Painting – Ink pen base with watercolour
This was where things started when I created my painting using a line ink base. After the initial pencil sketch, I drew in the details with a fountain pen. Then I moved into the watercolour base colours. This wash will help in creating the light areas and depth as the painting progresses.
As this painting developed, I felt that it required more and more strength in colour, details and density to aid in keeping a balance with the heavier lines that seemed to project certain areas forward.
To avoid an imbalance of focal points I subdued some of the stronger elements at the front of the image, thereby allowing the eye to continue to flow around the image, picking up the many incidental details presented in this scene.
Progression of This Work
The concept for this painting began with a pen and ink version that I created. This was an illustration where the details and the information portrayed was simplified.
The reason that I didn’t want to include too much in the way of tables, chairs and secondary elements was because of the medium and style that I was using here.
By over-working this drawing, it could very easily become cluttered and congested.
Following the sketch style pen and ink, I decided to go full bore with this topic and create a complete full-size painting with colour.
So I began again with the fountain pen, drawing in all of the line-work, this time I kept all of the details in. In this painting I wanted to accentuate the terrace decoration, and keep those foreground chairs as the focal point (as they had been on the pen and ink version).
As always, I began with a wash of background tones before moving forward with the details ofin the painting.
In my final work here, I am happy with the depth that I was able to create with the variety of shades and highlights. I feel that the angle that I chose to recreate this painting is dynamic and adds to the emotions you feel when seeing this.
All in all, I feel that this is a strong and dynamic painting that I am happy with.
Below is a larger image of the underlying wash with the pen and ink work.
