I'm throwing in a little watercolor review here, while I'm off in Maine... In the window of the pigment store there are banks of display cases full of colored pigments. I've been wanting to record them and then come home and try to match the colors with paint.
First to match the pigments on my palette, which by the way, is an old enamel kitchen tray found on Ebay. And then to match the colors swatches on a test sheet of paper. The next step is to make a painting.
My watercolor teacher, David Dewey, used to say, the painting is first of all, set up on your palette. Get your colors down there first. I used to take pictures of his palette mixings. Then put it down on the paper.
I'd love to select a few of these bottles and make a painting from just those colors...what's known as doing a "limited palette" painting.
Another Dewey trick - use dirty water to put the washes down on the paper. It's much easier to see where the water is on the white paper if there are bits of pigment in the wash. For most watercolor painters painting with clean water is like religion.
Here's a watercolor palette I'd love to have. A client of Wendy BrandesJewelrydesigned this for herself using a poison ring bezel. Claus Oldenburg of the Spoonbridge and Cherry sculpture, said he does most of his idea sketching at the dinner table. Wouldn't this palette ring be a tremendous help painting in Maine?
Bonjour ! I’m Carol Gillott, a former NYer living on Île Saint-Louis in a 21 meter chambre de bonne. As a Paris blogger, travel writer, watercolorist, and photographer, I share my latest escapades so you can walk around the city vicariously in my shoes. To experience even more of the Parisian life, sign up to receive my beautifully Illustrated monthly letters where I paint the Paris your dreams and mail them
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Describe what you love about France in 3 words. Can we make it 5 words? Eyes, ears, nose, tastebuds + brain. Paris stimulates all my senses constantly. I’m inspired all the time – endlessly surprised and amused. New York doesn’t do it for me anymore…