Study the doodle above.  How many images do you think you could pick out with a watercolour pen to define?  The above painting is an example of what I do when I am without clear direction.   I  thoroughly wet my paper, and then take my colour mixed to various opacities and just drop it on to the paper.  Then go and have a coffee or two.  If we study the shapes, I can see first of all an indigo area that I could easily create a leaping salmon from, next to the right is an orange koi meeting another coming from the opposite direction, or the whole thing could be fashioned into a water nymph.  I see lots of dragony type creatures too as well as some floral and foliage form, offering lots of scope for some serious dry brushing.  Serious dry brushing means letting your painting dry so you don't rupture the surface of the paper, and go back into the colour with a just damp brush and move the paint where you want the emphasis.   This exercise will give you confidence in your watercolours.  Practice moving the paint, even blotting out the heavier colour with a damp kitchen towel.  Experimentation is the path to confidence in your watercolour work.  Don't reserve them for a carefully plotted landscape, play! Enjoy the play and use them as a tool as a pre-cursor to your acrylic and oil pieces. 

Watercolours are a joy to use once you have gotten to know the beast you are taming.  They can be applied as wet as you like or as dry as you like.  The important thing is that you practice and learn where your comfort zone is.   I love watercolour when I apply it wet on wet which is especially great if you are working outside because you can capture colour, shape and form quickly.  I personally rarely draw in pencil.  You are stuck with it once you have painted it in so unless you are really confident in your drawing, use either pastel - NOT charcoal - to sketch, or a very dilute Payne's Grey applied with a fine brush.  Better still, be brave and just go in with the paint! The sketch to the left was done at Woolacoombe Bay in Devon.  The sketch took about five or six minutes.  I wanted particularly to replicate the shape and form of the rocks, the hazy hills in the distance, the choppiness of the sea complete with resultant surf dancing up the sandy beach, leaving the shoreline sand wet and further up the beach a brighter, more vibrant dry sand.    I didn't need detail just shape, form and an impression strong enough to bring home and replicate, which I did and sold the day after the work was completed.  The lady that bought it lived there and remarked on how well  I had captured the elements.  

In the well worn chestnut of photograph versus sketch debate, there are times when only a sketch will do.  To capture the energy I had to get it down quickly because the tide was moving so fast, ten minutes later the rocks would be hidden by the incoming tide, my haste shows in my brush stroke, particularly the strokes used for the water.  We wouldn't always be able to readily glean such information from a photograph.

Use your watercolour palette as you would a best friend, run everything past your trusty box of paints -  Sketches and plans for landscapes, pet portraits, plans for larger works all scaled down to fit neatly on your pad, which then becomes a journal.  I love the pads which are glued.  I can take them out and have no worries about dragging a board and masking tape with me.    It is much cheaper to experiment with colours with watercolour, especially if the finished work is planned in oil or acrylic.   

If you are finding that your watercolours are thick, you may feel more comfortable with and prefer to use a very watered down gouache or acrylic.  Acrylic ink behaves much the same way and can be watered down quite successfully. 

The important thing is to have fun an enjoy using your new skills, pushing your personal parameters a little more each time.

Here is another watercolour sketch.  Of a small French village, it was painted as the plan for a larger, 24 x 18 canvas in oil, which to this day remains unfinished.  I wanted to work on a sketch to get the stonework right, and the light further down the hill correct and the darker shadow from the tall buildings at this end relatively true to life.  I call the cat 'Lucky', because every time I get the painting out to work on it, a commission comes in and back on the rack it goes!    Six years on it is, thankfully,  very close to completion!  Never give up on a painting.  Keep getting it out, works in progress are good for the soul.  As we learn we can apply our knowledge to our WIP's and get an overall picture of our journey throughout the construction of the painting. 
Remember not to stress, try always to have  fun and most of all enjoy your work!

xx As Always Written & Offered In The Spirit Of Love xx

Painting water, can, quite frankly be a bitch.   Oh those darned sparkles and reflections are a nightmare, and the opacity issues... heavens and then there is the issue of the sun in the sky and where it would cast a reflection ...... Eeeek eeeeek and more eeeeek.  

