This apple is painted quite fast with a wet on wet technique that will allow the different shades and tints and colours to blend into each other.
More adult watercolour classes have been added to my schedule at the Thompson Community Centre in Richmond. If you are looking for some beginner instruction in the tricky medium of watercolour come join our class this spring. Each session we will try different projects such as learning to do washes using simple subjects such as fruit and misty mountain ranges, playing with negative space between fence posts, and scratching out highlights on sparkling seas and snow.
There are 3 new sessions at the Thompson Community Centre. Phone 604-238-8422 for info and to register. We meet on Mondays from 1:00 to 2:30. The next session is March 2 – 23. Then the other two are April 13 – May 11 and May 25 – June 22. Hope to see you there!
This green apple is in oil pastel, which is a little tricky to blend. Start with light strokes in a variety of colours and build up the layers.
Here are some examples of the various apple studies I have taught in my watercolur, pastel, and pencil crayon classes for adults and children. I find that the apple lends itself well as a subject for beginners; it’s more interesting than just a circle and yet not so complex as to scare people away. The variety of colours found on apples are another plus as I always stress that a collection of colours is more interesting to the eye than a flat 1 colour subject (although that has its place too, such as in many poster designs and logos).
Soft, or chalk pastel was used on this apple and is much easier to blend than oil pastel.
Whether it is watercolour, pastel, or pencil crayon, build up a layer of different colours, focusing on your main one, like red, but highlighting with ones such as yellows, and darkening with colours such as blues and purples. Start light, and work up the layers until you just do the dark areas at the end. Have fun, and experiment. Paint and draw apples over and over again, as using the same subject will let you see your progress over time.
This apple had each layer of watercolour dry before the next layer or colour was painted on top and thus you can see some of the brush strokes and it doesn’t blend like the wet on wet apple shown above.
A study in value where you only use one pencil crayon. Can also be done with regular pencil. Try a 3 or 4B.
We’ve all had it, that voice that says we can’t do something, or that we can’t do it well enough, or we don’t have the time. Perhaps we need to listen to Van Gogh who said “If you hear a voice within you say ‘you cannot paint,’ then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced.” The staff at Opus Art Supplies has made a video illustrating this quote. It was a nice little reminder for me this morning and thus I wanted to share it.
With my recent feelings of being a bit blocked, this was an amazing speech to listen to at the end of one year and the beginning of a new one. No, I’m not blocked, I’ve just been caught up in paying bills, and completing chores, and trying to do things that everyone else says I should do. Life isn’t always easy, but at the end of the day, or perhaps the beginning, we should do at least one thing – make good art! Thank you Neil Gaiman for your good words.
Now you can buy original and printed art by me on my Etsy store Tiana Kaczor Fine Arts. There’s still time before Christmas to pick up a hand printed photograph or a miniature watercolour. Or if you live near Vancouver, B.C. (so we don’t have to rely on mailing times) there’s even time to commission a watercolour or drawing based on a photo of your choice.
Visit my store here:
I’m still learning about the wonderful word of Etsy, researching how other artists and craftspeople list their wares, so it’s been a little slow for getting some of my art up for sale, but you will find a few items there now.
I’m listing a variety of mediums and styles in hopes of getting some feedback from window shoppers and buyers about what they’re interested in getting. Prices range from around $10 to $400.
I will be uploading more artworks for sale in the next few weeks, so keep checking back for new stock. Original watercolour postcards and vintage computer art prints are next on my list for stocking my shelves.
Ghost River Theatre’s David van Belle and Eric Rose have created a production that asks “What happens when you take a risk? What makes you take that first step from an unimaginable height? ” “The Highest Step in the World” is a one man show (David van Belle, who does a great job) with 2 men behind the scenes who make him fly. Based on Joseph Kittinger’s record breaking jump from a weather balloon in 1960, the play also includes the story of Vesna Vulovic, an airline stewardess who survived a fall out of a bombed plane, and the mythological characters of Daedalus and Icarus.
