Autumn 2006 Volume 4 No. 2 Page 6
Geoff Thorpe Photo: Di Alexander
WATERCOLOUR
Geoff Thorpe gave a masterly watercolour demonstration to a large audience of members at the July meeting.
THIS ISSUE PAGES
SHARON HURST - our June demonstrator - says "Do it for you - and stuff the housework"!
His East Anglian scene was painted without using a reference photo. Saunders 140lb Waterford and 300lb Fabriano rough are his preferred supports and a No. 12 squirrel mop and No. 3 rigger are his favourite brushes. He began with a pencil sketch of the scene and mixed a generous wash using at least a tablespoonful of water. He says that he uses St. Petersburgh White Knight paints.
The moment that Geoff mixed Ultramarine, Prussian and Cobalt blue for the sky I sat up and begin to take notice. Most artists use them one at a time, but Geoff mixes warm and cool colours together in the same wash. He used cadmium orange and light red in the lower part of the sky and ultramarine with burnt sienna in the darker parts, taking advantage of the roughness of the paper.
Geoff mixed several greens for the tree foliage: cobalt / cadmium yellow, ultramarine/ burnt sienna/lemon yellow and ultramarine/lemon yellow/burnt umber and for the tree trunks: ultramarine/burnt umber. Geoff pointed out that he used red tones between the trees - i.e. the complimentary colour to green - with warm shadows under the lighter foliage and neat broken lemon yellow on the grass around the trees. Geoff's rule is: warm shadow under cool foliage and cool streaks of shadow under warm foliage.
The middle-distance river banks were first painted with burnt umber/raw sienna and ultramarine/burnt sienna. Then a strong warm green of burnt umber/ultramarine/lemon yellow was applied to the left bank using sloping brush strokes. Vermilion was added the green in places. Cattle were suggested with dabs of cadmium orange. Geoff cut through the water and reflections in the foreground with a clean wet brush. Then he brought the painting to life with neat dabs of strong colour: lemon yellow, prussian blue, cadmium yellow, vermilion and vermilion/ultramarine applied with the rigger or with dry bush to river banks and foreground.
Geoff finished by advising us to repeat colours throughout a painting, to use large brushes with heavyweight paper and to always keep a sketchbook to hand. He made it look so easy, but he has years of experience. Many of us hope that one day, we will be able to paint like Geoff Thorpe.
DI ALEXANDER TAS Editor
