroom dancing watercolor painting

I have further worked on the ballroom dancing watercolor painting last night.  As you can see, I have added a wash on the gentlemans dancing gown.  What I learned is that I should prepare a large watercolor wash instead of trying to mix more in the middle of painting it.  I did that in a flat wash which uses more color than other washes.  Because I need to keep the edges wet between washes, I have a hard time doing that and mixing more paint.  In other areas of the gown, I have use gradated wash so that the final result will show variation of the dark color instead of one flat pure grey black ballroom gown.

Ballroom dancing watercolor painting

I have continued with my ballroom dancing watercolor painting last night.  I found that as I paint everyday, I have easily make mistakes either on the watercolor wash, the choice of color, the wetness of the paper etc.  It is a continuous learning process and without risking making mistakes, I won't be able to learn.
Last night I have learnt that the pure watercolor from the tube can get 'dirty' by mixing with dirty water.  You also have to watch out for the unclean brush too.  Last night I loaded my brush with some water from my brush cleaning water, dip into Winsor Yellow and mix it in my palette before putting on the paper.  On the palette it looks nice and bright and I even try it on a piece of scrap watercolor paper before I apply it on my painting.  But after I finished painting a large area with that mixture, I found that it is really muddy compare with the ones I did the night before.  It was the water I use to mix the paint with.  The water is from the night before and it was the brush cleaning water I am using.  Now I know it is wise to keep two jars of water for my watercolor painting, one clean one for mixing and one for cleaning brushes with.
The lession I have learned from my mistake is the quickest way to get muddy watercolor and easiest way to waste brilliant watercolor pigment.  Those two would give you dull and opaque watercolor and should be something to avoid in our daily watercolor painting.  Love to hear from those who have similar experience.

Ballroom dancing painting and gradated wash

I have continue with my ballroom dance painting last night doing part of the dress in wet into wet wash.  I started with the area of the dress in the upper right corner using Windsor yellow and Windsor orange watercolor paint.  The dress on the body was done a day earlier with the same watercolor paint in wet into wet wash and before it is dry, household salt is used on the cold press watercolor service and has been removed completely when dry overnight.

After leaving it to dry overnight, I have done a small 2 1/2 x 3 1/2 inch gradated wash just for the exercise.  It was done with a brush loaded with a certain color with the paper put on vertical.  More clean water is being put on the brush together with paint and was applied at the bottom of each wash.
Looking at my ballroom dance painting again I feel I might have tackled too big an area at one time and loose control over some of the washes. Well, I guess you don't learn if you do not make mistake.

Pomegranate watercolor study

Pomegranate - 5 x 7 inch on cold press watercolor paper

 
This one is a watercolor painting I did on a pomegranate.  I did it on a 5 x 7 inch cold press watercolor paper.  It was not too difficult as to the use of color because it is basically red.  A quick study which I just want to do something in one night such that I get some practice on my watercolor painting.  I found that this doing daily little paintings helps to maintain my interest in art and especially in watercolor.  I will get back into my bigger ballroom dancing painting tomorrow and I think I should not leave that for a long time otherwise I will be afraid to start it again thinking that I might ruin it.

Red Chili Pepper

Red Chili Pepper - 2 1/2 x 3 1/2 inch on cold press watercolor paper

This is another red chili pepper study I did.  It is really lots of fun and I recommend anyone who likes to do watercolor try these ATC (artist trading card) size studies.  These are done using Winsor and Newton artist watercolor paint on cold press watercolor paper.  I will try to continue with my larger ballroom dance painting I started but I seems to have a block on continue with it.  Could it be that I have done so many of these 2 1/2 x 3 1/2 small studies that larger ones like the 15 x 20 inch ballroom painting is too intimtating?  Anyone got the same feeling before?  May be I should go on with an intermediate one of 8 x 10 before I go on bigger ones.  Anyone, I must get over it because I like to started painting ballroom art because that is one of my passion too.

Wet into Wet Wash

Last night I did some practice on my watercolor wash.  It is so important to know the different kind of wash and what it will do for you when you do a painting.  First one I did was the wet into wet wash where you wet and saturate your watercolor paper with clean water, then wait for it to dry to a certain point and paint on it with fully loaded juicy watercolor.  The effect is shown above.

Ballroom Dancing Watercolor - Pencil Outline

Ballroom Dancing  - 15 x 20.5 inch on watercolor paper 
(pencil outline)

I have attended a ballroom competition on the weekend and took more than one thousand photos of the very exciting event.  I have been thinking of doing some painting of ballroom dancers in the back of my mind for a long time.  I know I need to capture the elegant movement of the dance as well as the energy behind the dance.  One thing in my favor is that I am a ballroom dancer myself and hopefully I can transfer some of that passion and emotion into the ballroom painting.
I am doing this in a 15 x 20.5 inch watercolor painting on cold press watercolor paper.  I have choosen a this dancing couple in my weekend collection of photos for their brightness of the ladies dress.  The men are usually in their black suits contrasts to the glittering of the ladies costume.  Also I like to choose some are more representative and I like the the dances to show less of the face in the painting.  I have started my pencil outline drawing as shown here and will continue with it in the coming days.  My aim is to do a series of ballroom paintings if I can find enough good photograph for the exercise.