Bright and cheerful colors and style
Our personal preferences change all the time when it comes to colors which surround us. That goes even beyond mood or life situation. I usually prefer the following: the worse I feel, the more brightness, sunny colors and uplifting experiences I require. We all know that sometimes there’s not enough energy for anything, but a good outfit, sun and warmth outdoors and cheerful settings indoors can be very soothing. I’m always implementing this approach also in my art. To lift my own mood, to help others.
Not only colors and style
There’s one group of people who will only notice colors, but not the compositional excellence, quality of paint application and brushstroke. Well, when viewing something online, colors can be deceiving. Any image editing aps and cameras aim for unnatural look so that more attention is drawn to contrast, brightness and saturation of any image. The most difficult thing is to make something look as it is. I am really trying, but not often successfully.
Filling all walls with art
Different cultures prefer different things on their walls. In Latvia which is my native country, people usually do not display photos, unless it’s something extra artistic and rather art than photography. At least that was when I resided there. We keep family photos in albums, on our devices and so forth. Therefore, more paintings are displayed. My home is my studio also, and paintings are everywhere, on walls, leaning against the walls, on shelves and so forth. One might think that it feels overwhelming, but, in fact, it absolutely doesn’t.
Enjoy the autumn in art
I am allowing art of different seasons and subjects fill any room. It feels great thanks to the good energy flow from my original art. Every painting has its history, process of creation and associated emotions attached to it. I know from experience that my visitors can view a painting for quite a while. This post has attached a few original watercolors which I started painting for art classes as a demo. In this case, these were private art classes. They all have brightness, uplifting colors and style.
Specific features of attached watercolor paintings
All attached images are of large watercolor paintings – 24 x 18” or 61 x 46 cm. I use Strathmore 400 series watercolor paper in art classes. It is heavy, firm, cold press paper with some texture and allows for easy paint lifting. That’s important for me since I do not use any masking fluid. I don’t use masking fluid even on cotton paper, that’s just to see how well I can master paint application. I paint large which I advise anybody who wants to ever properly use not only watercolor, but any paint.
My own preferences and students’ choices
Would I have chosen the same subjects, colors and style if I had done these paintings on my own? Probably not. For art classes, I have to take into account the ease of paint application and mixing properties of paints. Also, I have to go with student’s choice, especially if it is a private class. Still, I think these paintings are worth to display and potentially sell because they are worked out quite nicely. Just one more thing: many people believe that one cannot correct watercolor painting. That’s wrong. You can, you just need to know how to do that.
I hope you enjoyed the post and paintings!
Lovely.
Thanks very much!
Well, I always struggle with photos …
Thank you for the beautiful autumnal glimpses of your home/art studio, Inese. Nature is therapeutic, and I believe that therapeutic power translates into photos and paintings of natural scenes.
T absolutely agree that nature is extremely therapeutic. So is capturing it in paintings and drawings. Whenever I can, I do just that.
Thank you very much for your great comment!
Wonderful! Our nature is so colourful and you can capture it very well.
Ontario has a nice fall season, that’s usually. It can be sometimes disrupted by rain or storm, but we still can watch trees changing colors. It’s hard to resist the beauty all around and not capture it.
Thanks!
Your paintings are exquisite, Inese! You have captured autumn in it’s glory! I’d like to take a walk down that country path, indeed, your art brightens our moods!
Growing up, we had art on the walls and photographs in albums. However, I have a collage of photographs of my family in a frame. My oldest daughter enjoys painting and only has art on the walls and no photographs. It’s fascinating how different generations, cultures and countries have varied preferences when it comes to displaying art and photographs.
❤️carmen
Thank you very much!
It’s very easy to paint fall colors and landscapes because the natural contrast is already there.
I agree, every generation creates its own preferences.
Collage sounds great and it usually looks good, as well.
In the Latvian culture, at least in view of people who are now past 60 and close to 70, there existed many assumptions associated with the energy of home. For me, it comes to naturally when trying to display as many paintings as possible. People walk in, and they want to see my art. I regret my space is a bit too small since I could easily fill up much larger space.
Have a great weekend!