Sketching in France & Upcoming Workshop news

 

I just returned from an inspiring spring trip to France; sketching, painting, teaching and meeting fantastic folks everywhere. So many things to share. I was treated to a rare visit of an artisan paper mill near Bordeaux (Ruscombe Paper Mill), and they make some of the best handmade watercolor paper in the world. To meet the person making some of the paper I work on was an incredible experience. More on that soon.

On the workshop front, closer to home I will be teaching an Intro to Watercolor and Gouache painting Workshop in San Francisco next weekend (May 3-4, 2014) Please sign up, there is still time! And if you only have a day, you can come that day, Saturday or Sunday.

Art Show News

I am also pleased to be part of an upcoming group art exhibit with a talented group of painters - 'A California Spring' at Holton Studio Gallery - Opens May 3, 2014  5 to 7 PM.  Emeryville, CA  (Map)

I hope to see some of you there!

Artists exhibiting: Kevin Courter, Bill Cone, Sharon Calahan, Christin Coy, Mark Farina, Robert Flanary, James McGrew, Robin Moore, Paul Kratter, Terry Miura, Ernesto Nemesio, Paul Roehl and Richard Lindenberg

France Trip

Below are various sketching spots (Loire Valley (Amboise), Angouleme, Aquitaine region, Dordogne Valley) and absolute museum heaven in Paris (Louvre, Musee d'Orsay, and the Gustave Moreau Museum, along with Musee Delacroix). Last but not least, the spectacular cathedrals and chateaux were simply mind blowing in their numbers and layers of history. Chartres Cathedral is especially noteworthy along with the vertical rock-cliff wonder land of Rocamadour in southwestern France.

 

 

 

Cliff Painting in Gouache - Short Video

Cliff Painting in Gouache from Erik Tiemens on Vimeo.

 Pacific Cliffs - 11" x 13" - gouache and watercolor on blue-gray toned watercolor paper. This was traditionally stretched with gummed paper on gator board.

More Demo Videos on my website

Be sure to visit my website, www.watersketch.com to see more demos and workshop sign up info and available works for purchase.

Reductive lights and mixing Gouache with your Watercolors

Landscape with Fishing Barges at Low Tide

5" x 7" Watercolor and gouache on hot pressed paper 

I'm experimenting here with reductive sponging and lifting out techniques to reveal highlights in the initial gouache wash background. This works to introduce atmospheric texture and depth, especially in the lower cloud sections above the distant water. I like this approach, similar to a solvent/medium wash on canvas with oils; then later pulling lighter spots with a rag. After this I go over the blocked out areas with progressive layers of watercolor washes and gouache delineation. 

The roughly indicated foreground figures are in the spirit of 1600's staffage. Figures of different genres (workers, soldiers, farmers, etc.) that often decoratively populated Dutch Golden Age landscape paintings. These were typically done by other artists, collaborating with the landscape painter.  The specialist staffage artists you could say added the right amount of scale and interest to scenes that would otherwise be empty. Adriaen van der Velde is one of my favorite ones and a great painter and draftsman in his own right. He was especially gifted with subtle transitions of tone on animals and artisan/farmers that would seem to step into the 'theatrical spotlight'.

On the workshop front, folks are signing up. Please reserve your spot soon so you can be part of my Intro to Watercolor and Goauche Painting - Workshop. May 3-4, 2014, San Francisco, CA

In sharing more insights on this exciting combination of water based paints, I hope to bring dramatic improvements in your painting and technical knowledge on the matter!

Spring Workshop 2014

Intro to Watercolor and Gouache Painting - Workshop coming up May 3 - 4, 2014 
San Francisco, CA

You are invited to join in this upcoming workshop, perfect for covering the basics. I'll use a solid approach through multiple workshop exercises and show you clear examples via demos. We will focus on creating flat washes, gradated washes, wet into wet washes, brush control and mastering a better understanding of your materials to know what you can achieve.

Color and tone will also be an important area of study. Intermediate painters are also encouraged to attend and the environment will strongly encourage personal experimentation with teacher feedback. Paper, brushes and pigments will be covered too. Know the possible ranges of your tools and media to better achieve artistic excellence in your work. Gouache has a notorious reputation as being a 'tricky' medium. I will show you easy steps to conquer those challenges and embrace the wonderful variation found in mixing watercolor and gouache together, as so many great artists from the past did. Turner, Winslow Homer, Sargent and Zorn come to mind. 

I look forward to teaching new and returning students.

Sign Up Here! 


