…or the art of failing. I’ve been dancing around this gentleman since yesterday and through the better part of this day. In the end SUS SCROFA definitely won.
The fact that distributing the values is the essential part of painting is even more painfully evident in watercolor. You cannot rebuild the inadequate part like you might with acrylics or oils. Attempt to redeem your mis-judgement and find yourself in the mud of the overworked layers of dead paint. You could say I premeditated an excuse for it by picking my subject, but no, it really was not intentional.
I meant to paint it with looser brushwork, in line with the COTTON STORY or REVEILLON, to make up for yesterday’s extra-stiffness of ACINONYX. I simply could not control the amount of water on that one and seriously muddied the vest of the archer. The belt pouch and arrows are probably the only points I kept sufficiently loose and fresh. Then I overworked the grass. At least I got to try the masking fluid for the very first time:-)
So while I did get some of the spottier brushwork back today, I keep missing the right values in the first or second pass. Which pushes me to build up layers of glazing, loosing the freshness and transparency so characteristic for watercolor. While the gloves or the blade of the hatchet go in the desired direction, the fur, and especially the ear, are solid examples of purest mud.
Back to the table, perfecting the art of failure.