Painting in watercolors, for me, is both an artistic and cerebral exercise. I am able to exercise my vision of something I see or want to paint, mixed with an emotional feeling as I do it. Feelings are a part of my process as I react to the colors, the mixing, the looseness of creating a watercolor. Watercolor is a medium that can be surprising, both controllable and uncontrollable, with happy “accidents” along the way. In this way, it is an artistic endeavor by the artist to create and interpret their vision onto a two dimensional surface.
The cerebral part of painting for me, is the planning of a painting and how to get some of the effects and results desired. Watercolor technique requires the artist to decide before they put a brush on the paper, where the lightest highlights, or white areas will be. The lightest area on any watercolor is the actual paper the artist uses. The technique of watercolor is to go from light to dark, using the additive nature of colors to create and define the painting. It is like “negative” painting where you add deeper colors to define the lighter areas and shapes, eventually “carving” out your painting and subjects. It is almost the polar opposite of oil color that is usually built from dark to light, with white highlights being the last thing applied. Having done both mediums, it is a wonderful exercise for the brain to manage.
Doing oils is new to me, and a wonderful adventure. I just have to make sure I “switch” my brain each time.