Tag: ink and watercolor wash

flower sketchbook drawing

Year End Review and Lost and Found Artwork, Part 3

flower sketchbook drawing
©2017 Carolyn A Pappas, Exuberant Joy (1/28/2017). Stabilo Point 88 pens, watercolor and rubber stamps in large moleskine.
tulips sketch
©2017 Carolyn A Pappas, Tulips (5/11/2017). Stabilo Point 88 pens and watercolor in large moleskine.
dichondra argentea garden sketch
©2017 Carolyn A Pappas, Dichondra argentea (7/14/2017). Ink and watercolor in large moleskine.

This is my last post of the year where I’ll review 2017 and look ahead to my art goals for next year. This is also the conclusion of my round up of unposted artwork from the past year. The above images were sketchbook pages in my large moleskine done from life. Even though my time was limited, I worked quite a bit from life over the course of 2017, which I am proud of and want to continue into the next year.

My goals for 2017 were to finish my nursing program and to incorporate more art into my life than I did in my first semester. I was successful with both of these goals, although my art activity fluctuated with my school schedule and I often went long stretches with no art making at all. My most productive times were in August and the end of April to mid-May, which coincided with my semester breaks. The least productive times were in September and November, which were also some of the busiest times of my entire nursing program. I posted to my blog 23 times this year, although 4 posts were written and pre-published the year before.

For 2018, I would like to work on making art on a more consistent schedule. I have some longer term projects/series that I am planning, but I need to create a lot of new work on a consistent basis to make my plans a reality. I also want to work more from life when possible. I did a lot of small nature studies this past year and I would like to continue on that theme. I also let my email newsletter fall by the wayside while I was in school and I want to start sending that out again.

I’m looking forward to an exciting year ahead. I hope everyone reading this joins me in having a productive, prosperous, and fulfilling 2018!
gnome art

Gnome in the Woods

gnome art
©2017 Carolyn A Pappas, Gnome in the Woods. Ink and watercolor, 4.5 x 5.75 inches.

This is a small pen and ink and watercolor that I did last winter while I was on semester break, halfway through my nursing program. It was drawn partly from life and partly from my imagination (obviously!). Two weeks ago, I finally graduated from school and I am looking forward to huge changes for 2018. I am feeling relieved, excited, and a little scared all at the same time. In terms of my artwork, finishing school will mean that I will have more time to paint, draw, and do other creative projects.

I hope everyone had a relaxing festive season. I love this time between Christmas and New Year’s—it is when I review my past year and strategize for the upcoming one. Over the next few days, I will be posting all the remaining work from this year that I haven’t posted yet, along with a review of 2017 and some of my art goals for 2018.

blue spruce drawing

Blue Spruce Nature Study

blue spruce drawing
©2017 Carolyn A Pappas, Blue Spruce (Picea pungens). Sepia ink and watercolor on 5 x 7 watercolor greeting card.

I found this little sprig and a couple of pine cones last March when I was taking a walk with my daughter. I painted in the shadows this time, which added a different element.

School will be wrapping up soon and I’m going to be glad to have a break. I’m already making a list of art plans for 2018—I’ll have a lot more time for artwork and I’m getting excited. During the winter, I’m planning to do more nature studies like this so I can work indoors from life.

landscape sketch

Lost and Found Artwork, Part 1

My three week summer vacation went by way too fast and now I am back to school and pushing through my last semester. Although I did a lot of drawing on my vacation, I have gotten out of practice and don’t have a lot of work to show for it. I did find some artwork from 2016 that I never posted before. Here they are and thanks for visiting.

landscape sketch
©2016 Carolyn A Pappas, Windy Day (5/14/2016). Pen, watercolor and rubber stamping in large moleskine.
weeping katsuratree
©2016 Carolyn A Pappas, Under the Weeping Katsuratree. Pen and ink and watercolor wash on 5 x 7 inch greeting card.
watercolor garden sketch
©2016 Carolyn A Pappas, Watercolor Garden Sketch (December 2016). Watercolor in large moleskine.
mixed flower sketch

Small Travel Break

mixed flower sketch
©2017 Carolyn A Pappas, Medley of Flowers at the Party (8/20/2017). Ink and watercolor in large moleskine.
mixed flower sketch
©2017 Carolyn A Pappas, Evening Sketching at the End of the Party (8/20/2017). Ink and watercolor in large moleskine.

