As many of you know, one of my I Ho Chuan goals this year is to fill my 36 page watercolour sketchbook. What you don't know is why. The why is Fear. I want to overcome my fear. OK and get better at art.
What am I afraid of?
blank paper - ruining expensive paper
wasting expensive paint
not knowing enough
not being good enough
people will see my mistakes
risking people's negative responses to my work
One of the things that's taken me so long to learn is that sketchbooks aren't for finished work. They aren't for show pieces, no matter how good some people's sketchbooks look. They are a place for an artist to learn! They are the place to make mistakes. They are a good place for bad drawings, because that's where we learn. Kind of like our Kwoon - a safe place to make mistakes and learn.
So, what I'm risking here is, I'm going to show you my sketchbook drawings and paintings even if they are terrible. This is something I never do, because it scares me. I'm also going to share what I learned from the drawing (it might help with the fear).
What I like:
I did it! - One small step forward.
Posing - I'm usually pretty good at copying photographs but never posing my own subjects. This is my first attempt at posing my own subjects. Yes there are similar photos out there, but I actually spent time figuring out hip and leg placement as well as shoulder-blades and front legs. There are things I would change but, again, I did it!
Limited palette - I've limited myself to a small palette of only 12 colours. This forces me to mix colours and pay more attention to colour theory. I've gone with a warm and a cool version of each of my primary colours, along with a couple of earth tones, and finally some white gouache (gouache is an opaque watercolour).
What I don't like:
The paper - turns out Moleskin watercolour sketchbook paper is very thin. It buckles so easily, which causes the paint to pool in ways you might not want.
Paint control - lack of it. Transparent watercolour is a new medium for me. I miss digital, not having to wait for paint and ink to dry, and my "undo" button!
Lighting - one of my goals is to get better at more interesting lighting. This little painting was such a struggle I finally gave up on trying to do anything more than simple shadow, and even that wasn't very good.
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