Author Archives: esanford

Mystery Technique #164

Curious about the techniques used here? You can learn more next month if you’ve signed up for email updates! 

ANSWER TO MYSTERY TECHNIQUE #163:

Peaches are my favorite summertime fruit, especially South Carolina ones! I used Daniel Smith watercolors for this demo and started with Hansa Yellow Medium.

After that layer dried, I painted the stem area with a very thin glaze of Rose of Ultramarine and Quinacridone Rose. Next I wet the rest of the peach and added more Quinacridone Rose, being careful to let the yellow underpainting show in a few spots.

I waited for this layer to dry and then rewet the area to add a hint of shadow and texture with a little more Rose of Ultramarine on a damp piece of sea sponge. Next I painted the leaf with Sap Green and scratched in the veins with the end of a metal paint tube. I used a mixture of Bloodstone Genuine and French Ultramarine with a hint of Quinacridone Rose for the cast shadow. The final step was to add the stem and a few darker touches with watercolor pencils.

July Watercolor Workshops!

My July 11 workshop is full, but there’s still room to join us on July 18 and 19 for Watercolor Weekend! We meet at Art & Soul. Spend 2 full days exploring the joys of watercolor within a supportive and encouraging circle. You can find all the details here: 

https://www.artandsoulnashville.com/service-page/watercolor-weekend-3

Celebrate the peaceful beauty of nature by learning how to paint Watercolor Sunsets! We meet from 1 – 5 pm on Sunday July 26 at the Little Art House in Sylvan Park. To sign up, visit:

https://www.hisawyer.com/little-art-house/schedules/activity-set/1912819

Enhance your paintings by adding ink! Watercolor & Ink meets on Wednesday July 29 from 10am – 2pm at Art & Soul, and you can find out more here:

https://www.artandsoulnashville.com/service-page/watercolor-ink

Mystery Technique #163

Curious about the techniques used here? You can learn more next month if you’ve signed up for email updates! 

ANSWER TO MYSTERY TECHNIQUE #162:

I started by getting the paper wet and painting the sky. While it was still damp, I used yellow to paint the first layer of the foliage. Next I painted the ground and distant trees. After these dried, I added another layer of trees. I waited for this to dry before painting the second foliage layer and starting the tree trunk.

When these were dry, I darkened the foliage in places and added more definition and detail to the tree trunk.

I used a stiff fan brush and darker green to suggest cast shadows under the tree. The final step was to add more detail with a 05 Micron pen. It’s fun to scribble in the foliage!