MOST PEOPLE HAVE HAD EXPERIENCE WITH PAINTING from a young age, usually with tempera paint at a preschool easel, watercolor at the kindergarten art table, or, for a lucky younger few, pudding on their highchair tray, with happy fingers swirling around! In the classroom, I rarely get an objection from a student when we take out the paints for a session.
I believe the love of painting is something we all have as little children. I also believe that nurturing that love through positive teaching methods can develop a greater skill set within the medium, while retaining a satisfying creative process at the same time. This Unit will guide us through a variety of water-based-media painting experiences, whose end results will be a greater understanding of color theory, value scale, visual texture, composition, techniques, and, most important, an expansion of each person’s own emerging style.
Think First: This Lab encourages you to paint through the eyes of a famous artist. Choose a master work that you are drawn to—and love. In this lesson, we are using Georgia O’Keeffe, but any artist you choose will do. Have a good copy of the original work, either from a book or the Internet, to work from.
Materials
• primed canvas or board
• pencil
• acrylic paints
• variety of small and large bristle brushes
• image of an artist’s work
• water containers
• newspaper and paper towels
• Plexiglas palette
1. Begin by using a pencil to lightly sketch the contours of the image onto your canvas (fig. 1).
2. Mix the colors for the background and apply them in a thin layer, covering all the white primed canvas (fig. 2).
3. Working from the back to the front, add larger details, using smooth strokes and blending, just as Georgia did.
4. Mix some more paint and add a thicker layer of paint to the background, blending each color carefully. Continue to the front, adding final details as you go (fig. 3).
5. Pay attention to the subtle color changes, light to dark values, little details, and smooth color transitions that Georgia O’Keeffe used (fig. 4).
6. When you feel you are finished, add a protective coating, as described in Unit 1, page 20.
Think First: Making a small painting is a fairly quick exercise in getting an idea from your head into a painting. The paintings can be simple or detailed—the choice is up to you, the artist. Decide what you would like to paint from: a still life, photograph, abstract, or portrait. For our example, we used a sunflower as the subject matter. Going small can be a lot of fun. You can even make a tiny series of similar subjects, just like artist Daisy Adams does!
Materials
• small piece of smooth, gesso-primed wood
• pencil
• acrylic paints
• variety of small bristle brushes
• paper for sketching
• water containers
• newspaper
• paper towels
• idea for the subject of painting: small still life, landscape, abstract, or portrait
• Plexiglas palette
1. On the gesso-primed piece of wood, begin by working the overall color for the first layer in the background. For our composition, we zoomed into the flower and started with yellow for the petals (fig. 1).
2. Working from the back to the front, add some larger details. Continue until all the surface is covered. Use the tiny brushes to make small strokes, or even dots of color, as you go for details (fig. 2).
3. Add the second layer of paint, making sure that you are showing a good range of values (light to dark) and adding details that you feel are important (fig. 3).
4. Cut in the background, by painting in from the edge, if your subject is large and zoomed in, as in this example.
5. Use an assortment of small brushes, including flats and rounds, to make the strokes you want (fig. 4).
6. When you are finished, paint a protective coating over your artwork with a wide brush, or have an adult spray it with a clear coat as described in Unit 1, page 20.
Daisy Adams is an artist from New Hampshire. She owns a lovely shop called Lucy’s Art Emporium, where she sells her work and the work of others in downtown Dover, New Hampshire. Her own work captures the kitschy, vintage feel of wayside America. Her work is often small in size and full of nostalgia.
Off To See the Wizard by Daisy Adams
Think First: The Fauvists were known for the wild colors they used on representational images. Often their subject was portraiture. For this lesson, we will work from a photograph. Start by thinking about the emotion the person is projecting in the photo. Is the person mad, sad, silly, or calm? Let the subject’s mood guide your color choices. Focus only on the head and shoulders, with a simple background. We chose a girl with a very solemn, almost sad, look on her face.
Materials
• canvas, canvas board, or primed wood
• charcoal
• pencil
• acrylic paints
• variety of bristle brushes
• paper for sketching
• water containers
• newspaper
• paper towels
• photograph of someone
• Plexiglas palette
1. Using a pencil, sketch your idea, without details, onto the painting surface (fig. 1).
2. Set up your painting palette as described in Unit 1, page 20, the acrylic painting section.
3. Think about the colors you want to use to show the person’s emotion. Is he or she “red-hot mad” or looking a little “blue”? Perhaps the subject appears to have a “sunny-colored” disposition.
