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How To

June 2010 "Structures in Oil"

May 2010 "Structures"

April 2010 "One of a Kind"

March 2010 "Nocturnes"

February 2010 "Let it Snow"

January 2010 Sweet Mystery: Part Two

December 2009 Sweet Mystery: Part One

November 2009 Organizing Chaos

October 2009 Saving the Best for Last

September 2009 Letting the Paint Work for You

August 2009 Watercolor: Teaching the Unteachable

June 2009 "Sketchbooks"

April 2009 "East Meets West"

Feb 2009 “Establishing a Focal Point”

Jan 2009 “Craftsmanship”

Dec 2008 “Another Approach”

Nov 2008 “The Incidence of Angle”

Oct 2008 “Back to the Basics”

Sept 2008 “As Clear as Mud”

Aug 2008 “Compartmentalizing Your Washes”

June 2008 “Lemons to Lemonade”

May 2008 “Las Flores de la Mancha”

March 2008 “Narrative Painting”

Dec. 2007 “Painting Out Of Your Head”

Sept. 2007  “Contours and Shapes”

Oct. 2007 “Contours and Shapes – Part Two”

Nov. 2007 “Contours and Shapes – Part Three”

July 2007 “Knowing Your Palette”

June 2007 “Giving Yourself An Edge”

Art of the Sketchbook

June 2009 "Sketchbooks"

Jan. 2007 “Art on the Road”

Oct. 2006 “Utilizing Your Sketches”

Sept. 2006  “The Art of the Sketchbook”

Musings

April 2010 "One of a Kind"

April 2008 “Who’s Responsible?”

Aug 2007 “Developing a Style”

May 2007 “The Intangibles”

Feb. 2007 “Painting the California Coast”

Dec. 2006 “Reflections”

The Business of Art

Apr. 2007 “The Gallery Scene”

March 2007 “Beginning Your Professional Art Career”

Art History

March 2010 "Nocturnes"

July 2008 “En Plein Air Painting – Then and Now”

Feb. 2008 “Harvey Dunn and Dean Cornwell – Some insights into their working methods”

Jan 2008 “The Golden Age of Illustration”

Nov. 2006  “Sargent Watercolors”

  June 2007 - Giving Yourself an Edge

                                                                                       John Pike (1911-1979)

 Considering all the things that can go wrong when painting a watercolor, it’s a wonder that they ever work out. I find this especially true when I’m painting on location. Because of the sun, the heat, the wind and the bugs, I generally use a direct approach that is, in some ways, more akin to painting an oil painting.

I know that the drying time will be minimal. So rather than trying to work large areas, I tend to compartmentalize the areas of the painting. I work a smaller area, charging in pigment and orchestrating the paint flow until I have an area that is the right value and has interesting gradations (light to dark, warm to cool etc.). One drawback of this approach is that I have to make certain that the area I’m working in will relate appropriately with all the other areas of the painting. This takes a lot of practice, and even then it’s a risky proposition.

Sometimes the subject can also be visually confusing, and I’m forced to do some advanced planning. That’s when I pull out the pad and make a value study.

These small black and white studies help me preview my light, dark and middle values. They also give me an advanced look at my overall design. In short, they provide me with a roadmap that I can follow when I’m working on the color painting.

These black and white value studies can also be of great assistance when planning a large, finished studio work. I don’t always find the need to do a value study, but over the years I’ve learned enough to know when I need some help.

So, if you occasionally struggle with painting the right value in the right spot, this may be a technique that gives you the edge you need to execute that masterpiece.

I’ve included four value studies and the accompanying sketches to give you an example:

 These first two black and white studies were executed with Tombow Dual Brush/Pens. I use N25 and N35. Each pen has a flexible brush tip on one end, and a fine point nib on the other. You can draw with them and then dissolve them and manipulate them with a wet brush. Or you can draw with them right into a wet wash, or a combination of both.

Ingleville Shack
Tin Roofs

	Moroccan Street Scene
Pecos Ruins

Both the Tombow Pen/Brushes and the Derwent water-soluble pencils also work well for sketching in cafes, restaurants and other venues that might not be suitable for full-color painting. They are a lot of fun and I hope that this will open up new avenues for exploration in your sketchbooks.