Derek McCrea's November 2007 Artists Newsletter
I just got completed with my latest commission last night. It was an old barn house. I tried a few techniques on this work I never had tried before. I wanted the image to be a pen and ink but wanted the ink to be very dark, bold and have thick strokes, not my usual pen and ink technique. So I started out drawing this work in pencil and then took a "SHARPEE MARKER"...not the conventional artist’s tool and went to work on this 12 x 16 drawing attached.
Then after completing that I checked my email and found that my article I submitted for the magazine, "Watercolour Gazette" out of Canada is being published and they are sending me some copies of it in the November/December issue. Some of the article is shown below excluding images and step by step painting instructions in my lesson in the magazine:
Lessons learned throughout over 25 years of painting include:
1. Never paint when you are not inspired.
2. Try to visualize what you want to paint before you paint the subject and imagine a finished product and what steps you will take to get there.
3. For larger and more detailed works draw the image on the canvas first with light pencil.
4. Establish your own style but learn from others. Experiment with creating art using individual techniques beginning with smaller less detailed images and working your way up.
5. Techniques I have learned to use and call my own include:
- Use of splatter to create depth
- Use of charcoal on finished products to add texture and shadows
- Wet on wet, let the watercolors do their magic, sometimes watercolors when wet on wet create effects that make you say, “How did I do that?”
- Try not to use too much paint, start out with lighter colors and add layers of darker colors. Too much watercolor paint creates a mess that you can not fix. That is the difference between watercolors and other mediums that can be repaired by “painting over”.
- Use Art Trading Cards to practice your larger images before painting them large. This way if you make a mistake it will be on a small piece of paper and you can apply that lesson to your larger work.
- I have seen different techniques for holding the watercolor paper to your background for paintings, including stapling down the sides of the work. I prefer to use masking tape around the entire edges of my paintings. This also aids buyers to mat the painting with ½ inch edges all the way around the circumference of the painting.
My career is as a Soldier. My two hobbies include painting and offshore fishing. Both of which are very relaxing and allow me to express myself. Creating art for me is a way of life. Something I enjoy.
I attached my latest commission work to this email.
Also mid to end of October I worked on an artwork illustration for Perception Pro, who is using the image for advertising, banners, etc. look at a preview of their up and coming business site here:
http://www.xanderbean.com/per_pro/Thanks for being a fan of my art.
I promise to keep creating as long as I have a breath left in me.
http://ArtsCad.com/@/DerekMccrea
