Watercolor is a very poetic medium. That’s not only because of its flow and easy transition of colors, it is also because nothing else captures our mood, idea, concept or scene as impressive and as fast as watercolor does. Managing classic watercolor painting takes mastery. We can apply it very abstractly allowing water and pigment to create the initial shapes and values, or we can use watercolor in many layers making it opaque and creating strong dimension and volume.
World watercolor month
World watercolor month is getting close to its end. I usually do not devote or create specific paintings during July, but keep using it as I normally would since it is one of my preferred mediums. I like applying watercolor in many different ways: from very abstract to very detailed and from almost animated to very realistic. Our painting style is usually a summary of our personal objectives and intentions. Generally, I do not aim for a very lifelike look, but rather impression my artwork makes. I participate in shows and exhibitions and I want my art to be visible and standing out among hundreds of other paintings. It quite often does thanks to style, colors and large size.
Good energy
Please enjoy the gallery, and you might like to purchase some art or art print which comes in numerous options for frames, mats and printing surfaces. Print is not original, but in specific spaces it definitely serves the purpose: it gives a space complete look and never stops inspiring and being beautiful. There is never too much beauty in our surroundings. Good art is valuable because of energy it sends out. Energy presence is almost touchable in my art.
African violet, watercolor, 20 x 14 in or 51 x 36 cm
I used to have numerous African violet plants. A few survived, and these are the ones I have been painting.
Garden roses on fence were painted in winter of 2019.
Probably the saddest time ever. since my mom passed away in February. All paintings of this time are so uplifting, light and cheerful. For balance.
Purple pansies, 20 x 14 in or 51 x 36 cm
Pansies belong to my favorite painting models. Purple fits them well because of all variations. Purple pansies are somewhat abstracted and painted using watercolor wash and a few strong edges.
The summer still life paintings have been in creation for a long time. I started them probably in 2016, but they got their finishing touches only now. They both have very vibrant colors, just as summer vegetables do, and everything which has great shape worth capturing, suits my still life well. Enjoy!
Summer still life, 20.5 x 16 in or 52 x 41 cm and Kitchen still life, 18 x 24 in or 46 x 61 cm, both watercolor
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This post has many pictures, make sure to check them out. I decided to devote a special article to my still life paintings since it has been an important genre for me for many decades.. In languages which I speak fluently (native Latvian, German, English and Russian), still life is called as follows:
Still life: English
Stilleben: German
Hатюрморт: Russian
Klusā daba: Latvian
Nature morte: French
Naturaleza muerta: Spanish
Natura morta: Italian
Wikipedia gives a brief historic overview of still life as a genre, and I don’t think I need to repeat it.
Etymology and direct meaning
Translating literally, still life means dead nature in French, Italian and Spanish and Italian and Spanish have presumably borrowed it from French. The direct meaning of English still life is “life which is not moving and making no sound”; not moving and silent life – in German. Russian uses a loanword from French; hence French was spoken in all higher educated circles in Russia for quite a while until the Socialist revolution in 1918. Still life in Latvian means “silent nature” referring to rather making no sound than not moving. I find this very amazing. I do stick in my still life paintings with “nature that isn’t moving, but is visibly alive”.
My still life
As a native Latvian, I have formed my understanding of still life based on classic Latvian art. I especially adored Latvian art which was created between 18th and 19th century and around the beginning of 20th century. Latvians used to go to France and Italy to study art, therefore, the influence is undeniable. The part I never liked and to which I developed internal opposition was the use of mainly cold raw umber and rather muddy earth and dirty blue color in still life art between the WWII and 60-s of the previous century. However, they worked well in combination with grey color since grey has many thousands of shades. When I was younger, I couldn’t stand such color combinations.
The beginning of my personal style
I initially was somewhat really naturalistic. I could sit for hours in the garden or in my room and draw leaves, plants and flowers between age 10 and 16. I drew also people and faces of my sister and other relatives, but for still life, I didn’t have to ask anybody to sit and stay there for a few hours. Back in 60s and 70s of 20th century while Latvia was still in the Soviet Union, I could mostly use what I got from our garden. Vegetables and fruit lasted longer than flowers, so, I developed a special love to them. I used just pencil and watercolor on a bad quality paper. I didn’t have lots of art supplies, often not even eraser. That taught me drawing so that I wouldn’t need eraser. I didn’t have obviously camera and printer, and nobody knew anything about the internet yet.
