For this exercise I didn't find any suitable plants in the house, and cuttings I took from plants outside proved difficult to draw. So I ended up getting a cheap potted plant from the supermarket and using that as my subject instead. I hadn't planned it to actually be a rose, but that's quite a happy coincidence!
Image One
For the first image I started with a mechanical pencil to try and get an accurate drawing of the plant. Instead of trying to draw the whole plant I focused on one branch that allowed me to capture all the different facets of the plant. I then placed it on a handmade paper texture, and used digital watercolours to colour the image as accurately as I could manage. I didn't like image with just paints, so I then added an ink outline using a dark green and dark pink inks respectively for the appropriate areas.
Image Two
For the second image I was not sure what approach to take. I knew I wanted something more rough and gestural, so I started with a brown cardboard texture, and went with a painterly approach. I had the plant in front of me, but I concentrated on getting the impression of the plant's leaves etc rather than trying to capture every single leaf and petal in detail. The bit I tried to have some fun with was trying to capture the variety of pink and purple hues in the petals of the rose heads.
I also decided to add a blue background to provide a bit more contrast compared to the brown of the cardboard.
I think I actually prefer the second image over the first. I struggle with layering watercolour to get the kind of effect and details I like, and I found the loose approach of the second image really freeing. I felt comfortable to take more liberties and risks with the leaves when not trying to copy them exactly. I think the rose heads themselves feel more like roses with me making more intuitive mark marking than when I tried to capture the realistic detail. I enjoyed being able to 'fight' with the painting of the second image, to 'think' on the page, rather than having to overthink the stroke in my mind's eye before making a mark.
Comments