Woody's Watercolor Blog

SPECIAL NOTE: Watercolor Workshop and Class Information. Click here for details

Join fellow watercolorist David Peterson and me as we again participate in major events at the California State Fair!

David and I will be doing continuous indoor watercolor demonstrations on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, July 17, 18, and 19. We’ll do our best to inform and entertain at our special booth. We’ll be there from opening to closing each day. Look for us in Building 7, Expo Center. We’ll be happy to answer your watercolor questions, tell you about private and group workshops, regional art groups, paint-outs, and/or discuss/debate all things watercolor. Join us with an open, inquisitive mind and your time will be well spent.

What you see and learn might just surprise you. Similar to last year, we have a few surprises up our sleeves! And, each of us will have lots of original watercolor works on site for your viewing pleasure and purchase (think outstanding fair prices). It will be a great fun and informative special event for people of all ages! So when you visit the California State Fair, please be sure to visit us!

IReginster for my Mt. Shasta Outdoor Watercolor Workshop JULY 10 & 11 – all levels welcome. More HERE!

Manzanar Transfiguration. DETAIL. Original watercolor by woody Hansen
(Click image to view entire painting)

I painted this piece on a Sunday afternoon at the recent Henry Fukuhara Manzanar Watercolor Workshop. This is one of several paintings from three different locations, a working ranch, the Alabama Hills, and Manzanar..

Overall, the workshop weather was exceptionally pleasant, in the low eighties each day. Although, the infamous Owens Valley-Manzanar wind kicked up a bit Sunday afternoon. As a result, I painted this outdoors but not on site. But then, I – for some time now – rarely paint in front of my subject. Instead, I prefer to work from a value sketch done on site. As I’ve noted before, once one has a value sketch the painting can be painted at any location. In this case, Manzanar Transformation was accomplished outdoors, in a wind protected area of the motel at which I was staying.

There’s an old saying that a watercolor painter is wise to remember that “less is more.” Henry often spoke of that saying. In this case, if there were much less there would be no painting at all (ouch)! In tribute to Henry, I modified my original sketch by adding the Manzanar cemetery monument. I also was careful to accentuate the corners of the guard house roof. I have fond memories of Henry lecturing us about the “correct” way to paint that particular roof. There’s more to the story, but that mighty best wait for another time and place.

The last strokes added to the painting are those two oblique lines near the lower center on the right side of the painting. Despite the initial appearance of being of little significance, I believe those two simple marks are, in actuality. major – not minor – parts of the whole design. Less is more.

For more information, including price, and availability, click here

Reginster for my Mt. Shasta Outdoor Watercolor Workshop JULY 10 & 11 – all levels welcome. More HERE!

Tucans. DETAIL. Original watercolor by woody Hansen
(Click image to view entire painting)

Ah, yes, my love affair with trash cans continues (ore correctly my love affair with 55 gallon oil drums continues. Over the years,I’ve painted this trash can several times. However, this time, I transgressed to the point of placing the can in the center of the painting (oh, no, say it isn’t so)!

What’s with the title? “So nice of you to ask,” he said. I thought I cleverly titled this piece Tucans, after a song of the same name. Apparently not so, as I am no longer able to locate a song of that title in my vast collection of awe inspiring music. I must have been hallucinating! So, the joke’s on me. Lesson learned? Leave the insightful humor and tongue in cheek to the pros. Still, there is the thing about Tu Cans (Two Cans). (insert laugh track here)

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Laraine’s Trees. DETAIL. Original watercolor by woody Hansen
(Click image to view entire painting)

This is a multi-layered piece with an emphasis on what is often referred to as calligraphy. The painting was accomplished in about two to four layers, with calligraphic marks added a various stages of the layering process. The watercolor was painted on location. I began with a small linear sketch (similar to a contour drawing) to which three values were established, the white of the paper, a mid value gray,, and a solid, or near solid, black. Using the value plan as a guide, I applied paint to the paper without any preliminary pencil or pen drawing. The shapes were blocked in first, after which calligraphic marks, or lines, were added to embellish and unify the composition.