The subjectof still life
I have most often certain requirements when setting up a still life. I use something man-made, such as bowl, cup, jar or mug, box, books or similar items. I implement some flower or leaves, or the entire plant whenever I have it, and that establishes the living part of my still life. I also love adding either fruit or vegetables since they are always available. I sometimes cleaned out the fridge, and my husband used to joke that we didn’t eat for the entire month while I painted my still life. Big is definitely more impactful, and I go with full sheet watercolor paper (22 x 30 inches or 56 x 76 cm) when I have a good quality paper. The same about acrylic painting of still life. The small size is about 16 x 20 inches or 41 x 51 cm with just a very few exceptions that are even smaller. Painting big size art is much easier for me and I always prefer that assuming I have enough time and appropriate art supplies.
A very attractive genre
Over years, I have painted numerous still life paintings. Many have been sold as prints. I cannot include all still life paintings, but just a few in one post. These paintings are recently finalized, but started even 10 years ago. The “Spring tulips and cup” painting was done like that. Pictures I was taking years ago, do not look that good any longer, but I cannot get better ones from framed art which is under glass. For these paintings, I had only my sketch or drawing for reference.
I could finish this painting because I had created a value drawing in the same size what painting is: 20 x 24 inches or 51 x 61 cm, therefore, I had reference
Still life with blue, 25.5 x 20 in or 64 x 51 cm
It is usually difficult to get true pictures of paintings and how the viewer sees my paintings, depends on their device. I certainly tried. I have 4 monitors at 2 computers, and every image looks very different on each one of them. These paintings are available as art prints also. Thanks for reading!
More about my still life art, click on image for article:
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When else to use live flowers as a model if not in summer when everything is in full bloom and getting more beautiful by hour? Although, we’ve been hit by a heat wave, there’s plenty to paint outdoors and indoors. I won’t write a long text this time because pictures will display the painting steps I use and also probably inspire somebody to get a brush, pencil and watercolor paper. There you have it: I’m presenting pink and purple summer flowers with painting steps.
Petunias
Petunias are usually in every garden. The pink and purple petunia painting is more abstract. I do usually create a drawing on a separate paper for reference and not to damage the watercolor paper with erasing anything. I transfer my drawing onto watercolor paper using daylight on a glass door and how it perfectly shines through even thick watercolor paper.
Watercolor paper
Watercolor paper is one of the most important aspects of watercolor painting. I started Bright petunias believing that I was using Arches watercolor paper. After a while, I realized it didn’t work like Arches. If you have painting experience, you know that Arches facilitates beautiful washes and easy flow of paint. It is possible to lift paint also. I discovered that this sheet came from leftover Saunders-Waterford paper. Some 10 years ago, it used to be a good paper, but it gradually became worse and worse, and the last batch they sent me was so bad, that I will simply never buy any Saunders-Waterford paper again.
Washes with big brushes
I always start with basic washes which I am applying to wet paper. Any cotton paper needs to be wet in areas which you intend to work on, except for fine details which we add at the end. Then I gradually build the shadows and shapes using multiple layers of paint. My pictures show how unsuitable the paper actually is. The only plus is it doesn’t buckle; therefore, I don’t have to tape it down as with cheap watercolor papers.
Paints and brush
I always use round brush with fine tip, size 14. I always use large brushes as long as possible for they hold a lot of water and pigment, yet allow getting extra fine edges and lines, too. I switch to number 6 round brush with fine tip only at the end when I need some tiny elements painted. I always use St. Petersburg original and authentic watercolor paints. I’ve never had better paints so far and I have tried very many. I’d give the second place Da Vinci paints, but they don’t sell them any longer at my art store. St. Petersburg paints have all the best qualities of watercolor paint thanks to the manufacturing process and raw materials.
Bright petunias
The result could be smoother, but for an abstracted painting, it works. I use colors intuitively and carelessly actually and lots of water. For color testing, I am making use of extra sheet of cheaper watercolor paper because it shows the exact color I will have.
Morning pansy
For Morning pansy, I followed exactly the same steps. I’m creating drawing, transferring drawing to paper, making paper wet around the central flowers, starting with applying paint around the main part and allowing it to dry before I move on and start putting paint on flower. Then, I create leaves. The entire painting requires going over and over some parts. At the end I’m adding water drops. In the base of every single painting are the same principles: want impact, create values. Color to me is always secondary and I use that color which I prefer at the moment.
Result
While I didn’t try to paint reality since I never do, colors and shapes work extremely well in this painting.
