Venice in Watercolour : Wedding Anniversaries

Memories of Venice 

I had always wanted to visit Venice for as long as I can remember. One year I was sitting in our garden having lunch with my husband when he told me that he was taking me to the Opera for our Wedding Anniversary. My jaw dropped.

" You are kidding" was my reply. My husband hates the opera And for the life of me I couldn't imagine he would enjoy the experience wedding anniversary or not. But what he said next made my jaw drop to the floor.

" But we are going to see the opera in Venice"

I couldn't answer at first as he showed me the special trip he had romantically planned. We were going to stay in a gorgeous hotel,go to the opera and see all the sights I had longed to see. And the trip was magical.

I know I am so lucky to be married to such a wonderful guy. Who also accompanies me on my tours. I'm sure everyone who has met him will agree with me in that he is so fantastic. In every possible way.  And as I sit here  I am aware that in a few weeks time it will be yet another fabulous Wedding Anniversary. We will have been married for over forty years and if I could turn back time I would marry him all over again.

So whilst I am thinking of these very special memories it seemed right to paint and share one of my favourite sights from that first trip to Venice. The above painting . 

Memories of Venice
In love

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Venice in Watercolour 2016

  

 Venice on my Easel

A work in progress

 Having shared the small study of my idea recently to paint a scene from Venice I thought I would share the stages of the larger painting. Someone mentioned on my Jean Haines Watercolour Facebook page that this looked difficult. To be honest at first it might be but once you get used to working in my style you can adapt it to any subject at all. Including landscapes and architecture.

Stage 1. A Wash

For paintings of this kind I always start with a soft atmospheric wash. I choose colours that will help my finished painting sing with life. So they may not be exactly true to what I see, more likely they will be glowing colours that add to the beauty of my vision.

There is no preliminary sketch. Just my placing colour where I feel it works best for detail to be added to at a later stage.

 

 First soft wash.

 

Stage 2. Finding a Starting Point

 I need to find a starting point. You can easily imagine where this might be when it comes to painting animals.With them you might start with the eye or nose. But with buildings I usually find a section in the composition that appeals to me and work from there.

This is a complex scene so I have painted a few lines to give me a great base to work from and to give consistency to the piece in form.

 Lines added and hints of statues and windows.

Stage 3. Adding block of colour 

Next I add shapes.  Simple beautiful and odd shaped shapes! These will act as the base for my more intricate detail to be added as the painting develops.

 Adding painted shapes.

Stage 4 Adding Intricate Detail 

Now I take my time. I don't want to add too much detail, I don't want to add too little. I paint half a door, half a window, maybe all a statue in places only to be softened with water to create atmosphere.

This is all about personal taste. To some viewers the painting is complete long before this point. To others this needs far more information to be complete. The most important point is that I loved painting it and may continue to add tiny brushwork over the next few days.

Its' full of atmosphere at the moment. Time will tell when it is finished and I listen to my artwork. believe it or not it always tells me what to do next or when to stop. This isn't saying stop just yet!

 Or is it?

 Venice on my easel

A work in progress

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You can discover more about my watercolour techniques in each of my books available on Amazon.com

Venice in Watercolour 2016

Study in Light

Venice

It is impossible not to love painting Venice, especially when you work in watercolour as I do. 

This afternoon the weather is so awful here in UK that I needed to paint something light and with a feeling of strong sunlight. The opportunity to escape via the stroke of a brush is a magical feeling that I wish everyone possessed.

The above study was sheer joy to create. I have worked mainly in turquoise and gold with hints of violet. Using water far more than pigment gives the study an atmospheric ethereal appearance.

Now to paint a larger piece which I will enjoy, not race.

My solo exhibition " A Brush with a Woman" will be including a variety of subjects and this may be one of them.

I feel so happy when I am painting. As if I fall into another world. One full of beauty which tends to flow into the way I see life.

Beautiful.

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Dedham Hall Demonstration 2013

Venice in Watercolour

As I unpack from teaching my weeks watercolour course at Dedham Hall I am enjoying my demonstration pieces and the memories each holds.