Tiburon Marsh - watercolor & gouache - 9" x 12" - hot pressed paper

Gouache Study

Recent gouache figure study from life with an added base of warm light grey and red earth tones. Transparent washes here and there. Thick opaque white gouache added in the brighter areas.  I used a small bristle flat brush which is well worn for textural effects.

Gouache & Watercolor on hot pressed Fabriano/Artistico paper. 9" x 12" - image is slightly cropped.

I look forward to meeting everyone who signed up for the upcoming Intro to Watercolor & Gouache Painting Workshop at the Gnomon school in Hollywood, CA - March 1,  2014! There is still room for more folks to join!

New Work Available

 

I'm excited to share that I will be selling original gouache and watercolor works on paper through my website. Please take a look!

Portfolio of Original Gouache and Watercolors for Sale

If you have any questions about the paintings I will be happy to respond through my website's contact page.  www.watersketch.com

Cliff Studies

Working from memory and on location, more cliff studies

 near the Pt. Bonita Lighthouse and Tennessee Valley beach (Northern California).

Watercolor and gouache. Top image - 5"x7" study for an oil painting. Middle image - 10.5" x 7" seastack rock form and surf study with additional block-in pictures.

Recent Work + Workshop News 2014

Detail of a recent gouache painting on hot pressed board - 5" x 7"

' Lake in drought conditions with distant ruins '

Exploring modern themes with a classical point of view. As we need the rain here in California I couldn't ignore the recent imagery of parched reservoirs throughout the state and beyond. In this piece I used both Titanium white (gouache) and Chinese white (watercolor). The latter is much more translucent as a watercolor pigment than the opaque white gouache. It is worth combining and experimenting with these different mediums in one painting.

On the workshop front, here is a link to the latest news for March and April 2014!

Classical Experiment on Plastic

Recent experiment with classical themes in miniature. Watercolor and gouache with small additions of ink on synthetic (plastic) paper (Yupo).  Invented Flemish Landscape  -  5.5" x 3.25".


Roman Arch in Ruins  -  5.5" x 2.75"- Watercolor and gouache with small additions of ink on Yupo paper. Yupo is very interesting to paint on, being that it almost doesn't work because it is so fragile. It is remarkable in how you can edit shapes by completely wiping them off with a wet brush and rag. But you have to be a surgeon to carefully glaze washes over the under painting. Like a high wire act, I relished this challenge in miniatura and hope to continue with more studies on such an elusive surface.

Creating Skies

Introducing a HD landscape painting video clip showing the process of creating cloud shapes and skies with watercolor and gouache. Roughly halfway the music gets louder, just to let you know. You can see the full resolution version if you click over to my Vimeo link.

Creating imaginative landscapes with skies in watercolor and gouache from Erik Tiemens on Vimeo.

Morning Fog Dissolves Away

 

A recent watercolor study of mist and fog, created in the morning light near Sausalito, CA.
5"x7" - Fabriano hot pressed paper. It was interesting working with more granular pigments (Daniel Smith - Lunar Blue W/C ) in the washes, which adds a bit of character to the surface.

Fog & Sun

 The other day I had a chance to paint in watercolors on location near the Golden Gate Bridge. The dance of light and fog melted the edges of the hillside above the cove. As a rapid study in light I was going for a rough impression, rather than documenting fine details. One of the most saturated color elements I saw were orange construction tarps, wonderfully backlit.

'Sunlight and Fog at Horseshoe Cove, Marin' -  Watercolor -9"x12" Fabriano - Artistico - Cold Pressed watercolor paper.

Upcoming Workshop - 2013!

Broaden Your Horizon - Painting Skies in Gouache, Watercolor and Acrylics Workshop - at The Fort Mason Center, San Francisco, CA this coming November 16-17, 2013. 

For more info and to sign up, click here!

Fall 2013 Workshop

I'm pleased to announce a new workshop, exploring the subject matter of skies and distant horizons.

Broaden Your Horizon - Painting Skies in Gouache, Watercolor and Acrylics Workshop - at The Fort Mason Center, San Francisco, CA this coming November 16-17, 2013. 

For more info and to sign up, click here!

"August Sky" - Watercolor with touches of gouache and small additions of watercolor crayon. Hot Pressed paper (Fabriano) 5x5.5"

Sky Sketches

Seeing how often there is variation in our local weather, I am thinking of launching a possible Mid–November 2013 Workshop that would focus on paintings skies, clouds and the effects of atmosphere on distant landscapes. This could be held in San Franscisco at the Fort Mason Center. I would also go over historical examples of artists capturing the fleeting changes of the sky. Any feedback or suggestions for workshop times/themes and mediums to work with are welcomed.

