Gelateria, Portland Part 2

Posted by Vinita on August 4, 2010 in Free Lessons | 5 comments

Here is the second part of this month’s watercolor painting demonstration.

In this second video, I paint in the shadows on the buildings and in the area under the umbrella. This can be a tricky step if you’re not used to painting with large brushes and juicy paint.

When working on a watercolor painting, the shadows need to be laid in quickly without a lot of fuss. If you overwork and use too many brushstrokes, you will disturb the color underneath and end up with a muddy, dull look.

Mix up plenty of paint for your shadows. I usually try to use a slightly warm color for the shadows. Use a brush that holds a lot of liquid. And then glide the brush lightly over the paper.  It may take awhile to get the hang of this, but the end result is worth it!

As you move down toward the umbrella area, make sure you paint around the umbrellas and around the highlighted areas of the figures. I use a clean, slightly damp brush to soften the edges of the figures. I only need to maintain a small area of highlights.

If you study the final painting, you’ll notice how many lost edges are in the area below the umbrellas. Having plenty of lost edges lets the viewer interpret the painting.  You only need to give the viewer about 60% of the information. They will figure out the rest. The time that is spent interpreting is time that the viewer becomes engaged in your work.