2022 has seen a lot of small experiments. Mostly, I've been playing in my sketchbook, waiting for my next big inspiration. I've tried a few things from magazine articles I saved and notes I made to myself... like painting with coffee. In case you're wondering, espresso powder yields better results than either fresh or used grounds, and dark roast isn't significantly different than medium. My verdict: I love the smell, but can't get dark enough darks.
I tried some very delicate flowers, which I liked...
...and very dark darks. Here I followed an article about creating and applying a deep velvety black, reminiscent of old Dutch still life paintings. I also tried painting the black over other colors. The jury is still out on this, but I'm not sure if I'll be doing this anytime soon—only because it's not my typical style.
I tried some neglected supplies, like this Cretacolor ArtGraph Red pencil. It's water soluble with a reddish cast. But it never gets really dark, so it's not as useful for value studies as I'd hoped.
I wondered if watercolor pencils would be better. I tried quick gesture sketches, with water and without. I think I prefer them more for sketching than as part of a painting, especially since they can give me a decent range of values.
Other than that, I've been giving my new paintbrush a test drive with a 30-day challenge. More next week!
Love the expressiveness of all your sketches! The flowers are lovely in their delicacy. How did you achieve that black? Coffee is very similar to sepia. Ken could have used it in class yesterday when he forgot his paints!
ReplyDeleteThe black mixes prussian blue, alizarin crimson and purple until it's as dark as possible, then adjusting with earth colors like the umbers, siennas and quin gold to warm it to a true neutral. Then, the application involves keeping the edge wet and scumbling like mad to avoid any shiny marks of the gum arabic. You can find more info on Lauren McCracken's website. http://www.lauringallery.com/inprint.htm (then look for the article on painting black backgrounds in 2017.
DeleteExcept for some fine touches (nostrils, etc) I’ve not liked working with water soluble pencils. I’d rather use water soluble pens.
ReplyDeleteI think I liked the coffee paintings the best, though that girl in the last painting is giving definite Mona Lisa vibes.
ReplyDeleteThis is a stupid question. You actually brew the coffee right?
ReplyDeleteSort of. I soaked grounds to get a very thick paste. Same for the espresso powder. And everything worked better the second day when the mixture dried out a bit,
DeleteMy goodness Elaine, you are really cooking! And all the sketches have such life to them, they are amazing.
ReplyDelete