Painting info:

Top – Watercolor on hot pressed paper*  –  Middle- Gouache & W/C on hot pressed paper* –

Bottom- Watercolor with touches of gouache on cold pressed paper*

All - roughly 5x7 inches and available for sale.

*Fabriano block Watercolor papers

Summer Fog

Rapid watercolor and gouache landscape study. It was interesting to to see the frosted cream colored glass lamps be the lightest value in the scene and the grass beaming an intense viridian green under the overcast sky. This was painted in the spirit of the Dutch – Hague school (extreme in its greyness).  Starting with a cool grey gouache base I worked over this with additional washes and color notes.

Fluid brand watercolor paper block –cold press –  4 x 8 inches.

Finding the fog and wind was not hard today at Golden Gate Park, and wow it started to get cold. My daughter worked alongside me wearing a winter coat to brave the elements. This would be her second run with oil paints; using a small pochade box I gave her for her birthday as a mobile art studio. Once she was finished she was running around and rolling on the grass! How great to be seven.

Finding the unusual is something I like to seek out when sketching, especially when nature tries to make a comeback in disturbed or abandoned areas. In this case an active bunch of bamboo is over taking a shuttered sailboat rental hut. All varieties of old tech sprouting on the top of the structure breakup the boxy shape.

Materials: Carbon pencil, dip pen, brush, sepia ink and M.Graham sepia watercolor. Pitt pen and small additions of white gouache on Fabriano (Classic Artist's Journal) sketchbook cream colored paper. (6"x8" per page)

As a note anyone visiting NYC area this summer should see the Sargent watercolor show, amazing work in person! This is at the Brooklyn Art Museum and will go on to Boston's MFA this fall I believe.

ARC International Salon Competition

I'm very happy to share that I was selected as a finalist and received a Honorable Mention in the Landscape painting category for Art Renewal Center's 2012 / 2013 International Salon Competition.

With about 2000 entries from over 850 artists, I'm thrilled to be included in the Salon. This gives me further encouragement to pursue classical landscape painting in both oils and watercolor-gouache. My work will also be included in the upcoming Salon Catalogue.

Link: Honorable Mention in the Landscape Category

*Scroll down to the Landscape Section

Pt. Bonita Trio - Ocean/Cliff Gouache Studies

I noticed a big change in the weather today with clouds approaching quickly. I set out to create some rapid lighting and mood studies of the cliffs and ocean in gouache before any rain showers would pummel my easel. It was interesting to block-in three small images at once. Not being a slave to the location, I saw this as a chance to try variations on a theme. I took some video with a portable camera as an experiment as well. Here are some of the stills.

Locations and studies like this can serve as a point of inspiration later on with studio work or for commercial projects. Be sure to check out my new upcoming Inventing Landscapes Workshop - March 9-10, 2013 - SF, hope you can make it! I'm excited by the group who has signed up so far.

High Surf in Gouache

Painting in gouache and watercolor along the coast today. High surf conditions made for some beautiful fanning off the tops of the crashing waves. 4" x 9" - Sennelier hot press paper block. A few brave souls surfed well beyond the chop. I sighted a whale as well.

Big thanks for those who have signed up for the upcoming workshop. If you are thinking of signing up, please do!! March 9-10, 2013.

Inventing Landscapes Workshop – March 9-10, 2013 – SF

I hope that the holiday season is treating you well and wanted to share what I have planned for my March 2013 Workshop. It's a brand new theme, Inventing Landscapes!

Introducing an exciting new workshop that covers how to approach painting and sketching environments from your imagination. We will start with thumbnail sketches from memory, onsite notes and how to proceed to more resolved compositions with or without the help of photo reference. We will be using mixed media, such as gouache, watercolor and acrylics with pen and ink and pencil/markers to create new landscapes. Lighting and weather conditions will be heavily considered in our designs. This has practical applications for concept designers, fine artists, illustrators and for those who want to explore new subject matter in their work regardless of medium. Please join in for this March workshop to expand your artistic vocabulary, skills and see the world with a different point of view.


Come join me this March 9-10, 2013. Treat yourself or special friends and family (makes for an incredible Christmas gift!) to a fantastic experience at beautiful Ft. Mason, SF.
As you'll see on the below link, I was able to book the same time each day and am also offering a discount for returning students and full time students.

Sign Up Here!