Sketch of the day: warmup doodle

[meritahut]

Yesterday's warmup: An ATC-size mini-painting using the ancient pigments. This particular paper (Strathmore cold press watercolor artist cards) started feathering at the underpainting, so I didn't try too much layering or detail, but I'm getting better at understanding how each individual pigment wants to be coddled.

Comments

[palusbuteo]

[meritahut]

That's the goal :)

I'm not very good at encaustic (to be honest I haven't put enough effort into it yet), but I'm enjoying using the same set of pigments with watercolours--sourced from the same locations/mines for some of them, according to the pigment manufacturers, so that's pretty inspiring.

Tempera paints were also used on some Fayum portraits, so making tempera is next. I haven't made tempera paint since I was a little bitty kid at an art workshop at the Cloisters in Manhattan, and I don't remember them actually letting us play with the raw unmixed yolks....

[palusbuteo]

[meritahut]

Those wacky Romans! :D

[palusbuteo]

blah blah blah! art art art!

[meritahut]

You say, "endless layers and tiny strokes," and I think, "this could turn out to be the perfect medium for me" :D

On the tangent: I think of the explosion of wine-&-paint nights--and scrapbooks and journals and youtubers--as a healthy hobbyist thing, a way for people to express themselves, be social, keep the brain expanded and occupied. Very 19th century. If you did decide to run some wine-fueled workshops, I'd imagine groups would appreciate having a bona fide fine artist give them real insight. Before everyone gets plastered.

But I understand your reservations. It's like tfw you hear someone say, "oh, anyone can play piano," since it seems so simple and quick to get a melody (or a picture of some sort) out of the tools.