SKETCHER DEMO
Be BRAVE with watercolor IRENA SPECTOR SHOWS YOU HOW TO RELAX AND PLAY WITH WATERCOLOUR PAINTS, TO CREATE A DYNAMIC URBAN SCENE.
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ear of watercolor is a very common problem for sketchers because watercolor behaves unpredictably and is difficult to manage. Too many adjustments lead to messy and unattractive results. With my technique, I try to overcome the fear and turn my watercolor work into a play, without worrying about precision. I also use watercolor pencils to depict the contours. They partially dissolve in the process of work and this gives the sketch a feeling of lightness and incompleteness. Step 1: I wet the paper and make the first big washes (wet into wet) using very light colors. This step allows me to overcome the fear of blank paper and allows the watercolor to set the mood. Step 2: When the paper is still wet, I outline the buildings and the human figures. I don’t try to be very precise, I use a light blue watercolor pencil which allows me to make corrections easily, if needed but, more importantly, this gives a very pleasant feeling while drawing on wet paper.
ABOUT IRENA Irena was born in Odessa, Ukraine and graduated the Grekov’s art school in 1988. In 1990 she immigrated to Israel, continuing her art education alongside a degree in medicine, specializing in psychiatry. She combines work as Senior Psychiatrist in Tel Aviv Medical Center with watercolor painting and watercolor instruction activities. She loves watercolor’s transparency, unpredictability and the wat it can capture light effects. 28 drawing attention
MATERIALS Watercolor paints, usually up to 4-5 colors: ultramarine blue, naples yellow, cadmium red, cadmium orange, ceruleun blue • Watercolor pencils • White gouache for highlights. •
IRENA’S TIPS
• Don’t be afraid of making mistakes
– sometimes they can lead to new discoveries. For example you can make a bird from an accidental spot of paint. • Start with spontaneous splashes of color, especially when you are not sure about what to paint first. The splashes of color will lead you and will give you ideas. • Enjoy the process, play with the colors and experiment with different color combinations.