Perhaps I need to explain???

Hi, When I chose the name of this blog, "Is this really watercolor", I was repeating what many of my customers and others say when looking at my paintings for the first time. The viewer thinks my paintings are oil or pastel or something--as everyone knows watercolor is a direct, "thinly" applied, rather sketchy way of painting. I do not paint in that way. I really like watercolors when they are painted quite realistically and with several coats of paints, which leads some viewers to make that initial remark.

I am struggling with a painting of a rocky island in British Columbia, on the Straits of Georgia. These islands have many eroded and differently shaped rocks. At first, I painted the rocks with too many colors, then spent the next day in dulling them down and making the colors more uniform without being boring. I think I may at last be on the right track.

My second major problem was in using Winsor Newton watercolor paper. I'm sure that many artists really love this paper. I find that I really miss the toughness of Arches paper which I usually use. I have put my toothbrush aside for removing mistakes, and went to a soft sponge instead in order to not rough up the paper a lot when removing color. I am used to being able to really SCRUB the Arches paper, and it takes that treatment very well. So I not only have to work with the colors and shapes of the eroded rocks, but I have to learn how to use a paper with different qualities. Well, it is at last coming along, takes me a while to learn how to use new things!! :o(

Dick (loving husband type) is studying the instruction booklet for our new camera. He will start photographing quite a few paintings to put on Imagekind.com This organizations prints and markets copies of your paintings. I am eager to see how well this works.

I have tried to post photos on my last two blogs with no success. It comes from not understanding our new camera very well. When I get this all figured out, I will then send you the photos I have promised. Allene