Go bold or go home

Key West color

I have had a very hard time with this watercolor and that is probably a good thing. The first day I put on the color it turned out to be way too bland. I let it sit overnight and the verdict was the same. I decided to just get bold and get on with it. Key West houses are just not blah.  I slapped on more of the pinkish/lavender onto the shutters and added some to the shadows on the porches.  I added more depth to the foliage and put in some white highlights.  I used muted colors for the side street house, but not too muted.  I have added a bit more ink to redefine certain areas of the trees.  I am trying to use looser, less deliberate brushwork so I don’t over think it – always a problem for me.

Lately, I have been thinking about this art journey I’ve been on.  In the last three years of blogging, I have worked on more projects than I off hand can count. And do you know what?   I think I actually have improved some.  It occurred to me after I finished the last two pet portraits that I felt pretty good about them.  A few years ago I felt that my animal work had lost its vitality and was depressed about it.  Now, I am l happy to work on them again.

I do have a degree of confidence in the ink/pastel architecture work.  I have been doing them for going on 30 years now so I hope they are somewhat respectable.  LOL   I wish I could find the very first things I did for my husband’s building company, but they are long gone.  They were truly awful, but part of my learning process. I do think that the abstract streetscapes have helped free up my technique and the current watercolors seem to be moving in the right direction.  Who knows where I’ll go next.  Thoughts, anyone?

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