In this demonstration Merilyn shows the intense colour one can achieve with watercolour and the use of clear water to achieve a loose, vibrant painting. By sometimes applying paint directly from the tube onto the paper and then using water to make it run beautiful free paintings can be achieved. In this case I used Quinacridone pink for the petals into which I later dropped some Aureolin yellow and then a shadow mixed from the three primary colours. The leaves were similarly painted using strong colour from the palette in bold strokes and then water to make it flow into the desired areas. With strong pigment, clear water and a few quick, bold strokes you can make your watercolours sing!
Phaelaopsis – A vibrant watercolour
The simplicity of using dramatic colour on a textured white gesso background is effective. Minimal strokes are used with shadows dropped into the wet washes of the petals and leaves. Darks are added around the leaves afterwards to emphasise the shadows between them. The bowl is painted with a few simplistic strokes which are blended with a dash of white ink to emphasise the shine on the rounded shape.
MEET OUR PAINTERS AND READ ABOUT THEIR INSPIRATIONS AND MOTIVATIONS.
Merilyn Chappel
With a background in journalism and interior design, Merilyn is a bold and adventurous mixed media artist with her own gallery in the northern Sydney suburb of Dural.Read more
Denise Dean
Denise Dean is an artist, graphic designer and illustrator. Renowned for her wonderfully decorative and colourful children’s book illustrations and watercolours, she is also highly regarded for her work in the graphic design industry. Read more
Lee Evans
Lee enjoys capturing the individual character of farm animals and much-loved pets and finds the texture of oil paint ideal for these more expressive, realist works. Read more
Melanie Jai
Melanie Jai’s art is a visual documentary of her experiences as a mother with a child with Autistic Spectrum Disorder. Read more
Ian Lean
Ian exhibits in many galleries and art shows and his reputation continues to grow steadily. He has had many solo and combined exhibitions and has won several painting awards. Read more
Jessika Steiner
Jessika Steiner was born in New Caledonia where she lived on her Swiss father’s hand built yacht before settling on the Hawkesbury river north of Sydney. Read more
Karen Tanner
Karen’s training and background is in Graphic Arts. She is an accomplished Painter and Sculptor.
Lesley Davies
Australian artist Lesley Davies paints and draws a wide variety of subjects but her works particularly feature cute interpretations of Australian flora and fauna produced mainly in watercolour. Read more
Maurice Larkin
Maurice has been drawing from his early childhood in Liverpool, England. Read more
