Frozen Trees

Here's yesterday's work, 7.5x5.5 watercolor with white wax crayon accents on Arches 140 lb cold press paper.  Using no reference and no pencil, I drew linear marks both horizontal and vertical on dry paper, then put in neutral washes of raw umber, Prussian blue, sepia, and carbazole violet.  Negative painting was the focus of riverbank tree trunks, branches, and limbs hanging over icy waters.
(c) Kay Smith 2014

No Stone Unturned

12.25 x 18.5 watercolor painted recently using a small slanted palette knife. Except for a brief light value manganese blue sky laid in with 1.5" flat brush, there are no pencil lines nor brushmarks in this rocky landscape. As my friends and fellow artists know, landscapes are not my strong suit! I did spritz with a water mister to make colors run and emphasized texure on Kilimanjaro 140 lb cold press paper. Total time was about 2 hours.

Changing Seasons

12x9 watercolor of imaginary trees, old and gnarled, awaiting a season of growth and sunshine. Negative painting is done in the background.