I love water actually.  I love painting it and I love watching it.  But it wasn't always like that, more of a bit of a struggle really, so as is my way I confronted the issue head on setting about  photographing as much water as possible.  The non- flash photograph on the left is actually my loo flushing! I later used this photo in an advertising campaign by taking the wine glass shape, Tinting it pink after defining it a bit in photoshop and voila! My client was delighted, though never had a clue how I achieved it! 

If you want to paint water you have to study it.  Now look carefully at the photograph. Pick out the sparkles, the droplets, note where the water appears opaque and which bits appear almost translucent.  Pick out the shadowy areas and pick out the light play.  Now if you are really bored, you can get your watercolours out and copy it - without masking fluid - this is where paint bleed can be your very good friend. Don't spend ages, fifteen minutes top, just sketch with your paints dropping in the lights and darks, letting the bleed be your transparentish areas.  Other good practice subjects are a glass tumbler with water, a glass vase with water but no flowers.  Puddles - with all of this rain we are having puddles are everywhere, make the most of the opportunity! A window with rain running down the outside, a running tap, a puddle of water on a worktop - these are all good subjects for exercising your water muscles.
If you can master water then you can apply it to any painting, whether it be present in the flesh so to speak or not.  Puddles can make a garden scene come alive, spills of tea make an afternoon tea scene look human, and rain on a window gives instant atmosphere.  

River and ocean water follow the same rules.  Look at the piccy on the right.  This was taken at Chichester Canal on a dry day.  The water has lights, darks, greys, solid opaque areas and near the banks a little translucency.  However, there is only one flat truly reflective area which is to the right of the barge and is reflecting part of a tree. The rest of the reflection is almost opaqued out.  Now an inexperienced painter may go for a complete reflection and wonder why it didn't look quite right.  Water is fluid, it is mostly moving.  When it moves, it is like it has a skin on it - look at the ripples in the foreground to see what I mean. It is extremely rare to get flat still water, and rarely looks right in a painting.   Reflections that are painted as a flat reflection of what is above the water line look artificial and flat, a few perhaps a minimal amount of water lines will breathe life into your waterscape.  Pay particular attention to the colours too.  The red livesaver  on the rear of the barge is reflected on almost every ripple coming toward the bank.  Few painters would indicate those repetitive reflections, yet such detail can make the difference between a good painting and an outstanding painting.   The water itself varies from a light grey to a deep deep olive.  Do not let your eye convince you of the presence of blacks or whites, it's fibbing .........  Trust me, I know about these things!  The brain can be very lazy with your internal colour chart if you don't keep it toned up.  Study wet things,  perhaps take two identical cups, place on on the drainer dry, and one you have just rinsed under the tap next to it. Compare the two.  We know when things are wet simply by looking at them.  To paint wet objects you need to study those subtle differences that tell your brain that your eye is looking at a wet object and incorporate your knowledge into your paintings.  

When I painted 'Dancing In The Rain', to get the water right, I stood in the shower with several mirrors watching the way water ran off my body - now that's dedication for you - I also photographed people walking through puddles to get the splish splash of movement as good as I could.  I didn't see any point on painting the original sketch if I wasn't going to then follow through and  practice on what I found to be the challenging areas.  If you are embarking on a complex water project, thorough research is the key to the success of the project, yet so many painters sit down at their workstation and try to paint water from memory.  Unless you are painting water on a daily basis, to paint straight from memory and get it absolutely spot on is nigh on impossible!  Make sure you always have at least one good reference point, or that you make a habit of studying water when you get the opportunity.  Painting practice is a darn good practice and we all know that proper practice promotes perfect paint habits, and we don't then, rejoice, for it is never to early to learn!

xx As Always Written And Offered In The Spirit Of Love xx

It's amazing the number of artists that tell me that they don't like visiting galleries because they don't want to be subconsciously influenced by the work and styles of others.

