Taking a break from travel photos for a little while seems like a good idea. There are a lot from Savannah, and unfortunately the weather was such that I don't think many of them will be worth viewing. However, they will still make for some wonderful painting ideas.
Today I spent part of the afternoon "finishing" my latest painting. The word finished is in quotation marks because what I think is done and what Sharon, my teacher, thinks may and frequently is different.
There is another, and to my mind, more basic problem. Is it any good? You see, with this watercolor I have tried (and to some extent succeeded) to paint in a looser style. The subject, a sunset, allowed for that. Up until this painting, one quality of watercolor was elusive. I did not like the diluted colors I got while other artists paint with very vivid, striking color. How did they do that, I asked myself. The answer is easy - use the best paints (I do) and less water. The latter was the problem with which I struggled. In this current painting, I have come closer to using the paint with less water and therefore the sunset is vivid. I have yet to be able to avoid the "sealing of the paper" to which I have come close and maybe even, by now, tipped over into. Sharon will be sure to let me know tomorrow! Then I have to ask her to sit down with me and explain how to recognize that one is in danger of sealing the paper and how to avoid it!
The successful vividness of the sunset and the ocean on which it is reflected is the other issue. I used a photograph as usual, but my fear is that the painting is so colorful as to be unbelievable. Since there is no boat, no shore, human figures to give a clue, this may simply be an abstract painting to the viewer.
Does that matter? It depends on my intention for this work, doesn't it. Tomorrow, I will have Sharon's verdict, and I will let you know what that is while I also post a photo of the painting (unless Sharon tells me to burn it!).
I see that Sharon said no such thing (burn it)
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