Archway to Spring

Archway to Spring
Watercolor 11" x 15" Mats to 16" x 20"


The watercolor above, Archway to Spring, is an excellent example of the use of various types of masking and resists.  Liquid masking fluid was used to mask the bars on the window frame, highlights on the rims of the flowerpots, and areas for flowers in the mass of greenery on the left.

A "resist" was used to apply color and texture also.  The resist I used was oil pastels; however, good old Crayola crayons could have been used as well.  . The oil in the pastels acts as a resist when the watercolor paint is applied. Roughly dash in leaf shapes using light green for the tallest bush and darker green for the in the foreground. Drag pale yellow streaks across the stonework under the window. Put in some orange on the bricks and the flowerpots. Put in some light tones of gray or black on the stonework under the window.

Watercolor Tip
Do not paint all areas of the paper - let the painting fade into “nothingness” with little detail on the edges.

Happy Painting!