Sometimes people take risks and fail. On my way to the theatre I was driving around a tight curve to get onto the Queensborough Bridge. Traffic slowed and I eventually had to pass a semi-trailer truck lying on its side on top of the cement road dividers. The driver had obviously taken the curve at too high a speed and tipped over. Some of its wheels were still spinning. Emergency vehicles hadn’t arrived yet. When I returned across the bridge in the late afternoon after my theatre experience, I saw the truck being hauled away, the cab horribly crushed. I don’t know whether the driver survived. We take risks in our vehicles every day, and often don’t think about it.
Then there are the risks we do think about, like jumping out of a tree when we’re little, or creating a new piece of art. It can be as small as deciding to use a different colour palette when redesigning your living room, or as large as taking the steps to walk on the moon. Taking risks can be scary, but without it life can be boring. Without risks we would never have new inventions, or art pieces. We might never get married, or travel to a different country. I’ve always been a cautious person, but I do take some risks, and maybe it’s time to take a few more.
For you, why not take a risk in theatre and go see “The Highest Step in the World” on now until October 26, 2013, in Richmond’s Gateway Theatre. Here’s the trailer:
Over the last couple of years I have been fine tuning my beginners watercolour classes for adults and children. I usually start off with the same lessons for all ages, just moving a little faster, and into more detail with the adults. After teaching the colour wheel and basic brush techniques there are several lessons I run through. I have found that my own watercolour skills are always improved every time I demonstrate these lessons, and therefore recommend beginners and seasoned watercolourists to run through these simple “warm ups” every once in awhile.
Maple seed value study in gray watercolour.
The Value Sketch teaches us to look at the values in real objects and paint from life instead of a photo. I bring to class some simple found objects like leaves or maple seeds. Sometimes I have the students use only one colour, like gray, and then all they worry about is the intensity of the colour and watering it down for the light areas. Other times I have students try to mix the actual colours on the found object. We mix puddles of the colours in our tray, and leave room to add water for lighter values. Once the colours are ready then we can start the painting.
Value color sketch of maple seeds and feather
We start with a light pencil sketch. For young children I may allow them to trace the object so they don’t get frustrated with the drawing. Then we apply 3 or 4 layers of paint, working from the lightest areas of the object to the darkest. These are small paintings, so very little paint should be on the brush. We don’t want the colours to run. Then wait a couple minutes for the wash to dry before painting the next layer of detail. The last layer is the darkest areas and then the shadow under the object is added to make it look like the leaf or seed is sitting on a table.
The Value Sketch is a quick lesson so I usually do a second lesson in the last half of the class. Since you rarely use white paint in watercolours, but instead leave the white paper free of paint, it’s good to have an exercise that helps students be more aware of the paper and leaving areas blank. Negative space drawings can be taught if time permits, or you can go directly into an exercise of painting a white fence.
Fence Negative Space Watercolour
We start by lightly drawing the posts and rails using only one line each in the middle. It’s nice to give a little perspective as the fence goes away from you and perhaps add a gate. Next we mix our paint colour puddles, which are the colours of the background of grass or bushes. When we’re ready we can start by prepping the paper with plain water in each negative space area, or we can just jump in and start painting. Try to load enough paint on the brush so that you can finish a whole rectangular space between the posts and rails. Be careful not to get too close to your pencil lines as then you’ll have a very skinny fence! When one negative space is done then load up your brush again and paint the next one. Dip in different colours to add more interest to your background. Be careful not to have each negative space a different colour as that wouldn’t look natural, but instead dip into a second colour halfway through painting one area and work fast so the colours blend on the paper. When dry you could add some detail of grass blades in front of your fence. Then make your white fence 3 dimensional by choosing a direction for the sunlight and painting shadows on one side of each rail and post. When the painting is totally dry lightly erase your pencil lines.