 That's like an author proudly declaring that they detest reading! 

On the one hand, I completely understand.  It happens.  Someone showed me a painting in progress only yesterday.  I reminded them that I had shown them a photograph of almost an identical scene some weeks ago.  Clearly they were flabbergasted at the suggestion that this imagery could have filtered through to their inner album, bursting into life when they needed some inspiration.  The trick is then to make the painting your own and be grateful of the prompt your internal filing system gave you.

Visit galleries as often as you can, they are not the highbrow, stuffy and shadowy places you might imagine.  Galleries are the voice of the you and the me.  They are the reference point for your favourite artist.  I love Miro.  To go and stand in front of this work at the Tate Modern and drink in every brush stroke, every painterly moment not to mention the electricity of that beautiful Miro energy that pulled you into it's aura like a nebula waiting to devour your heart... okay, .. okay I am getting carried away now, but you know, if you don't go to galleries, where on earth do you set your bench mark for your own work?  I never knew that Blue II was the size of a wall until I stood beside it awestruck.  A little tear escaped as I thought of how my Uncle would have probably loved to be there with me.   For some time after I found myself sneaking a little blue into my paintings, now I have to say here that blue is my least favourite colour, and unless it is vital will not ever have been in a painting by choice.  But what I learned is that blue has many shades, and actually there are some shades I quite like and in fact are rather energising.  The Blue II is such a blue.  I had never ever gleaned that from the many photographs of the work.  Leonora Carrington.  A marvellous surrealist.  At Pallant House Gallery I could scrutinise her colours her sketches, how she constructed a painting.  Frida Kahlo .. it was marvellous to drift through the exhibition and really deconstruct the narratives.  Something you cant really do from a photograph of a painting, it just doesn't feel the same.

And then there is the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square.  It is free to go inside as are most of the London galleries.   When you walk among the masters something happens to your soul.  You will never be the same again.   Every time I go I feel myself being absorbed and ingested by the heart of the place.  I adore Hammershoi.  The first time I ever saw a Hammershoi in the flesh was in the National Gallery, when it was on loan as part of an exhibition.  I just stood for a very long time analysing every square millimetre in awe at the precision of it all.  The subdued tones, the silence of the work.  Yes the silence, even in a room of two hundred people.  Hammershoi paints silence better than anyone.   At the other end of the scale, Yoko Ono creates evokes and captures emotion better than anyone.  Her recent exhibition at the Serpentine Gallery was awesome.  I couldn't get there because of health issues (gutted, gutted, gutted) but I did visit the online pages and was absolutely captivated by the animated John Lennon, the Smile project an the emotional depth of the installations. 

Then there is the Tate Modern.  Oh! Bliss!  Very upbeat, very chilled, lots going on!  A great place for the family.  Tate Britain, a bit of everything and you can catch the boat between the two, even more fun, but you would need the whole day to do both.  

Equally, a local exhibition of a group can be just as inspiring!  Locally in the south we have Pallant House Gallery, which is up there with the major galleries, although you do have to pay to get in.  Gosport has a gallery, most towns and cities do.  The Southampton gallery is home to some marvellous works and exhibitions. 

The key is to feed yourself.  Not just from books, from life.  If you really don't fancy a gallery, go to an art market or auction - google 'Art market + area' Make it your business to see art in the flesh and it will help you to paint well.  You will have a bench mark engraved on your heart that will go everywhere with you.  Wishing you all a beautiful weekend. Please share this on your Facebook page, lets try and get everyone into a gallery this weekend!

xx As always written and offered in the spirit of love xx

Artist's block.  I prefer to think of it as a self inflicted barricade erected by the innermost self between the artist  and the canvas.  It  mostly manifests from the artist's resistance to the subject matter, and often occurs in times of pressure such as a commission, or specific group or class  brief, or when we are painting something that really doesn't float our boat.

