Sunday 9 October 2011

The September Watercolour Challenge 2011: Bailey!

Bailey is a Star!

I have been literally inundated with gorgeous paintings of Bailey from the September Watercolour Challenge which I set on my blog last month. It has been really exciting seeing everyones' wonderful interpretations and for me an impossible task to choose one single favourite painting!


 
Bailey by Isabelle in France

I am opening this post with a painting of Bailey by Isabelle in France who caught the head of my comical dog absolutely perfectly. A simple palette  of  a few colours brings his character to life with a pose that screams " Bearded Collie".  There is no green background to detract from the subject and the use of white paper behind Bailey here enhances the  gorgeous brushwork  to represent his fur. This is stunning use of watercolour.Soft,technically fascinating and with a sense of movement in the coat.


Bailey by Jenny Hopkins

Amazingly Jenny captured Bailey in a similar pose using no green  as the background and allowing the white paper to do a lot of work in this composition. The  fur is longer and almost swaying to the side in places.  The colour used is slightly stronger than Isabelles which gives great strength to the result. Well done Jenny, I love this painting!


Bailey by Noelle in France

I must admit when I first looked at this painting  for the September Challenge by Noelle in France  I lost all thought about it being about Bailey. I love watercolour so much that when I see someone use the medium so softly with a wonderful effect as in  this piece I admire the skill behind the brushstrokes as much as the result. Noelle has chosen a very different palette and worked with the softness of the medium to create the feeling  of this huge shaggy dog. I love how little is here telling the story. I would change the shape of the nose to completely capture Bailey accurately but this is such a beautiful  painting which really portrays how  wonderful working in watercolour can be! Work by a very talented artist who is definitely one to watch!


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I will be sharing a new post on the September Challenge soon!

Thank you so much to everyone who has sent me incredible paintings. They are all really superb in  many different ways so the task of chossing just one has been far too difficult! 

Watch this space to see who will be receiving the set of cards!


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6 comments:

irinasztukowski said...

Oh My God Jean Bailey IS a STAR! For sure. Amazing how different artists can see the same picture so differently!
Thank you for sharing,
Irina

D-Ana Fernandez said...

Really it is very difficult to choose the one that more I like. They all look to me big works full of color and spontaneity. I want to see more. Have a happy week!

D-Ana Fernandez said...

Really it is very difficult to choose the one that more I like. They all look to me big works full of color and spontaneity. I want to see more. Have a happy week!

Isabelle said...

oh! Jane thank you for the honor you do me by exposing my watercolors on your site. this is the first made ​​on the day you threw the challenge, I've redone later but I thought it lacked the spontaneity of the first. thank you for your blog very educational and I look forward to your new book. again, thank you

Diana said...

I'm so sorry you had the flu, but am glad you are feeling better. I especially enjoyed your Post of Positivity, I've printed it out to keep. Love your blog and work, thank you for sharing. Love,Diana

Isabelle said...

Jane, j'ai été surprise et touchée de l'intérêt que vous avez porté à mon interprétation du Bailey. J'ai été bien tentée d'aller plus loin dans son expression et sa définition. Je suis très heureuse qu'il vous ait plu ainsi. Après ce premier défi, je me ferai un plaisir de participer à ceux à venir. Je vous remercie de votre générosité et de vous encouragements. Noëlle