Watercolor Painting

The painting series “Wheel within a Wheel” began in 2004 at a time when I had transitioned from working in acrylic paint towards watercolor.  But before I started the “Wheel within a Wheel” series and entered the world of Geometric abstraction, I studied Botanical watercolor painting through a course I took at UCSD (extension program) with a Botanical painter, Julie Schneider Ljubenkov.

Early floral watercolors:

     

I fell in love with the play of the brush with water, paint and paper.  The transparency of the watercolor washes, the layering of detail and the lightness of the paint drew me in — it was light — buoyant.   Watercolor and gouache and its nuances fascinate me.  Both intuitively and through patient practice, I persevered and paint with a real fondness for the medium.

Figurative Drawing

The practice of drawing, mostly figurative drawing (with charcoal and graphite pencils), I pursued under the instruction of three artists at three venues — Watts Atelier with Jeffrey Watts (including extensive sessions focused on actual anatomical drawings of muscle groups and bone structure), the Athenaeum of the Arts with Stephanie Goldman and at Miracosta Community College with Michael Wheldon.

Some artworks from this period:

My study of Ingres’ painting

Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres, The Source

 

 And the Self-Portrait Exercise…

Earlier find…

Found a watercolor I did at an Atelier in Barcelona (2000-2001) that fits nicely into this theme of watercolor and figurative art. It is a painting of a female bust – based off a sculptural piece.

From each of these artists and classes, I gained valuable insights.