This week i wanted something more summery : snapdragons.
I’m not interested here in the shape of the flower itself, but more in the general shape of the plant. Even if it’s a really interesting and one-of-a-kind flower, i prefer to work the general shape, the long stems of flowers raised towards the sky. I want an heavy area at the bottom of my page but the more we get to the top the more aerial it become until it blends completly with the sky.
Of course painting white flower in watercolor is quite particular ! No white in my palette so i have to… not paint them ! Here i’ve chosen to work with some negative painting. That’s to say painting colors around the shapes of the flowers and be very careful to not put color into them. But it’s also possible to paint the same subject with a masking technique : masking fluid, gouache, wax pencil… Negative painting felt for me to be the better choice with this subject as i wanted something very fresh and spontaneous. It allows me also to get more subtle shapes and layers.
Painting snapdragons in watercolor
Supplies :
Brush : Escoda Último nº18.
Paper : Arches rough.
Colors : Ultramarine blue (Sennelier), Amazonite genuine (Daniel Smith), Nickel azo yellow (Daniel Smith), Aussie red gold (Daniel Smith), Burnt sienna (Daniel Smith), Acrylic ink Sepia (Golden), Granulating medium (Winsor & Newton).
And here you have the finished painting (click to enlarge) :