I had a chance to travel to Pennsylvania for my childhood friend Gwenn’s engagement party (watch a cute video of her engagement story here). I haven’t been to visit for 10 years, so it was really nice to see a lot of people and places that I remember. I sketched a selection of flowers from the arrangements at the party in ink and added watercolor at home.

I read Austin Kleon’s Steal Like an Artist on the drive down to Pennsylvania and the followup Show Your Work! on the drive back to Massachusetts. I highly recommend both as they were quick, yet power-packed reads. There was more information in Steal Like an Artist that was new to me. I found myself using the highlight feature on my Kindle often as I was reading. Since I have gotten back home, various concepts from these books have often come to mind.

new guinea impatiens drawing

One Year Ago Today: New Guinea Impatiens

new guinea impatiens drawing
©2016 Carolyn A Pappas, New Guinea Impatiens (8/4/2016). Colored pens, watercolor and rubber stamping in large moleskine.
This was a disjointed sketchbook page, as life got in the way as it often does. I remember going out into the back garden to sketch after a rough day at work due to short staffing. Midway through my drawing, the day caught up with me and I became so fatigued that I had to go inside to sleep. Two days later, I remembered my unfinished page and went out into the garden early in the morning to finish it off.

solstice sketch

Sketchy Sketches

solstice sketch
©2017 Carolyn A Pappas, Solstice Garden Medley (6/21/2017). Ink and watercolor in large moleskine.
fountain sketch
©2017 Carolyn A Pappas, Pliny’s Fountain (7/1/2017). Ink and watercolor in large moleskine.

Dismiss thoughts of ‘good, bad, right, wrong, success, failure’ – be spontaneous. -Josh Goldberg

Even in my sketchbook, I tend to be very precise and make slow-going, detailed drawings. These two pages were exactly the opposite for a change. I drew the flowers while sitting on my front stoop and the fountain while sitting on a bench in the woods (getting bitten by mosquitoes).

tree bark lichen sketch

Small Scale Specimens Drawn from Life

I spent a lot of time making slow-paced drawings from life during the break between the spring and summer semesters. These two drawings were of some things I found on my daily walks with Cate. I realized first hand how my eyes have changed as I’ve grown older–they don’t accommodate so well to looking through a magnifying glass. I had to take multiple breaks to rest my eyes.

tree bark lichen sketch
©2017 Carolyn A Pappas, Tree Bark with Lichen (5/1/2017). Ink and watercolor in large moleskine.
crassula mucosa sketch
©2017 Carolyn A Pappas, Crassula mucosa (5/2/2017). Ink and watercolor in large moleskine.

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hibiscus sketch

Trying out new paints: Prima Marketing Watercolor Confections

Recently I got an email from a reader asking me what brand of watercolor paint I use. I generally use Winsor & Newton and M. Graham, but I recently purchased a new set of watercolors and spend the last few weeks testing it out. I originally heard about this set on the Artist Journal Workshop facebook group that I am a member of (a great resource for hearing about new supplies).

The watercolors are made by a company called Prima Marketing based out of South Korea. The set comes with 12 half pans in a handsome metal enameled tin with a numbered color chart that fits nicely in the box. There are several sets available: The Classics, Tropicals, Decadent Pies, Shimmering Lights, and Pastel Dreams. I decided to go with Tropicals. Upon reading the reviews, some of the colors in the other sets are metallic so be aware of that.

The paint is advertised as being professional grade, but I beg to differ. The paints are numbered and there is no pigment information listed, which is a red flag. I was able to find this lightfastness chart, but the color names sound more like makeup than paint names (e.g., lilac rain, pool party, etc.) I, like many others, bought the set solely for the tin with the intention if filling it with my own paints later on. The paints are actually not that bad though, and I will definitely use them in my sketchbook, where I am not concerned about lightfastness. I was able to mix all sorts of muted and intense colors. I especially like #16 (avocado) which is a pale yellow green and nice to mix with blue or brown to make some nice earthy greens.

The best thing about this set is the price, which is very reasonable and worth it for the tin alone. This would make a nice gift for a budding child artist or someone just getting introduced to watercolor who was hesitant to spend a lot of money.

I used the paints for the following sketchbook pages. I also included an image of the color chart that came with the set.

hibiscus sketch
©2017 Carolyn A Pappas, Hibiscus Study (4/21/2017). Watercolor (with notes in ink) in large moleskine.

camellia japonica sketch
©2017 Carolyn A Pappas, Camellia japonica (4/27/2017). Ink and watercolor in large moleskine.

prima marketing watercolor
Prima Marketing Tropicals color chart