AUTUMN ZOOM ART 2025

 $35 for the 3 sessions together

I  know some of you enjoy painting landscapes so I thought we could  explore a few as the seasons change from summer to autumn.  This is a  3-session class so we can take the time to paint our summer field of  yellow flowers, our fence with an autumn vine, and then move into a more  detailed autumn hawthorn leaf. I will paint using watercolor paints and  watercolor pencils, so you are welcome to choose your media.  The  addition of graphite pencils are a terrific option here, too, so I’ll  spend a little time showing that option.

SUMMER YELLOW FIELD (See swatch below)

WATERCOLOR  PAINTS: Aureolin, New Gamboge, Quinacridone Red, Quinacridone Pink,  Burnt Sienna, Sap, Phthalo Green, Cobalt and/or Winsor Blue Red Shade

WATERCOLOR  PENCILS: Light Yellow Glaze, Cadmium Yellow, Cadmium Orange, Light  Green, Permanent Green Olive, Dark Phthalo Green, Light Cobalt  Turquoise, Helio-blue Reddish

INK OPTION: a black micron pen, with the possible addition of FW (liquid) Artist Acrylic White Ink

AUTUMN VINE

WATERCOLOR  PAINTS: Aureolin, New Gamboge, Scarlet Lake or Scarlet Pyrrol,  Quinacridone Red, Light Red, Burnt Sienna, Sepia, Sap, Cobalt

WATERCOLOR  PENCILS: Light Yellow Glaze, Cadmium Yellow, Cadmium Orange, Dark  Cadmium Orange, Scarlet, Light Green, Earth Green Yellowish, Cold Gray  III, Inktense Dark Chocolate, Helio-blue Reddish, Light Cobalt  Turquoise, Raw Umber, Burnt Ochre, Fuchsia

PENCIL OPTION:  2H or 4H pencil, with the possible addition of HB or B or H

PROCEDURE when using MASK (either the card view or long view)

--Sketch loosely to locate foreground flowers, trees, and background flower groups.

--Mask foreground flowers, some background flower groups, and stems.

--Add  watery washes, with blue on the top into the center and yellow on the  bottom into the center.* After this dries, add additional green in the  tree area.

--Dry.  Repeat washes for more depth as many times as desired.

--Remove mask on dry surface.

--Ink outline of some of the flowers with a black or colored micron pen.

--Outline  the top and bottom of the tree line.  Add additional ink for tree  texture or detail if you want.  –In the Field area add depth, detail,  and interest with paint, micron ink, and/or white liquid ink.  

--Color the flowers using yellow, orange/red and possibly other colors of your choice. 

--I colored some of the centers using green, blue, brown, or dark orange.

*This can either be with wet watercolor paint or glazes of watercolor pencil.  

PROCEDURE without MASK

--Sketch more carefully than the masked demos.

--Begin  by coloring the background behind the foreground flowers.  There is  blue at the top into the center area and yellow on the bottom into the  center area.*

--Add additional layers of blue, yellow, and add green in the tree area until your color and value look good to you.

--Color the flowers using yellow, orange/red and possibly other colors of your choice.

--I colored some of the centers using green, blue, brown, or dark orange.

*The color can be using watercolor pencils, watercolor paints used with a dry, small brush, or permanent colored pencil.

In  class there were questions about how I was doing the background  sections “behind” the fence where I wanted to suggest leaves. Because  this is a difficult concept, I wanted to go over it a bit here.   In  these areas I first just used yellows and reds which I applied wet and  let the colors mix in the area.  Once these dried, I used negative  drawing (painting or drawing the area behind my leaf “shapes”) to  outline and suggest leaf shapes.  These areas “behind” the shapes are  painted or drawn with darker value, lower intensity color, or color  complements.  I took a photo of the section I tried to do this in class  today and I’ve included it in this email.  This is the beginning of the  negative painting.  I can continue doing this as much as I want until I  am happy with the results.  I hope this helps show my technique, since  it’s kind of confusing sometimes.  I hope you can look at my  step-by-step photos of the entire demonstration and see these areas  develop.

 VINE    

Stage#1 watercolor paint—Aureolin, leaving spots white of paper, adding touches of New Gamboge 

Or watercolor pencil Light Yellow Glaze, Cadmium  Yellow

Stage#2 watercolor paint—Scarlet Lake/Quinacridone Red, Sap 

Or  watercolor pencil—Scarlet/Pale Geranium Lake/Fuchsia, Light Green

Stage#3 watercolor paint—peak-through Cobalt+Light Red

Or Watercolor pencil -- Cold Gray  III + touch of Helio-blue 

Red detail and definition—2H with supplemental  color

FENCE 

Stage#1 watercolor paint--Cobalt+Light Red  

Or watercolor pencil—Cold Gray III, Helioblue Red    

Stage#2 2H adding Cobalt or possibly Quinacridone Red

Or watercolor -- Helioblue Red or possibly Fuchsia

BACKGROUND 

Upper Right   watercolor paint—Cobalt Or watercolor pencil—Helioblue Red, Light Cobalt Turquoise

Middle Right Stage#1 watercolor paint—Aureolin, leaving spots of white  paper, adding touches New Gamboge, Scarlet Lake/Quinacridone Red

Or watercolor pencil—Light Yellow Glaze, Cadmium Yellow, Scarlet

Stage#2 watercolor paint—Burnt Sienna, Sap, Cobalt  or watercolor  pencil—Burnt Ochre, Raw Umber, Helioblue Red, Fuchsia

Lower Right watercolor paint—Cobalt, touches Quinacridone Red, Burnt  Sienna, Sepia        

Watercolor pencil—Helioblue Red, Fuchsia, Dark  Chocolate, Burnt Ochre 

Upper  Left watercolor paint—Cobalt, Aureolin, Sap, Quinacridone         

Watercolor pencil—Helioblue Red, Scarlet, Fuchsia, Light Green

 Middle and Lower Left  watercolor paint—Cobalt, Quinacridone Red, Light Red, Burnt Sienna, touch Sepia

Or watercolor pencil -- Helioblue Red, Fuchsia, Cold Gray III, touches Dark Chocolate