Day 15: Hill Country Improv

"Hill Country Improv", watercolor, 10" x 14"

I created this painting today as an example for a watercolor group I teach in Brentwood.  It's an imagined scene inspired by Northern California backcountry.  Here's a visual diary of my process:

Thumbnail sketches:  Designing the structure, playing with options

Here's the composition I chose, enlarged as a charcoal sketch.  I decided to crop it a little when I sketched it in pencil on my watercolor paper. 



First pass:  I started with an overall wet-in-wet wash, all light values and soft edges.  To get the look of grassy textures I spattered paint and clear water in the foreground areas.  As this stage started to dry I was able to add some middle-value elements with firmer edges and scrape in some branches.



Second pass:  While the paper was still slightly damp I layered in the darker tree shapes, looking for an interesting balance of positive and negative shapes.

Final pass:  After the first layer was completely dry I came in with my darkest accents and lifted out the lightest lights.  Lifting worked well with this palette of earth colors (Raw Sienna, Burnt Sienna and Ultramarine Blue.)