4. Mix at least four shades of the colors you want to use for your painting (fig. 2).
5. Starting at the background, work around your painting, then fill in with a complementary color to the face. Colors opposite each other on the color wheel are the boldest; colors closer together are less so. See Unit 1, page 22, for more on color (fig. 3).
6. Work in the face, neck, and shoulders, using a wide range of light to dark shades. The neck has darker shades cast by the chin; the areas under the sides of the nose are darker—work carefully (fig. 4)!
7. Finish the top layer of paint with details, using smaller brushes and any sort of strokes you like. Seal it when completely dry as described in Unit 1, page 20.
About Yellow Boy, Darryl Joel Berger says, “It started as a drawing about a specific narrative, a long story I was working on in which Yellow Boy is a character. Sometimes the only way to think of a painting is, does it fully inhabit the space you’ve given it? I want a painting to be like a window, where everything inside is illuminated and fully alive.”
Yellow Boy by Darryl Joel Berger
Think First: This Lab explores what happens when we use complementary colors for the base layer of our painting. This is an age-old technique that can really bring some instant depth to your painting. Find a photograph that really intrigues you and examine the light and color thoroughly. National Geographic magazines or photographs of places you have been are great for this.
Materials
• canvas, canvas board, or primed wood
• pencil
• acrylic paints
• variety of bristle brushes
• paper for sketching
• water containers
• newspaper
• paper towels
• photograph of an outdoor location
• Plexiglas palette
1. Begin by drawing the horizon line on your canvas. Then include an outline of the most important features (fig. 1).
2. Set up your painting palette as described in Unit 1, page 20, the acrylic painting section.
3. Study the colors in the photograph, and then find a set of complementary colors in your color wheel (see Unit 1, page 22). Use the primary color and its secondary complementary to begin your painting. Start by painting the background (figs. 2 and 3).
4. Work from back to front.
5. Refer to your color wheel to check your opposites! Mix in the complementary color to make the color you are painting with darker—don’t use black.
6. When your base is dry, begin again with the sky and paint in the actual colors (fig. 4). Leave some of the underpainting peeking through the edges for contrast.
7. Finish the top layer of paint with small details and let dry. Have an adult seal your painting when completely dry.
“Also a poet, Volpe is drawn to the changing colors, lights, and moods of nature, like dusk and mist. It’s the ability of his paintings to exude emotion and movement that distinguishes them from other New England landscapes, as well as a unique perspective and contemporary composition.”—Chloe Johnson, journalist
Beginnings by Christopher Volpe
Think First: The subject matter for this Lab is from your imagination. Using a piece of vine charcoal, you will make bold marks to add strength to your artwork. Your imaginary subject can be almost anything: a fantasy animal, landscape, or person!
Materials
• canvas, canvas board, or primed wood
• charcoal
• pencil
• acrylic paints
• variety of bristle brushes
• water containers
• newspaper
• paper towels
• Plexiglas palette
1. Begin by lightly sketching the main ideas on the canvas with a pencil. Then go over them boldly with the charcoal (fig. 1).
2. Set up your painting palette as described in Unit 1, page 20—dispense most of your colors in small amounts, unless the painting has large areas of one color.
3. Using your large brushes, fill in the large areas first, working with smaller brushes for the tinier spaces (fig. 2).
4. Work up to the line of charcoal if you do not want to smudge it; paint over the line slightly if you want to soften it. The charcoal will mix with the paint and darken most colors. Add your second layer of paint when everything is dry (fig. 3).
5. Add any details you wish, or go over your charcoal lines to darken them when everything is completely dry (fig. 4).
6. Have an adult seal your painting when completely dry.
“I like using charcoal to draw back into my paintings. In this painting, Bluebird, I used the charcoal to give the shape of the bird a more important role in the overall painting. Birds have been reoccurring themes in my work for thirty years! I enjoy watching them in the wild through binoculars and imagining how it feels to fly.”
Bluebird by Susan Schwake
Think First: The subject matter for this painting will come from your imagination. Because the effect of the salt on the watercolor is, in effect, a white or light speck, you might like to think of a subject that involves stars, sparks, tiny lights, snow, or rain. A dark background will render more contrast with the salt. A vibrant color will give a similar effect. Set up your watercolor painting area as described in Unit 1, page 20.
