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A Peek inside my Watercolor Journal, Alta Vista, Argentina

A Peek inside my Watercolor Journal, Alta Vista, Argentina

Painting of the Alta Vista Estancia

Fall is coming to Argentina and the colors of the poplar trees are starting to change.  We spent several nights at Alta Vista where we were warmly greeted by the hosts, Tamara and Frederico.  Alta Vista is a 60,000 hectare sheep ranch or estancia, which in Argentina means large farm or ranch.  It was built at the turn of the century and is located 20 miles west of Calafate in the Argentine Patagonia, and on the road to the Perito Moreno glacier.  Our rooms were delightfully decorated and this comfortable Patagonia estancia was a wonderful place for me to hang-out one morning painting the scene in front of me.

Tamara gave us a tour of the working part of the ranch where thousands of sheep are sheered every spring.


Playing with Color for the CREATE Retreat

Playing with Color for the CREATE Retreat

Rainbow Studies

Flip, Flaps and Fold-Outs

CREATE Mixed Media Retreat is two weeks away and I have been excitedly getting ready for my classes that I am teaching.  Even though the Flip, Flaps and Fold-Outs class is full, there are still a couple of spots left in the Rainbow Studies Class.  This class will focus on using the color wheel to create harmonious little watercolor painting studies.  If you struggle with color, this class will be of great value.  I look forward to meeting all the artists that will be at CREATE!

A Peek Inside My Provence Watercolor Journal, Flower Pots

A Peek Inside My Provence Watercolor Journal, Flower Pots

Flower pots of Provence

Here is a page from my watercolor journal that I just finished.  I had to add more darks and shadows and then finished up with some words in the spaces between my little paintings.  I consider this a study of different terra cotta pots that are found through out Provence.  While traveling and painting in your journals, consider doing a study of one item and painting it in different locations, colors and sizes. 

 What kind of paintings have you done that you would consider a study?

“Spring in Central Oregon” – Featured Painting

“Spring in Central Oregon” – Featured Painting

Spring in Central Oregon, watercolor by Jacqueline Newbold

The Assistance League of Bend, Oregon picked my watercolor painting, Spring in Central Oregon as their 2011 Kitchen Kaleidoscope Fund Raiser Event featured painting.  This fun event will be June 18, 2011 and will include a tour of seven beautiful homes located in North Rim and Northwest Crossing.  The Assistance League of Bend is an all volunteer, nonprofit organization consisting of a dedicated group of women with a passion for supporting the local community. Save the date for this fun event with a such a worthy cause!

Featured Artist at the Red Chair Gallery

Featured Artist at the Red Chair Gallery

This is me (Jacqueline) in front of my new paintings.

Art Hop night in Bend, Oregon was a fun event.  It was our first warm day in months and downtown Bend was the place to be! I was honored to be the Featured Artist for the Red Chair Gallery, located on the corner of Bond and Oregon Street in the historic O’Kane building.  My paintings will be up for the month of April.

Little Color Studies

Little Color Studies

I have been finalizing my palette colors for my trip to Provence, France.  I thought I would use my color wheel and do some quick, small color studies to see if I am loving the watercolors on my travel palette.  Here are two that I worked on today.

I have to record the colors that I use because I will forget what they were.  This is a good way to make a record of your favorite color combination.  Why not start a little notebook to keep your studies in.

Painting the Plants of Greece: Monkshood

Painting the Plants of Greece: Monkshood

Monkshood
Part of what I love about watercolor journaling is that it engages all my senses.  In order to paint a flower, like the Monkshood, I use my sight to tell me colors, shapes and value, but I am also experiencing the sounds and feeling the warm breeze along  the hillside. I also love that it takes me to new, as well as familiar, places.  I look for different ways to represent my life journey.  It a wonderful way to slow down and savor the moment.  I look forward to sharing this experience with you in Greece!  There are lots of techniques that I can show you that even a beginner to watercolor painting will return home an artist.  If you would like more information on how to join me on a Watercolor Journaling in Greece, please contact the American College of Healthcare Sciences.  The class is May 27 – June 2, 2011.

Capturing the Colors of Greece

Capturing the Colors of Greece

Red Roofed Church, Ano Syros, Greece

Part of the joy of painting on location on the island of Syros, Greece is to recreate the reflecting colors of the cobalt blue sky, turquoise ocean and the warmth of the sunshine on the white buildings.  Our watercolor journaling class will learn how to paint colorful whites using the local colors.

An easy way to paint a beautiful white is called Wet into Wet painting.  Wet the area you want to appear white with clear water.  Add enough water for the paper to be wet and shiny but not enough to make a puddle.  Then drop in little amounts of paint and let the water carry the paint around.  In this painting I picked the blue of the sky, the reds from the church roof and a little yellow to create the feeling of the warm sun shining on the white walls of the town.
If you are interested in signing up for this Watercolor Journaling in Greece Class, please visit the American College of Healthcare Science.
Part I: Paint a Tree using Watercolor and a Sea Sponge:

Part I: Paint a Tree using Watercolor and a Sea Sponge:

Everyone in my watercolor class really enjoyed this easy way to paint a tree so I thought it would be fun to share this idea with you!
I use very little water and a good sea sponge with lots of character.

  • First, take a spray bottle and spritz your watercolor paints on you palette.  
  • Get the sponge wet but squeeze out all the water and then dip it directly into the moisten paint.  I dip it first into cobalt blue then into Hansa yellow so that both colors are on the sponge.    
  • Starting at the top of the tree, dab the sponge on your watercolor paper, working your way down and making a tree shape such as a poplar or aspen tree.  Create a light side and a darker side to the tree.  
  • Before this dries, add a trunk and branches to connect some of the dabbed area.
  • Practice making more trees in the distance behind this first tree.  Let dry.
  • Tomorrow I will blog about adding the sky and background.   Please check back!

I would love to hear how this works for you! Also, I am thinking we should look for some sea sponges during our watercolor journaling class in Greece! 

More from our Travel Watercolor Journals, Provence, France. How to use paper napkins in your journal.

More from our Travel Watercolor Journals, Provence, France. How to use paper napkins in your journal.

Journal Page from on of my student’s watercolor journal

Are you an artist?  Do you love to paint on location?   The group of ladies that I took to Provence, France found that the more we painted the better we got.  No surprise, right?  Well it is so much easier when you have devoted a time to paint everyday and with a people that want to paint together.
One of the fun things we did was to search the little French shops for dinner napkins.  I found some that were a replica of Vincent Van Gogh’s poppy painting.

Here is how to use them as a starting point on a journaling page:

1.  Most napkins are made up of 3 very thin layers.  Peel them apart and glue the top one with the design on it on a page in your journal.  I used mat medium.  I painted it under and on the top of the napkin.
2.  Using the design as a guide, paint a similar design out past the napkin.  Take clues from the colors and shapes found on the napkin.
3.  Below is a page from one of my travel journals and shows how I used napkins to create a travel collage.  Can you guess which parts are the napkin?

Jacqueline’s Journal Page

We have room for a couple more artists to join us on our May 9-19, 2011 trip to Provence, France.  Would you like to join us?  Email me if you are interested.