Turquoise Dreams

Turquoise Dreams

Do you like turquoise?  I do.  It's a lovely color that reminds me summer, tropical waters and for some reason, exotic architecture.  I've had a tube of turquoise watercolor paint for a while now and haven't really used it.  It's a bit opaque but a nice rich color.  Let's use it in a painting and find out how it works...

There are many generous photographers who allow permission to use their images for artists without copyright infringements.  These are the unsung heroes for me and other artists.  While artists can freely use their work in our art, I do like to give credit where it's due.  With that said, I took my inspiration from a photograph by Kristin Wrisley from a Facebook group called Photos for Artists.  

The photograph just jumped out at me and I had to try my hand at creating a painting using it.  Architecture has always fascinated me. Happily, the photo actually had turquoise in it!  I liked the urban feel of the image, the wear and tear, the mystery of it.  

I wanted to keep the painting simple with few colors, so here's a list of supplies:

140lb. Moulin Du Roy cold press (16"x 20")

Canson Sketchbook

2B pencil 

Rubber eraser

Winsor & Newton Cobalt Turquoise Light

DaVinci Burnt Sienna

DaVinci Ultramarine Blue

No.8 Princeton Neptune Quill Brush

No.3 Creative Mark Quill Brush

No.10 Silver Black Velvet Round

No.6 Silver Black Velvet Round

Step 1

The first step was so see if I could draw it.  Using my trusty 2B graphite pencil, I sketched out an initial drawing.  It was a good image as it was, but I felt it needed a bit more life.  What better way to say urban life than by adding pigeons!  

Sketchbook drawing

Sketchbook Pigeon Practice

Sketching pigeons was the next move.  I needed to see if I could realistically add the birds to the painting vision in my head.

Step 2

With pigeon practice out of the way, it was time to lay out the drawing on watercolor paper, still using the 2B pencil.   

As you can see, I did change the initial drawing a bit.  I removed the pole and wire and made the center window my focus where the birds were going to sit.  I also added some pencil shading to a few places.  This will help in keeping those areas nice and dark after I apply my paint.  Yes, it is okay to shade in areas with pencil before painting (this technique works best when applying dark paint)!  

Watercolor Paper Drawing

Step 3
First, wet the paper everywhere except on the birds with the No.8 Princeton Quill .  The first layer of paint consisted of light washes of Burnt Sienna and turquoise with a little ultramarine thrown in for some of the shadowy places.  For this I used the No.3 creative mark quill brush.  The brush holds a good amount of water and paint for large areas.

Keep in mind where your light source is coming from.  In this painting it was up left.  I wanted to convey a very bright day so I kept the areas around the window light.  This was accomplished by the initial layer, so not too much fussing required.

I did not use a masking fluid as the areas of white were large enough to work around safely.

First layer of watercolor paint

Step 4
After the first layer completely dried, I added just a few touches of extra color and details to the outer window area with a no.6 Silver brush (using a mix of ultramarine and burnt sienna). 
Next, I darkened the window area of shadow.  I'm still using my No. 3 quill here.  I want to keep the background loose and let the colors mingle.  For the more darkened areas, a bit more ultramarine with my turquoise and burnt sienna was good.
After that was dry enough, I switched to my no. 10 silver round brush and started on my pigeons with an initial wash of colors.  For the darkest feathers I used a concentrated ultramarine blue and burnt sienna mix.

Second layer and initial wash for pigeons

Step 5
The last steps were in darkening areas where needed with color and adding more details.  The details in the birds and cracks in the plaster were all done using the No.6 Silver brush. 

Final details

Final thoughts
This painting was great fun to do.  The window was really fun and the pigeons gave it the perfect effect.  The colors where lovely and I may try to use turquoise in another painting in the future. It was also larger than I normally work so it turned out to be a great experience.
I had it matted and a nice frame for it done professionally.  This painting went in a gallery show I had in August.

If you'd like to see the finished painting, click on the FineArtAmerica link below!

Thank you and we'll see you again! 

Facebook - R.L. Davis Fine Art & Photography
Instagram - RLDavisFinArt
Twitter - Rebecca L. Davis
Pinterest - RLDavisArt
FineArtAmerica website Rebecca Davis