Materials
• watercolor paper or cardstock
• set of pan watercolors
• soft-haired watercolor brushes
• small sponge
• newspaper and paper towels
• large water containers
• salt
1. Use your brush or a clean sponge to wet the paper. The brush should be wet, but not soggy!
2. Wet your brush again, and start to paint in your colors (fig. 1).
3. While the paint is still wet, but not in puddles, put some salt in one hand, and, using a pinching motion with your fingers, sprinkle it lightly in the areas where you want the effect. Deep, rich colors will produce a more vivid effect with the salt (fig. 2).
4. Remember, less is more—in the amount of salt and the amount of water.
5. When your painting is completely dry, rub the salt from the surface of the paper.
6. Admire the textural effect that salt has on your painting (fig. 3).
“I have often used salt for texture in my watercolor work. This can be seen in the background of this collage illustration, Evening Song. I wanted to add interest to the watery lake and sky melting together, so I used salt to texture the two elements into one. I also had the lucky bonus of a rock shape appearing in the salt for the cricket to sit on.”
Evening Song by Susan Schwake
Think First: Choose your favorite color combinations in your paint set. Think of how they might look together and how you would like to place them on your paper. Decide if you are going to mix new colors from the set for these artworks. Gather your supplies and set up a watercolor painting area as described in Unit 1, page 20. Cut plenty of plastic wrap to the size of the paper ahead of time—one piece sized for each piece of paper to be painted.
Materials
• heavy paper for watercolor
• plastic wrap
• watercolors
• soft brushes
• containers of water
• newspaper and paper towels
• scissors
• glue stick for gluing paper
1. Use your brush to wet the paper. If your paper is large, wet it with a clean sponge.
2. Using a very wet brush and your predetermined color schemes, stroke the watercolor pans with your brush to load it with color.
3. Paint the color into the areas, filling the paper completely with as many or as few colors as you like (fig. 1).
4. Because the paper is wet and so is the paint, spreading will occur. This is called wet on wet and is a good thing! (fig. 2).
5. While the paper is still wet, place the plastic wrap over the painting with your hands and let it fully contact the paper. (fig. 3). Wrinkles are good. Encourage them by tickling the plastic wrap a bit (fig. 4).
6. Do this to all of your papers. Let them all dry overnight. Don’t peek!
7. Peel off the plastic in the morning and find your beautiful paintings waiting for you!
8. Keep the plastic wrap in a folder for the next time you want to make these paintings.
“I often like to work with this watercolor method to create specific elements for my collages. I often tend to find insects, wings, ice, windows, and rocks in my paintings with this process. You can see this in my illustration entitled Night Flight.”
Night Flight by Susan Schwake
Think First: For this painting, we will paint in a more primitive style. For subject matter, you will identify something iconic or native to where you live. Using a photograph, book, or sketch you have made, simplify the idea into a more-basic form, but keep the key details that make it special. The tempera and gouache paints are matte and flat-looking, which lends a more illustrative look to the painting. For our example, we used a book of animals for a reference for our local crustacean, the lobster!
Materials
• watercolor paper
• pencil
• tempera or gouache paints
• variety of soft brushes
• water containers
• newspaper
• paper towels
• gel pens or fine ballpoint pens
• Plexiglas welled palette
1. Using a pencil, lay out your painting on the paper (fig. 1).
2. Set up your painting palette as described in Unit 1, page 20, using a small-welled palette (fig. 2).
3. Work in areas separate from one another—this paint is a lot like watercolor and will run if wet paint touches a wet area (fig. 3).
4. Fill in all of your areas with color, working wet next to dry.
5. You can mix the colors as you go directly in the wet work or in the wells before applying (fig. 4).
6. When the painting is dry, add outlines or details with the gel pens or ballpoint pens (fig. 5).
San Francisco illustrator and fine artist Lisa Congdon was raised in upstate New York and in Northern California, where she grew to love the trees and animals that surrounded her. That love is expressed most intensely through her gouache paintings and pencil drawings.
Nautical Managerie by Lisa Condgon
Think First: This lesson encourages you to draw and to paint on the canvas, creating a modern, heavily outlined portrait. Using the mirror, examine your face and the shapes you can find in it. Your face will have one shape—your eyes, mouth, and nose other shapes. We will keep the contemporary graphic style of eliminating the background to focus on the portrait itself. Choose a background color before beginning.
Materials
• canvas, canvas board, or primed wood
• pencil
• black permanent marker
• acrylic paint
• bristle brushes
• newspaper and paper towels
• water and containers
• Plexiglas palette
• mirror
1. In pencil, make a light drawing of yourself on the canvas.
2. Go over the lines with the black permanent marker (fig. 1).
3. Set up your palette as described in Unit 1, page 20, for acrylic paint. Paint the background first with your solid color (fig. 2).
