Autumn Walk on Benton Road

In this watercolor painting we are once again on a family walk. The composition and the hazy view of the landscape in the distance appealed to me. I also liked the play of the shadows across the road and the colorful foliage scattered about. The figures are enjoying the beauty of the day and each other's company. This painting was started and about 80% completed in a workshop where we were told to look at our photo reference and then put it away and paint from memory. I believe we did a quick pencil sketch prior to the memory painting but honestly I don't remember. It was an interesting exercise and I found it quite liberating since I was basically relying on my memory and my knowledge of landscape painting to guide me through it. Also, this was done on print making paper which has different qualities than the watercolor paper I am used to. I enjoyed this new paper and actually ended up ordering some to use in future paintings. I did refer to my photo for the finishing touches but learned a great deal from the exercise. It forced me to paint in a looser style because there was no photo to refer to for finer details.

Creekside Chat

It has been a while since I posted anything so I thought I would add a few paintings that I did last fall. This watercolor was done from a photo of my hubby and daughter taken while we were on a walk near our home. It was a lovely sunny day and the autumn colors and fall foliage were in all their glory. I loved the way the light cast shadows on the rocks and the white of the bridge is almost blinding in comparison to the darker rocks and stream bed. I also liked the sparkling water and the rocks under the water showing through. The brilliant sunlight reflecting almost white in the hair of the figures and on some of the clothing also made for delicious contrasts. I tried to capture all of that in my painting. The conversation between father and daughter adds additional interest to the piece. Are they discussing the scenery?