Jun 16, 2018
In the progression of the watercolor painting of the Iris, after the faint pencil drawing, I went ahead with the "block in" of the shadows on the flower. It is a little tricky, I did not want to go too dark too fast in values but on the other hand did not want to go back and disturb the underlying washes by going over them again. This would lose the freshness. Also wanted to variegate colours to provide life and interest, but again had to be careful and restrained otherwise I would muddy the colors. This is a fine balancing act. To avoid ugly "blooms" or "cauliflowers" made sure the correct pigment/water mixture was added at each stage.
Used my #12 Kolinsky Sable (my favourite) brush for the blocking in. This large brush is capable of making large marks as well as adding small lines.
Kolinsky Sable Brush #12
Blocking in shadows of the facing petal
Blocking In the shadows on the second petal
Looks like it is working until now.
Stay tuned as we conclude the painting of this complicated flower.
Comments and questions appreciated.
Mohamed Hirji