4. Mix your flesh tones to create a few shades of the color you wish to use for your skin tones. Paint these in next. Feel free to use the range of values found on your face (fig. 3).
5. Finish with your features and clothing (fig. 4). Go over any black lines that you painted over. Seal as described in Unit 1, page 20.
Darryl Joel Berger is an artist and writer who works and lives in Ontario, Canada. Of his painting, Darryl says, “In many ways, this is really a drawing. I wanted to make something bold and graphic, something simplified and direct, like the best drawings can be. At the same time, I wanted to keep the kind of weight and thoughtfulness that you (should) find in paintings, so I applied the color in an abstract way, with plenty of power and movement.” Find out more about Darryl at: http://red-handed.blogspot.com.
Pow Wow by Darryl Joel Berger
Think First: This lesson is experimental and process-oriented, allowing you to create an abstract, pattern-based painting. Start by selecting three to five favorite colors for your palette. Think of shapes you would like to include in this painting.
Materials
• watercolor paper, 90-lb. or more
• watercolor pans
• soft-haired watercolor brushes
• newspaper
• paper towels
• large containers of water
1. Load up a wet brush with your first color.
2. Starting anywhere on your paper, create areas of shapes and color (fig. 1).
3. Use a repeated shape in different sizes and colors to fill in areas. Use both light and dark values for the most impact (fig. 2).
4. Try painting different shapes together in the same colors, or paint the same shape in different sizes (fig. 3).
5. Let the watercolor paint dry before painting right next to it since wet areas that touch will run together (fig. 4).
6. Continue until the painting is as full as you wish (fig. 5)!
Heather Smith Jones is an artist, arts instructor, and author from Lawrence, Kansas. Her work, entitled Keep Going When You Are Not Sure, is an inspiration for creating this lesson. It’s important to always keep moving forward with your artwork. See more of Heather’s beautiful work at heathersmithjones.com.
Keep Going When You Are Not Sure by Heather Smith Jones
Think First: An hour or more ahead of time, prime your wood with gesso using the large bristle or foam brush. Paint a wide stripe of gesso down the middle, leaving 1" (5 cm) on each side of the wood showing. When the gesso is dry, cover your work area with newspapers. Set up your palette area, with a piece of Plexiglas for your paints. Dispense some red, yellow, blue, and white acrylic paints—use about a 1" (2.5 cm) circle to start—and have a small damp sponge handy to clean your fingertip between colors.
Study the reference materials and choose your favorite flowers to paint. Take a look at the size of your found wood. Is it tall enough for the type of flowers you chose? Using pencil and paper, sketch a few ideas of what your painting could look like. Chose your favorite sketch and get out your prepared board.
Materials
• a piece of cast-off, smooth wood
• gesso
• larger bristle or foam brush about 2" (5.1 cm)
• acrylic paints
• small damp sponge
• newspaper
• Plexiglas palette
• paper towels
• sketching paper
• pencil
• flower catalogs, live flowers, or photographs of flowers
In this painting, the flowers are the main attraction. We will begin by painting them the same way they grow. This alternative method of painting and mixing colors is a great way to get started painting without the stress of learning how to choose and use brushes.
1. Starting with the stems and leaves, pick up blue paint on the tip of your finger and paint a dot at the bottom of the stem. Work your way up a little at a time, using this dot method (fig. 1).
2. While the blue paint is still wet, clean your fingertip on the damp sponge and then dry it on a paper towel. Pick up some yellow paint and mix it into the blue paint on the flower stem. Using an up-and-down “tapping motion,” mix the paint to make the stem green. More yellow paint will make the stem lighter; less yellow will make it darker. Try shading the leaves or the stem using this method of light and dark. Continue painting the stems and leaves until you are finished with them. Wiping your finger between colors keeps your palette neat and prepares you for the new color of the blooms (fig. 2).
3. Carefully examine the colors and shapes of your blooms. Again, use a small amount of paint on your fingertip and shape the blooms with the tapping/dotting motion. Try using different fingers to vary sizes of petals and leaves.
Use white to make tints of the colors you mix, but always use yellow to lighten your greens. Blue and red will make purples. Red and yellow will make oranges. When mixing shades of color, avoid mixing the colors thoroughly for a mottled look (fig. 3).
Amy Rice is an artist from Minneapolis, Minnesota. Her mixed-media painting, Zinnias, was made on an old piece of found barn board wood. This work inspired the fingertip painting project! See more of her work at www.amyrice.com.
