Day 29: Know Thy Materials
Well, materials are more important than we think. The more I paint the more I become what some might call “picky”, but really it is more like specific.
What I mean is in today’s painting the paper. I hate this paper!
I don’t want to sound like a royal party pooper, but for the way that I like to work this paper just does not work for me. It’s mushy, soft, the paint likes to soak deep into the fibers of the paper and so instead of a crisp clean edge of high contrast I get a fuzzy blur.
I think it is just a matter of knowing your materials and working in the best way for each tool. This paper is great for lots of thin and soft layers. The best part is that it is forgiving. I wasn’t looking for forgiving in this painting, I wanted direct, simple, fast and bold.
The Garden, Villa Farnesina
Watercolor on Paper
7.5 x 11″
I love this kind of place that you find anywhere and everywhere you go in Italy. The light cutting across the front of a building and a beautiful wooden arched doorway. There are some kinds of lighting situations that I am a sucker for and this is definitely one of them.
So I won’t say the name of the paper that I do not like- if you are an artist I am sure that through much practice of your own you will find the one that is right (and all wrong) for you.