Just before I started painting (6 months ago) I visited the RAA and drew the quad in a super-wide view. It took two hours and came out like this:
Today I traced a photo by holding the two sheets, taped together, over a lamp shade while wielding a propelling pencil. That gave me an accurate but possibly lifeless start to my painting. Here’s the photo:
And here’s my pencil tracing:
Here they are being separated, not really showing how you can see through when they’re together and brightly lit.
The next step will be to replace pencil tracing with Staedler liner pen, with two goals: first make a stronger statement, second, get a distinctive ‘line’ onto the paper that looks less tedious and more expressive.
As I do this it becomes clear that I have to press in and be bold to really change the line to something striking. But it’s looking good ax the contrast develops:
Q: Is this next one the finished ink line drawing? Now it occurs to me that I can always apply ink AGAIN after the watercolour is dry. So. One step at a time. I’ll now leave this alone until it’s Painting Time:
Ive yet to add a stony wash on the facade (darkening toward the bottom?) but I’ve now put in the paving, a sky (which was plain and fine until I tried to ‘improve’ it) and some shading and windows:
Finally completed shading & grime on the building; re-washed the sky; extra shade around Joshua to make him stand out; detailed the reflecting windows:
Conclusion: a lot of fiddly mess is never better than simple clean lines and bold simple use of brush and colour.
The final prints make a nice set.