If you have any questions about these exercises please write to me in the comment section. Some books I consulted while planning my lessons this past summer were: “Watercolour For Starters” by Paul Talbot-Greaves, and “Watercolour Challenge, Techniques in Practice” Channel 4 Books.
As soon as I saw the You Tube video “Caine’s Arcade” (thanks Astrid for the link) I knew I had to post a link on my website. I have to admit Nirvan’s movie brought a tear to my eye because I see so many children that are forgetting how to play on their own, creatively like we used to years ago. I used to grab old telephone parts and light switches and set them up underneath our picnic table, imagining it to be a spaceship, or boat, that would manoeuvre across the backyard lawn to new worlds in my mind.
Caine has taken the “lemonade stand” to a new level. Nirvan Mullick’s movies, and the Imagination Foundation, have helped create a cardboard wave of creativity around the world. Watch the second movie here and then check out the original on You Tube. Then go grab some cardboard and make something, no matter what your age is!
“Riley and CJ” by Tiana Kaczor, Fall 2012, pastel and conte. Click on images to view larger.
I had a commission that was a Christmas present, so could not post it online until after the holiday. I am now at liberty to share this work with you.
“Riley and CJ” posed a problem for me as I usually work from photographs that show enough detail so that I can create quite a realistic art piece. However the photo that was provided to me was very pixelated. I am not an artist who usually draws from my imagination, except in my private sketchbook, so I would not want to take artistic licence with this commission and just “make up” the details. Instead I decided to try a different style, working like the Impressionists with dots and dashes of colour, and a different medium, chosing pastels and conte. The client agreed to my style change and I set off to create a realistic drawing of a pixelated photo.
Tiana’s process of drawing Riley from photo and photocopy.
“Work with what you’ve got.” is a rule I follow a lot in my artmaking. Whether it’s taking whatever materials I can find to make an assemblage instead of buying special sculpture supplies, or using the qualities of a photograph to determine the detail and style of the image when put into a different medium like paint or pastel. Kind of a bit like that saying “When the world gives you lemons make lemonade,” isn’t it?
Stephen Miller and I were interviewed for “go! Vancouver” the morning of the BC Lions Society’s Terracotta Warrior Banquet and Auction. You can find the segment at the 3:55 mark in the video, after the yoga studio segment. I’m always surprised how long it takes to shoot a TV show or film. In this case I was there for over an hour, getting wired up, walking through different shots, and answering the questions. Thank you to Mana Mansour and her videographer for making this a fun experience.
Tiana creates during Steveston’s Grand Prix of Art 2012
A couple weekends ago I competed in Steveston’s Grand Prix of Art. We were told our location only minutes before the race, and then had 3 hours to complete a finished work of art, whether it be drawing or painting. http://grandprixofart.com/?p=890
This is the first time I’ve ever entered a plein air competition and decided to keep things less messy by using conte and pastels instead of paint. The weather was rather chilly and an hour into the race my fingers started to freeze up. Luckily my parents came by and brought me a hot chocolate. Thanks also to Eva at Cannery Cafe for offering to bring me something hot.
“Pieces and Points” conte and pastel, 8×12, for sale $200 framed, $170 mat only.
It was great creating on the streets of Steveston as it gave me direct contact with the public; art can be such a solitary activity a lot of the time, working away in ones studio. Thanks to everyone who stopped by to take a peek at my picture and encourage me to finish in the 3 hour time limit. It wasn’t easy working so fast with no break but I did finish “Pieces and Points” just as the Cannery horn blew to signal the stop of the race. The title was chosen because the store Pieces is in my drawing, and points refers to the pointillism style I used, which turned out to look a bit like snow falling. (Maybe that was subliminal because I was cold!)
Tiana at her station on Moncton for the Steveston Grand Prix
My 8″ x 12″ pastel and conte drawing of Moncton Street titled “Pieces and Points” is for sale at $200 framed, or $170 with just the mat.
Tiana Kaczor Fine Arts 