You have to form a relationship with your subject matter to be able to pour love down that paintbrush and on to that canvas.  If you are not enjoying the subject matter you will manifest bitterness with every stroke and the end result will be a work that is stiff and heavy, which is fine if the subject matter is the Berlin wall....  The work has to bring you a joyful experience.  It can be challenging and still be joyful, but if the challenge is actually pressing on with it then you need to scrutinise what is really going on.  

I remember one pupil that was so keen to get on to oils from watercolours that we booked in an afternoon to get started.  They were mortified when I asked them to sketch their subject, and when they had done this I asked them to do it again.  I then asked them to do a quick watercolour sketch.  They were not a happy bunny I can tell you.  I then explained that I had done this so that they may get to know their subject matter and form a bond with it, to then be able to paint it with joy.

I had noted that they were so keen to progress to oils that they had given no thought at all to their subject matter.  They had no idea what they were going to do with the oils once they had gotten their hands on them! Whether their subject merited a brush or knife, whether they were going for a genteel underpainting approach or straight in there bold and brash.  The subject was a bird so these were all essential issues. After my explanation I asked them for one final watercolour sketch which was a vast improvement on the first.  So the moment arrived where my pupil was introduced to the oils and canvas and I left them to it to form another new relationship with the new medium. Their work was executed gently, thoughtfully and with grace. The painting was outstanding.

Attitude is vital to keep in check.  Put a CD on of some neutral music, light classical or new age sound works well.  Try not to listen to the radio, turning the radio on invites headless voices into your special space.  Keep such entities including the telephone and television out of your sacred painting space.

If you just cannot get enthusiastic about your subject or painting, put down your brushes and get out in the fresh air.   Just drink in life for a bit and maybe treat yourself to a coffee shop coffee and watch  the world go by.  Think about your painting enthusiastically planning it out in your mind's eye.  See it completed.  When you find yourself smiling to yourself, you've cracked it, it's time to return to the easel.  

If the smile doesn't come,  then the chemistry between you and your subject matter is unlikely to manifest.  Unless it is a commission, move on.    If it is a commission, then you need to work on your relationship with the work.  Are you happy with the commission?  Perhaps you feel you have undersold yourself?  Maybe you have a personality issue with the client?  Resentment can create huge blocks.  Confront it and stop blaming the painting, the painting is to be loved, for always.  

Before you leave the page, watch the video performance of The Beatles performing 'All You Need Is Love' once more, let it penetrate so that it rattles around in your subconscious when you need it.   Once you crack it with the painting, radiate it outward...... who knows what little difference you may make to someone's day!  

xx As always written and offered in the spirit of love xx

Photography is a marvellous tool for artists.  You can wander with you sketch pad on these cold wintery days and probably brave  staying out for a couple of hours working with a sketch or painting taken from the landscape afore you.   When you do that same wander with a camera, you will return with all sorts of fodder ready to forge ahead in the warmth of your painting spot feeling invigorated and inspired from your outdoor amble.

The photograph above is one I took on such a morning.  Icing sugar frost adorned the hills  and as the sun rose a wonderful misty haze rose from the earth giving everything a mythical magical feel.  I chose to process the photo in black and white for specific reasons.  I didn't want to be bound by colour.  It would be easy to take the colour from the photo and just replicate the photograph.  To truly make it my own and give it a painterly feel, I need just two things from the photo, shape and form, and light play.  My imagination will fill in the rest.  This photograph has been very useful.  it not only gives me the gift of light and mist in mono, but cow expressions, and yes, like any animal cows have their expressions!  A watercolour I did of two cows stuck in the mud pulling a plough needed such expression and there it was.  I need not trawl the internet using someone else's work as a model I could use my own photograph and was able to complete the work in the knowledge that it was my conception, my cow models, my photograph and finally, my own totally unique painting,

Back to the cow field, if I had been standing there with my easel braving the frost, the mist would have disappeared before I could lay down my first wash, that is if it hadn't frozen on the brush.....  The moment would have been lost to extenuating conditions and the marching on of time and mist.