As an aside, I am often amused and sometimes annoyed by those who maintain line should not be used in watercolor painting as if it were somehow akin to cheating. Worse yet are the confused who maintain artists should not use lines to delineate shapes because there are no lines in nature. It doesn’t take much intelligence to realize the fallacy of that kind of thinking. These poor souls, and societies, are illogical thinkers, apparently ignorant of, or choose to ignore the Elements and Principles of Design as well as basic art history.

The subject material for Laraine’s Trees is located along the American River in Sacramento, Calif. For those who care, the exact location is near the Watt Avenue entrance to the American River Parkway, about two to four city blocks west of the boat ramp at the west end of the parking area.

I did an earlier painting, Nature’s Bridge based on the sane subject matter. That painting can be seen on my web site here.

Yah, but …. DETAIL. Original watercolor by woody Hansen
(Click image to view entire painting)

It’s a bit difficult to avoid passing judgment on this particular painting. I need to remind myself not to judge it, not to overly criticize it, , but to try to appreciate it as is.

Yeah But …, seems to project a happy, rather carefree atmosphere. I appreciate the fact the painting contains a dark, a light, a bright, and a dull. It has a variety of interesting shapes. I appreciate the warm temperature, and the dominate red of the painting. The values seem to work okay too.

The main flower shape? Let’s just note it is somewhat more difficult to appreciate. However, I do find the shapes in the above DETAIL extremely satisfying. Ah, yes, those shapes are very easy to appreciate (grin).

This was a demo piece. The thought process here is to translate an abstract suggestion or impression of a red poinsettia without actually painting the bloom red.

We might think of this composition as a large light shape (main flower) with smaller light (white) and medium (white and green) accents over a large darker shape (red and black checkerboard background).

Yeah, but …

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Painting In The Rain. DETAIL. Original watercolor by woody Hansen
(Click image to view entire painting)

This watercolor was painted outdoors last Friday morning (during Free Friday), in a continuous light rain near the Watt Avenue American River access (Sacramento). About eighty or ninety percent of “Painting In The Rain” was painted on location with finishing touches applied later that afternoon, and evening in the studio environment. The outdoor stage can be seen here.

I’ve painted in heavy, cold fog, high wind, even in freezing conditions, and falling snow. I’ve also painted in the rain while set up under bridges and trees, but this is the first time I recall actually standing out in the open and painting while rain continuously fell on my paper, etc.

I’d lay on paint, the rain would disperse the paint, I’d add more paint, and the rain did it’s thing, and on and on. The outdoor element certainly contributed to the glorious properties of watercolor. I guess one could call this a collaborative effort between nature and painter. All in all it was not an unpleasant experience, and was definitely something I have wanted to do for some time. Mission accomplished (to one degree or another)

For more information, including price, and availability, click here

To learn a bit about the creation process of this painting, follow this link.

Gambatte 3. DETAIL. Original watercolor by woody Hansen
(Click image to view entire painting)

Gambatte 3 is the third of three paintings based on the sketch seen in the post Gambatte 1 (scroll down). This piece turned out to be a demonstration painting for one of my indoor watercolor classes.

I began by transferring my small value plan free hand onto a sheet of 140 pound paper. I then brushed in my first and second layers of colors which turned out to be somewhat similar to the previous two paintings.

In an effort to discover a new path, the painting was inverted. I then sorted through a group of patterns cut from old, newspapers. The idea here is to find a dark value pattern with interesting shapes which might be compatible with the original design.

Once I found a pattern to my liking I superimposed it into the design of the rectangle. Shape, value, and color combine to make a translation rather than a transcription. I believe the result is a strong, bold, dramatic painting not of what is, but of what might be or ought to be. Am I right? As a wise old sage once said, “We’ll see.”

For more information, including price, and availability, click here