Today’s watercolor experiment:

All the leaves are gone from the fig tree in the back yard. The weather has not inspired too many photographs lately. It has either been too foggy or overcast. However the other morning, the light glanced off the fig tree in a way that just made me want to snap a picture.

Process:

Motivation

It has been hard for me to get going these days (see White Paper Syndrome). My approach for breaking out of the lethargy today was to concentrate on rendering something solid – an actual scene – rather than a concept. I’m sure that by doing this, a thought or two will eventually bubble up through my unconscious. In the meantime, I might as well practice my hand-eye coordination.

First stage

For a change, I did not begin with a sketch. I used neutral tint and lamp black to paint in the darkest markings on the tree and the part of the tree branches and trunk in shadow. I mixed in a bit of white for the gray areas of the tree and left the parts in sunlight paper-white.

I have a new 1″ brush with stiff bristles that worked just perfectly for curved, horizontal swipes to indicate the curve of the tree limbs.

The tangled branches at the top of the tree inspired a random set of black and gray lines. I made no attempt to copy nature, but rather to give the impression of a messy… tangle.

I used lamp black for the background and to further define tree and branches.

Second stage

For some reason, the black and white rendering did not satisfy me. I highlighted the sunny side of the tree with aureolin yellow and the shady side with permanent mauve (the complement of yellow). I scratched in some random yellow and purple streaks beside the black branches.

There is still a monotonic look to the study.

Fig Tree in Winter Light
12″x9″ 140# Cold Pressed Watercolor Block

Comment:

This painting reflects my mood: monotonic and wintry. I had no ambition to make a realistic copy of the photograph. I treated it as an exercise in shading, but not too rigorous a one. I thought the yellow added to the sun-highlighted edges of the tree would add something to the composition. Perhaps a visual emphasis of the light of the sun. The purple shading was an afterthought. I was hoping for some interaction with the yellow, but the spatial separation between the two complementary colors was too great for visual interaction.

This is a pretty good rendering of starkness. Perhaps I should have left it in black and white, though.