Inspiration
I think that could inspire you to paint your own summer flowers, but I will sell later drawing templates on this website. My art is always based on drawings and I like it that way. Such art reveals progress and refinement of my personal style. I’ve done abstract watercolors, too, but they seem to be way too simple and never a real challenge. I love tricky things and exploration of effects and somewhat realistic art allows me doing that.
Note: Please, respect my copyrights, and since these particular painting steps are not intended for copying, use your own drawing, but apply process and advice.
Art prints, all my paintings which I have uploaded to Fine Art America:
Sunny still life is a painting which I started on January 1, 2013. I got busy, and this canvas was collecting dust (literally, it was hard to get rid of it) until now. The other day, I was going through different pictures and thought: why not to finish up this still life? “Sunny still life” was intended to be painted in pastel. I had painted two smaller pastels on canvas from the same set-up in my studio, and everybody liked them and later bought. I used watercolor for the base layer. However, this isn’t a watercolor paper. It is watercolor canvas.
What is watercolor canvas?
Watercolor canvas is supposed to be a surface which accepts watercolor paint. In reality, it doesn’t. Paint comes off extremely easily, and it doesn’t stay on. I can lift paint, but to get more of it on, is not going to happen using regular technique. I bought this watercolor canvas exactly 8 years ago. My hope was I could use it for watercolor and then hang without a frame. Frames are always a problem, and they become an issue when one has very many paintings.
Getting realistic image on watercolor canvas
Watercolor canvas is very difficult with somewhat realistic image since we get only one attempt in covering an area. I think it would work when pouring on very thick watercolor paint, but there is nothing much of a thin layer. I still decided to complete this painting. The truth is, I feel obligated to finish all paintings I have started. I don’t know if they still sell watercolor canvas, but this was the only one I ever bought. Thick watercolor paper is so much better for realistic paintings, but it needs a frame, unfortunately.
Excellent quality paints
After lots of attempts cheating paint onto canvas, I got somewhat saturated colors. This painting is 24 x 20 inches or 61 x 51 cm. I always paint around edges, just like with any painting on canvas. I could accomplish this because I use pigment-rich watercolor paints. I use St. Petersburg watercolor paints, and I’m absolutely happy with them. Over years, I have tried most brands, and I must admit, nothing on the market compares to St. Petersburg paints.
I think the mood is really sunny, and therefore, the title of this painting is also “Sunny still life”. This is how the painting process and experiments started: Experimenting with surface and medium
Other than that, I am preparing materials for online art classes and my watercolor painting book. It is a very lengthy and time-consuming process. At least for me. I am a bit slow because there is so much to do in the garden.
This year will be marked by COVID-19 pandemic forever. This time is a very specific one, and so are our experiences. One can spend more hours on simply reminiscing about the moments which were captured on photos last year, the year before that and many years ago. This time also shows us how wrong we were about many things and how little we appreciated the freedom to move around and to go places whenever we felt like.
Art creation requires to be alone
However, for someone like me, there is no much change. I am not excited about Ontario winter which extends into spring, and in April as this year again. We had snowflakes dancing around daffodil buds for a few days now. Regretfully, it has been cold, and spring didn’t keep its promise about plenty of sunshine which it arrived with.
Missing and hoping
So, I was scrolling through pictures from previous years not only because I didn’t have anything better to do, but also because I needed to reinstall everything onto another computer after the old one crashed. The pictures from earlier years cause wide range of emotions. I am so proud of having painted numerous outstanding quality paintings, I miss the live art classes, I want to be in the blossoming spring backyard sooner. I start feeling older and I look at my own life as a train running away. I actually stopped making big plans many years ago after the accident in 1992. It would be interesting to know what my life would have turned out without going through that awful time. However, due to aftereffects of that accident I came to Canada.
Museum quality art
The attached images are of large watercolor paintings which I painted between 2008 and 2011. I honestly regret I cannot show you the actual paintings in their actual size. The image size is 23 x 30 inches or 58 x 76 cm. I am excited myself to explore the flow of lines, the perfection of detail, the soft and unexpected transitions of color which photos unfortunately cannot capture. Most of these paintings are put away and preserved in large folders. The ones in frames are under glass and neither pictures, nor videos would show them without a glare.
Mastering the medium
All of these paintings realistically show mastery in paint application and composition. I usually spend at least a few weeks to a few months on just one painting. They have been accepted in juried shows and exhibited in all kinds of galleries. After I broke the large museum grade glass on one painting, I stopped taking them out. These paintings are excellent value, and they should be treated like such.