Dont be afraid to use photography as an assistant to help you create an original painting.
Try not to copy a photo exactly, we don't want to bind the imagination, just help it along a little, so once you have your black and white photo, copy it and try different colourisations on the copy to get an idea of how it will look.  Add things, subtract things, use your artistic licence to be original.  All you are needing from the photo is shape & form, and light play.   Have fun!

Hey it's Monday again.  Another chance to make you mark on the world.  It doesn't matter what you paint so long as you do it.  Just paint or sketch or write or craft.  Whatever floats your boat, but make sure you do become engaged on a practical level, the earlier in the day the better.  Happy mess making ! xx

One of the commonest reasons I hear for non painting is a lack of time.   Indeed, painting is a hobby that can eat your time if you let it, whereas serious painters have it sussed.  
It is important to have an area, even if it is a bag or case with your painting gear organised, so it is simply a question of getting going.  If you have to scurry around getting your paints from here your paper from there your resource material from somewhere else, well yes, the physical act of painting is already fourth on the priority list... as you search for brushes get your mediums organised the task itself has slipped down the slope of non starting into oblivion.  It's already lunch time and you haven't done a thing!

The above painting took me less than half an hour.  It was a warm up sketch to get a feel for beady eyes, beaks and feathers as I prepped for an oil of parrot. It is a watercolour.  It is far from perfect and as a sketch, I wouldn't expect it to be.   It is however, a completed painting, which on the day I painted it was my habitual paint for that day.

As artists, we need to develop a habit of painting.  A good way to begin is to keep in every room a sketch pad and pencil, so that in an inspired moment you can immediately begin to fashion your mark of the day.  Who knows?  Your spontaneous sketch could lead to you painting an award winner!  Don't stop at the habitual sketch, certainly every day do something, but some days you can do more and perhaps after your warm up work on a bigger project.  

Keep your paints handy, in a wrap or biscuit tin, have an 'ever ready' kit that you can use immediately.  I have a cute little box in which I have a small A5 Watercolour block, a box of watercolours, 2  eggcups for water and a plastic screw top bottle for my water, and ONE brush! Yes, just the one!  This is my grab and throw it in the car box should I fancy sitting on the beach or in the country and just painting for half an hour.  I also have grab and go pastels, grab and go acrylics.  I don't grab and go oils because of the mediums I also need to have onboard, what I will do is an acrylic sketch that I will use as a base for an oil when I return home, unless I am going for a full day painting experience in which case the oil kit is within my box easel ready to go.

Artists often suffer from intensity block.  This is when an artist becomes quite intense about their hobby and mistakenly thinks they can't possible create a credible painting because they haven't got the right gear.  No amount of 'gear' is going to make you a better painter.  Ever.  Excellent brushes will help you get good results, and some equipment can make things simpler perhaps, in the same way a bread maker will simplify bread making, but if the key ingredients are wrong, their is little hope of producing a fantastic loaf of bread! The only thing that can ever possible help is practice.  And more practice. And then some more.  Paint or sketch every day.  DO.  just pick up a brush and paint anything.  The pot on the stove.  Your morning cup of tea.  The rose in the garden.  Give yourself a time limit, say an hour max.  Get into the habit of painting quickly and you are more likely to paint more frequently, simply because it is less of a faff. 

Keep your daily paint pics in a separate folder or book to your other work.  You can look through this from time to time and see how your are improving.  You may notice you always find say, water challenging.  So then have a week where you paint nothing but water in your daily paint.  Use the habit of daily warm ups to serve you and your development as a painter!  I would love to hear from you and how your daily paint is helping you!  Please leave a comment or email me at khalo@khalo.org.  

Wishing you a wonderful weekend overflowing with treasured moments.

J U S T   P A I N T !

xxx As always, written and offered in the spirit of love xxx