Autumn mood

 

Now it is really autumn, not only on the calendar but also outside, with rain, wind and dropping temperatures. The inspiration to paint flowers is far away now, I have been browsing my archive of mushroom pictures for  this watercolour painting.

The reference picture was made a few years ago and I have forgotten where this was. It was a forest - but we have been walking in many forest or woodland areas over the past years.

This is a large group of mushrooms and those in the foreground were already withering when the picture was made. They were growing on a piece of dead tree that was on the forest ground.

For the background I have chosen colours that are also seen or used in the mushrooms. The mushrooms are painted in way that is very close to reality.

The information about the paper and paint I have used, the size and availability of this watercolour painting can be found in the link at the 'Galerie' page of my website www.jannekesatelier.webs.com

Rose hips

 

After the beautiful rose flowers have withered, there is another thing that inspires me to paint and that is the beauty of the rose hips. During a short walk close to our home I made some reference pictures of rose bushes with lots and lots of rose hips and I have made a mixed media work inspired by these pictures.

I have changed the colours to a yellow background, anticipating the autumn colours. The background is made using watercolour paint and a lot of water. Gravity did most of the work here. 

After the background had dried, I decided on my composition. When I make a watercolour background using this technique, there is a lot of 'chance' in the result so I place my subject on the best spot of the under painting.

Only one branch situated on the side of the bush, with some leaves and lots of rose hips is my subject, but I have added the suggestion of more branches and leaves for the sake of my composition. This is all made using my watercolour pencils.

For the branch and the berries I have layered the colours to achieve the results I wanted.

Because I have used textured paper, this will always be visible, but where I have used more layers of pencil the texture of the paper will be filled completely without leaving white parts in the shape of the berries, leaves or branches. I like to work with these contrasts.

The information about the paper, paints and pencils I have used, the size of the work and its availability can all be found in the link at the 'Galerie' page of my website www.jannekesatelier.webs.com

Groynes in the river

 

In the rivers near my home are groynes to regulate the current and to mark the channel for the many ships that use our rivers for transport. When the rivers are closer to the sea they have quay walls and thechannel that can be used for transport is almost as wide as the river itself.

I like the parts with the groynes better, they look more natural, even though you often cannot walk there, these areas are often protected.

The september challenge of  'Goed gezien - Goed Bekeken' is "You can find me by the river" and I have decided that these groynes (that can be found by the river) are my subject for this challenge. I have been looking for reference pictures in our photo albums and I have combined some memories in this composition.

As the river and the groynes are my subject, I have simplified the bushes and fields.

The fact that I have tried to improve my skills in painting water during my painting vacation has helped me here, I had much more confidence about the river so it was not overworked.

The information about the paper and paints I have used, the size and availability of this watercolour painting can be found in the link at the 'Galerie' page of my website www.jannekesatelier.webs.com

Timber

 

When we are walking in a woodland area, we always see stacks of timber waiting for transport. This time, walking in the 'Kralingse Bos' - a woodland area in Rotterdam - we saw a stack with some really old trunks that were already in decomposition in it. It had been raining, so part of the wood was almost black and there were a lot of herbs growing near this stack.

I felt inspired to make some reference pictures and climbed around this stack of timber to have pictures from all sides. 

The idea of working with charcoal on tinted cardboard came while I was making these pictures but when I was trying to find the right composition my husband suggested I should try to add watercolour pencils (these are the only coloured pencils I have).

Of course this was an experiment for me and a challenge. The chosen composition is almost abstract and that is not my usual style.

I selected a sheet of tinted cardboard  in a medium brown colour, so I could add some darkness with the charcoal where needed and the light green of the leaves would still be visible.

I started drawing the leaves and stems of the herbs with the pencils and added charcoal later. While I was working, I found that I could work with the pencils over a surface with a little charcoal on it, so I could add some depth in my drawing.  The patches of moss on the timber were not so easy, I have to practise a bit more on that.

The timber is done with charcoal and at first I despaired if it would ever be right, but halfway I got courage - things were looking good and I grew more and more confident about the way I had to draw these sawn off tree trunks.

This was an experiment for me and I am very happy with the result. 

The information about the materials I have used, the size and availability of this drawing  can be found in the link at the 'Galerie' page of my website www.jannekesatelier.webs.com

Mushrooms - end of summer

 

My first mushroom painting of this year. 

There will be more mushroom paintings in the next months as I hope to make some nice reference pictures during our walks. The reference picture for this watercolour was made by my husband a few weeks ago.

The picture shows some large white mushrooms and dark green nettle leaves. 

As the mushrooms were pictures from above, it was not really easy to paint them as recognizable mushrooms. I have added some extra leaves, stalks and shadows to turn this scene into a better painting. Yes, there was a challenge here.

The contrast between the light mushrooms and the darkness of the soil and the nettle leaves was what made my husband make the reference picture in the first place so I have done my best to emphasize that contrast in my painting. 

I have used a small size paper and some dark colours that are relatively new for me.  The result is what I hoped it would be and I am inspired to use these colours more often.

The information about the materials I have used, the size and availability can be found in the link at the 'Galerie' page of my website www.jannekesatelier.webs.com