Hey Artist Babes! I hope everyone is busy being creative in all the different ways we know how. I have been busy working on painting 100 paintings for the
challenge I took up a little while ago. It's keeping me actively painting rather than procrastinating.
However, the one thing getting my goat lately is my materials. Having the right tools for your job is essential. Comfortable brushes, paper or canvas you can trust, and paints that are reliable every time are the things we, as artists, need to be some what happy with our work.
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Dark Apple in the Afternoon, 9x12 Watercolor
©2011 Dora Sislian Themelis |
I have not been that happy with the latest paints I've purchased. Needing more paint to keep working I bought MamieriBlu watercolor paints. In the past I have used Grumbacher and Windsor & Newton products. These new paints seemed exciting, even exotic. I thought I would replace my paints with this brand and maybe my art will really make me happy. Well, that didn't happen.
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Dark Apple, 9x12 Watercolor
©2011 Dora Sislian Themelis |
These are the paintings I did with the new paints. The trouble is the colors are not what I've been accustomed to with other paint companies. Alizarin Crimson is not what I expect the color to look like when I paint with it. Neither does Burnt Sienna, which looks more like Yellow Ochre. While I'm using them, mixing colors, applying the paint to the paper, I am not getting what I'm looking for.
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Other Side of Dark Apple, 9x12 Watercolor
©2011 Dora Sislian Themelis |
Each painting has been a struggle for my brain to understand what it thinks it's doing is correct. The colors are not there for me to chose. Try as I might, even though the outcome might seem to satisfy, it really doesn't. There's a disconnect. It's disheartening. Another artist/blogger coined the term The Paints That Annoy. It is so true.
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Dark Apple Hides Shells, 9x12 Watercolor
©2011 Dora Sislian Themelis |
And so I have decided to ditch these paints and buy the tried and true. I must be aware and purchase the professional grades of paints and try to identify the student grades. It's possible that's what I didn't do on the first go-round in the art supply store. The sales person might have told me which was which so I could make the right purchase to begin with. But I don't want to blame the sales people. I needed to keep my eyes open when buying new paint.
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Shells and Pebble, 9x12 Watercolor
©2011 Dora Sislian Themelis |
Until I go shopping I have eliminated the offending apple with the colors that were giving me grief. Just sticking to anything that won't give me a headache while I paint.
What's your experience with such things? Anyone else having these problems or is it just me?
Visit me at my blog http://CoffeeAndPaintDrips.blogspot.com
(Prices for paintings on request)
6 comments:
Wow! These paintings are beautiful. I think you are doing quite well with the tools you have... Thanks for posting.
I agree with Shannon, you are doing wonderful. But I can totally understand the disconnect between how you thought they would look and how it actually looked.
Good job though, keep painting!
Thank you Shannon! I thought I would gang up these paintings and post about them here while I fret over the paints!
Thank Yellow Door! I have to keep going!
You're paintings are really wonderful but you have to be happy with what you are producing. I am a long time W/N user but got Dr.PhMartin's watercolors for xmas. But I have yet to use them! i am so intimidated...? Anyway reading your post has inspired me to break them open this weekend. Lets see what happens. I have an ORANGE challenge that I'm trying out. You can see that on the right side of my blog if you are interested. I thought it was more my speed this month. I tried the month long challenge in NOV and that just wiped me out! Thats it for me. Take care and TGIF:)franT
http://louisegale.com/color-your-life/creative-color-challenge-2012/
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