Being in a room full of people who are as fascinated in watercolour as I am is a terrific feeling.  I gave daily demonstrations on  a wide variety of subjects including landscapes. I worked on the above Venice scene whilst surrounded by artists asking me questions while I tried to explain my method and colour choices.  I needed to discuss detail with one artist, another was lost on how to create exciting first washes. Individually I gave as much information as I could to each person attending. But there was one lady in particular who really is strongly in my mind right now. Esthe from South Africa, who had flown over for my course, was such a delight. With each of my new additions of colour or brushstrokes  she gave a wonderful "Wow" comment, encouraging me on  with my work and making me smile or laugh out loud.

There should be an Esthe in every art group.  Someone who loves life to the full and embraces every new day with passion and a thirst for something new.

How lucky I am to meet such incredible people.

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Wey Gallery Exhibition and Demonstration March 2013

Venice coming to Life

Architectural Watercolour

I am currently working on a  watercolour collection for my show in Godalming at the Wey Gallery this March. My solo exhibition will open on Friday 22nd March with a Private Preview. On Saturday 23rd March,  I will be giving a demonstration at the gallery, covering subjects in my way of approaching a watercolour.

This particular show is going to be a major 2013 event with many favourite subjects included in my new collection. There, as always, will be a few surprises. In recent years red dots have appeared very quickly at the  gallery openings,especially over the first few days. Please visit early if you are interested or call the gallery directly if there is a piece you may be looking for . There is a new "Lucky Hare"  and I honestly can't wait to see all the paintings displayed.

If you re interested in the Preview or the Demonstration  please give the gallery a call for full details.

http://www.theweygallery.com/

Italian Influences!

Venice In Watercolour

On my Easel waiting to be completed

I know everyone is expecting me to be sharing robins or even cockerel paintings at the moment but right now I am working on huge landscapes. The above painting is a smaller version of a large piece that has captured my heart today. I am in love with the Cerulean Blue pigment of the upper part of the architecture whilst a mixture of pinks give a warm glow to the facade. I am trying to avoid too  much in the way of  tiny detail in too many sections. Mainly as I do not  want to lose the spontaneity of the piece. Spontaneity which I could easily miss out on if I used a preliminary sketch!

There is so much life in this and a feeling of energy which is amazing considering I am working on a building. And so after working on the floor with this painting, I placed it on my easel to photograph and I now cannot wait until tomorrow to continue with this theme.

Whatever you are doing today I hope it makes you feel as happy as I do right now.

I heard "Atmospheric Watercolours" , my latest book is to be published in Italian next year so I am thrilled!

"Bridge Of Sighs"

"Bridge of Sighs"

Evolving as a watercolour and beginning to take shape as a painting.

My first week in my studio of 2011 has seen me  painting for exhibitions, preparing for workshops and projects next month along with replying to a large number of emails from my having been away recently for almost three weeks in Asia.

In between major paintings I have allowed myself time to work on a study of the "Bridge Of Sighs" which is a valuable process in that it opens my mind to new possibilities on how to approach a favourite subject. And life!  Taking my time to enjoy every single brushstroke has taught me so much about not only this painting but how much can be missed if we continually race everything we do and every where we go. It's been a touch of heaven to just add colour in small sections to this painting when the mood takes me. I have loved every second and thought behind each addition.

Those who follow my workshop schedule will already know I am holding a special workshop in February 2011 called "Beating the Blues".  In this session there will, as always, be a few surprises for those attending. I am looking forward to the day because I know it's going to be an inspirational event that will have everyone racing for their brushes long after the session has ended. Including me!

For many artists  of all levels finding the motivation to paint can sometimes be a problem. To others there is a lack of excitement or spark in how they feel about their work. To some who adore painting an added boost once or twice a year is a great treat and incentive to create watercolours that are unique and successful.

This is why each year I put together a workshop programme that hopefully is really magical, unique and appealing. Each day is an occasion to not only look forward to but know before you arrive the outcome will be that you are you painting non stop over the months following with both enthusiasm and passion. The emotions I feel when I  pick up my brushes or start a new painting session.

And now having typed this blog entry I can't wait to  pick up my own brushes and see what I can create today. I can already see singing clear colours full of life in my mind. And I have a choice of so many wonderful subjects to paint.

How great life is as an artist!

Close up of the play of light on the foreground wall in the " Bridge of Sighs" painting. 

The sunshine hitting this section really does make the colour sing and create very pretty patterns and effects when they dance upon the architecture.

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Watercolour Workshops 2011

For news on watercolour  workshops,demonstrations and projects for 2011 please contact 

jeanhaines@hotmail.com

Autumn Session information and dates 2011 will be available soon.