I had a lovely weekend in the City, meeting up with family. I even managed to get in a painting, which was a huge bonus.
Here's yesterday's artwork (completed in Duke Street Caffè Nero) after breakfast in the city and then some shopping. It's on Bockingford cold pressed acid free 300 gsm (10 x 7 inch) traditional watercolour paper. Using professional quality Winsor & Newton; Winsor Blue Green Shade (one of my favourite colours), Lemon Yellow, Alizarin Crimson, Ivory Black, and Yellow Ochre. Albeit the yellow ochre was more about the horizon.
In general terms (unless you're trying to create deliberate angles and cropped sections of a scene, or close in on the action on the high seas) water is self levelling and the horizon should be flat. Which is fine if you have a ruler or have marked out the backing card of another watercolour block or pad, but is a tad awkward if you've got nothing to use, including no pencil. At which point I used the end cap (without the water of course) of my watercolour Field Box, and dabbed Yellow Ochre here and there as I moved the cap along inline with the edge of the paper. I then joined up the dots when I started on the sea part of the painting. This meant some yellow ochre showing through on the horizon, which I overcame by using yellow ochre in a few places elsewhere on the sea.
Photograph: Cormorant in flight across the bay
All rights reserved RBA Bennett, i.e. ArtRba
I bough the Bockingford pad from a lovely Art Shop called Pen & Paper in if I recall correctly, the Royal Arcade. I always buy something in there whenever we visit, as it's very important to support specialist high street shops who have to compete against Internet prices. The thing is; once they're gone, they're gone, and I defy you to obtain the level of knowledge these Art Shop owners have elsewhere. Yes you may occasionally save a few bob, but you don't always guarantee original or even new stuff, and the subtle difference pays for itself. 'How?' I hear you ask. Well, it's simples, all that knowledge that you squeeze out each visit, is free of charge, which is gobsmackingly cheap compared to the cheapest adult Art Courses at more often than not £100 a pop.
