I've been enjoying reading Cathy Johnson's book Painting Watercolors, North Light Books 1995. Her playful approach to building skills with watercolor painting makes picking up a brush and experimenting easy. Sunday morning I wanted to do a bit of painting, but didn't want to do anything complex, so I flipped through Cathy's book and found a simple landscape to copy.
Copying another artist might seem like "cheating," but it's a time-honored method used to train art students in the techniques used by more skilled artisans. Every time you copy another artist's work, you gain insights that don't come simply from looking at the artist's work. You get to play with your art supplies, to learn, and get a burst of inspiration all at once.
And, you're left with something lovely to prop on your desk and admire as you pass by in your daily routine. This little painting will likely become a post-card and get dropped in the mail after I've enjoyed looking at it for a few days. Small art has the benefit of feeling like less of an undertaking, and more of a game. Isn't playfulness the best type of self-care?
I used a palette of Prussian blue, Cobalt Green, Indigo, Burnt Sienna, and Chromium Yellow Hue Deep. The feathery snow effect resulted from table salt sprinkled on the snowy Prussian blue hill. I let it dry a bit, then used a blow-dryer on low to make sure it was crisp-dry before sweeping the salt off and adding the cabin and trees.
I hope you find time this December for some artful self-care!
Here's a link to Cathy's book in case you'd like to explore self-care with a watercolor brush:
https://cathyjohnson.info/bookpages/paintingwatercolors.html
And, here's a link to her blog:
Cathy also has provided her e-book Keeping an Artist's Journal free for a limited time in response to Covid-19. Here's the link:
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