Watercolor Update (Final Version) April 3, 2008
Posted by Enas Yorl in Art.trackback
Hullo! No doubt y’all have been wondering “What’s up with Enas and that watercolor thing?”
Well, I’ve been busy working on a single painting. This one is a little considerably different from all the others. I’m not quite finished with it, but I thought I’d go ahead and post it anyway.
What is different about this one? It’s the first watercolor painting I’ve ever done where the source material is drawn entirely from my own imagination. The original is around 21 x 14 inches.
Take a look (clicky for bigger size):
****Update to Post****
I’ve replaced the almost done version with the final one.
I’m not real happy with it, but I’m not entirely disappointed either. I’ll have more to say about it later.
I like the tree and the mountain range but the land mass that the tree sits on kind of blends into the mountain range in ways that look ever so slightly off-kilter. That said, I think the sky and the shadows of the mountains definitely set a stark tone for the piece overall.
I’ve not done watercolor. Is it correct to assume that it is hard to change once you’ve put something to paper? Pastels, ink, and pixels are usually my media of choice. But I have a bazillion ideas on glass-carving and am saving up - let you know how that goes as events unfold.
Yah, the cliff is wrong on all sorts of levels and it’s the weakest part of the whole thing. I still have a few things to do and punching up that section is part of it.
The starkness was intentional and the tree is Life’s response: stark, but vital nonetheless.
Watercolor is hard in ways that drawing and painting (in other mediums) are exactly not, but is extraordinarily rewarding as a combination of the two when done well.
Some color you can remove later, others are “staining” and can’t be removed after applicaton or drying.
Stuff you do from your head is always more interesting, I think. But you have to do studies from life to put good techniques in your head, if you know what I mean.
Well done.
The tree looks kind of Menorah-ish with all the vertical branches. Then you’ve got the Holy Trinity of the roots. So you’re thinking the Judeo-Christian tradition is doomed?
Wow. Uh, no. Not anything like that at all actually, Geoff. It’s just a funky tree.
I like that tree.
Oh sure, “just a funky tree.” Like we haven’t heard the story of your random drawing (painting?) that turned out to be a self-portrait.
Just a tree indeed.
Nope, sorry. Just a tree. Hanging out all by its lonesome. Watching the world roll by.
Plotting revenge.
Oh yes - The Tree hates you. It hates you all and it will make you all sorry. Very, very sorry.
Yo Enas - we’re always our own worst critic.
Ok, it looks to me like you worked on the water a bit more. Is the tree’s shadow new or jazzed up?
It looks sharper, crisper. The mountains and hilltop are much more clearly defined.
Boy am I gonna feel foolish if none of those were changed, but it sure seems like those are what stand out. Would you perhaps have the old image to compare to?
Ah, so the vengeful tree is a metaphor for life in general?
All in all, not bad at all. Stark and surreal are a few of my favorites, so I’m going to be biased, but I like it.
Very nice work.
Nice Deb said I had to ‘tag’ five blogs for this meme exercise. I regret to inform you that your blog was one of five I chose at random from Deb’s blogroll. If you do not want to participate let me know. Thanks!
Details here:
http://onehorse.wordpress.com/2008/04/10/the-six-word-memoir-meme/
Enas, I am tagging you with the “six word meme” and please don’t hate me for it. Hate Bmac - who did it to me. So I copied his comment.
Rules here:
http://nicedeb.wordpress.com/2008/04/09/meme-six-word-memoir/
Hell - you got tagged twice, Enas. Just like cranky over at Balance Sheet.
Ya only have to do it once, though.
For some horrifying reason even though I know the word, I see the word “meme” and think of Mimi in The Drew Carey Show.
There’s your next challenge Enas - do Mimi in watercolor.
Ah no LK. I’ll not touch that with a ten foot brush!
And yes, those were the areas that got fixed up in this painting. Good eye!
There is no overt symbology here though. This painting uses imagery from two pencil sketches that were studies for other, bigger works that I never got past those initial study stages. This painting (and others to come) are my effort to revive those projects long shelved, but never forgotten. I’ll explain more fully in new posts.
If anyone ever starts a band called “The Suicide Trees” you got yourself royalty on the artwork for albums sold…
Mimi… I don’t believe you have colors of the palette to reproduce her… uh… hues. Nor enough paper, unless we kill a few more trees. I’ll get to that right after the seal hunting season is over.
I like it!