Affordability of art supplies
It doesn’t even seem that long ago, just a decade or a bit longer, but art materials, especially watercolor paper was so affordable! I used very heavy duty and very thick Arches paper for anything, even sketches and quick drafts. The same paper costs a lot more money today because 1 sheet is $25-$35 in Canada. Is this only my imagination, or quality also does not feel the same? Any paint quality has definitely decreased big time over the past 10 years while prices are 3-4 times higher.
Art supplies matter
The truth is: great watercolor paper makes up for at least 25% of watercolor art quality. It is physically impossible to create good washes and flow of pigment on paper which does not absorb paint and water. Looking at these pictures makes me sad, too. I wish all art materials were available without any hassles again! I am waiting currently for some acrylic paints to arrive. I also hope watercolor paper became less expensive. Actually, the highest prices for any art materials are in Canada.
Should I even paint something more?
Most likely, I should sell more, not paint more. It is a matter of space and storage, as well. Yet, once somebody is hooked on creating art, it becomes like addiction. I’ve been in art for 50 years, and I don’t think I am going to ever discontinue painting. When I look at the art scene of today, I must say, I feel disappointed. Most images are computer generated, vector images, digitally enhanced or digitally painted images.
Good quality hand made art
Good quality hand made art is becoming quite rare. I would emphasize: good quality. The reason might be that most people do not want to spend time learning how to draw. It is way easier to trace or copy or print off and then paint over. While one has outline, they also need a lot more: understanding what values are, how contrast, light, direction of light and composition, as well as perspective contribute to any painting. These aspects are the ones which are missing in big part of today’s art.
The thorough painting process
I usually create full-size hand drawing for each of these paintings. Most of drawings show also the scale of values. Therefore, I do not need any other reference if the still life or landscape setup and view is not available any longer. I set up or looked at a scene and then drew it. Here is one example setup which was the base reference for my garden painting.
I transferred the drawing (I used a large window for that as a lightbox) onto watercolor paper and kept working every day when the weather allowed.
The garden painting: so much great time spent with it, painted in 2011. This painting is 23 x 30 inches or 58 x 76 cm.
I cannot recall the year, but I think it was 2008 when I painted this road. It is also full-sheet watercolor painting on Arches. Some of my paintings have never been published, this is one of them
The forest road watercolor from 2008, This painting is 23 x 30 inches or 58 x 76 cm.
The birch path painting refers to a Latvian forest path. When it comes to painting, I am always subconsciously referencing my memory which stores Latvian landscapes, views and scenery. I have added Canadian landscapes to my memory in the recent years, but Latvia still prevails.
The picture comes from 2010 and might have more contrast. It was photographed through glass back then. However, the actual painting still looks very impressive and asks one to walk this path. This painting is 23 x 30 inches or 58 x 76 cm.
The spring creek was half imaginary, half photo-referenced. It took about a month to paint it. Image shows it more yellow, but it’s rather crisp light green and the blue is very attractive.
Spring creek, full-sheet or 23 x 30 inches (58 x 76 cm). spring watercolor painting
And finally, so far never published watercolor from 2010. It is also 23 x 30 inches or 58 x 76 cm
Along the summer stream, full-sheet watercolor on Arches
The difficult photo managing experience
Back then just as today, I was struggling with getting good photos of my paintings. It’s more struggle now thanks to Windows 10 photos app which seems to be incompatible with iPhone 11 Pro Max. Every time when I am trying to download pictures, one or another side doesn’t want to cooperate. Windows 10 photo app not only does not allow me to set my own parameters for download, they mess up everything and I have to manually copy over and delete lots of pictures. Sometimes this app wants to download all photos from phone, sometimes does not recognize any.
Simple editing tools
I was still using the great Microsoft Digital Image Editor 2006 up to the moment when my previous computer crashed. That was all I need for adjustment of my pictures. It was simple, fast, extremely efficient. One can find numerous photo manipulation apps now, but there is none for keeping the image as is, just fixing exposure, light and contrast. Most pictures displayed here were taken up to 2011. They are practically unedited, except, I added frames.
Blogging, pleasantries and some annoying habits
I have intended to post more of previous paintings since I also haven’t seen them for a while, that means for at least a few years. I know how people are busy. It’s just so that if you do not look at the actual post and the actual images, you most likely have no idea what I am talking about. I have noticed some bloggers click on “like” under 20 posts, but they certainly haven’t seen or read any of them. I am trying to always respond to all comments timely and I do appreciate your comments a lot. However, I never put blogging before the actual life, therefore, I will like back posts which deserve that and comment back in case I have something to say about your article when I have time.
My paintings on Fine Art America, large collection of art prints:
