Most recent attempt at watercolor

Willa             watercolor

Still trying, still hard!

Red Toque

Red Toque   watercolor

Second attempt watercolor post workshop. Still learning (sigh). It is frustrating when it looks so easy when an accomplished artist like Nuttall paints so (seemingly) easily. Practice, practice, practice!

Asterisk

So to try to explain a bit, the painting was based on photos I took of the Mountain Man rendezvous in Eureka Montana. the young man is supposed to be a mountain man, not an indian but one who borrowed a lot of indian accoutrements.
The tents they favor (I'm guessing they are historically accurate) are square canvas tents, not teepees. They were probably lighter than teepees and available from the Hudson's Bay or Northwest company.
It occurred to me that most people probably don't know these things because they don't go to black powder events.
Comments  ran about 50/50 for one format or the other.
In the original painting, I was trying to go for the counterbalance composition that Nuttall is fond of.

Tedd Nuttall

where you have your subject offset by a lot of space. I will have to play with this more to make it successful.

The tent just looks weak. I think that's what bothers me, that and the fact that the top of it is intersecting that horizontal line which is a bit of a no-no. The backgrounds in the photos were dark and broody and powerful. I don't think I like the painting being so light at the bottom. I may try to change that.
The "problem" with watercolors is that once you screw up, you are pretty well screwed. There is not much hope of fixing. Acrylics are much more forgiving because you can keep painting over things. Watercolors are good discipline though and they have effects that may be impossible to achieve in any other medium.
Thanks for all the comments. People point out things that don't occur to me, so it is good to get the feedback.

Post Nuttall workshop two

The face planter

This was my second watercolor in Scottsdale. Now if I could just carve out a few minutes from all the other stuff that's going on so I could paint....

Post Nuttall workshop

 This was my first water color from the workshop.

 

And this was the watercolor Ted Nuttall developed as he taught us. Please note, it is not completed.

Argh, I have been so busy since I got home, I haven't had time to paint!

Scottsdale Art School

Scottsdale Art school is a beautiful facility.

I am finding Ted to be a very good teacher. I think he is better suited to a more advanced class. His demos are mesmerizing. His work looks loose but it is so very not! Each stroke is thoroughly thought out and deliberate, then he goes in and does some things that make it suggest looseness. His colors are amazing!

Ted Nuttall workshop

Having a great time in the Ted  Nuttall workshop. He is a slow and deliberate painter (despite the loose look of his paintings). Painting slowly is a real challenge for me, painting in watercolors is a challenge because I haven't used them for so long. Lots of technical information but he really explores theory. My little brain may explode.

First attempt.

OH, I'm going to Arizona with a banjo on my knee!

I am going to attend a workshop with Ted Nuttall in Scottsdale artist school next week. I am very excited and hope to have photos and info to share. It is a watercolor still-life (still-life, urk!) course. This should take me right out of my comfort zone!!

Ted makes beautiful watercolor portraits:

 

I am very excited to take his course.