Watercolor Paintings by RoseAnn Hayes

Watercolor Paper

2012-01-14T12:27:00.001-08:00

Most watercolorists are obsessed with trying different kinds of watercolor paper. There are dozens of different types, and I won't rest till I've tried all of them. The type of paper you paint on really does make a difference in the outcome. If you're a tight, realistic painter, you will probably want an absorbent paper, and if you're a loose, flowing painter, you will probably like a harder, flatter paper. My favorite papers are Fabriano Artistico hot pressed and cold pressed, Strathmore 300 cold pressed paper (the back of the paper), and now Yupo synthetic paper. People will be surprised that I like Strathmore 300, because it is considered a "student" paper, but that doesn't bother me. The back side of the Strathmore 300 is super for my painting style. I always try the front side of the paper and the back side. Often I like the back side because it is harder and flatter. This carrot was painted on a new kind of paper that I'm trying called "Fluid" watercolor paper. Just trying some quick studies to see how I like it. So far I like it!

Watercolor Painting of Flowers

2011-12-29T20:02:00.001-08:00

Here's another in my series of mixed bouquets. I've been exploring mixed bouquets in anticipation of someday creating a calendar. I enjoy these casual bouquets so much more than more formal, uniform bouquets. It's gotten so chilly in Texas, and these bouquets make me feel warmer. I think the splash of madder (red tone) is very helpful in these bouquets. This painting is available on my gallery page at http://paintinginwatercolor2.blogspot.com

Baby Bird Figurine

2011-12-20T19:24:00.000-08:00

I get so absorbed with painting flowers that I often forget to add anything else to the setup. I like baby bird figurines, so I searched for some pretty ones to add to my floral still life scenes. I'm doing some individual studies of them, to get a feel for them, before I begin adding them to my florals. I have to figure out how to make them look like figurines, and not like I'm attempting to paint a real live bird.

Watercolor Painting Flowers

2011-12-17T23:09:00.001-08:00

Have you noticed there aren't very many purple flowers? While listening to an"Artists Helping Artists" broadcast the other day, I doodled these unidentified purple flowers.

Watercolor Painting Pink Flowers

2011-12-16T17:11:00.001-08:00

I wanted to tell my fellow artists about the neatest site on the internet for artists. It's a blog with live broadcasts called "Artists Helping Artists". It is the creation of two very talented and successful oil painters, Leslie Saeta and Dreama Tolle Perry. These two fabulous ladies are amazingly generous with their valuable time. Every week they do a live broadcast of a subject that is of interest to artists. They also archive the broadcasts. On the right side of the blog is a list of the archived broadcasts, and you can click on them to listen to them at any time. Subjects include how to sell your art online, how to photograph your art, using Facebook to sell your art, and many many more. These ladies are both powerhouses and I can't believe how generous they are. They also have live interviews with very successful and respected artists, such as Carol Marine. Check it out at http://artistshelpingartistsblog.blogspot.com/

Floral Bouquet Watercolor Painting

2011-12-06T19:57:00.001-08:00

I love casual mixed bouquets of garden flowers. Fresh and easy and informal, in an old glass jar. This is one of the studies I've been working on in preparation for putting together a calendar of bouquets in the future. This painting measures 6" x 9", and it is matted in a brand new white bevel-cut mat measuring 11" x 14". It comes in a protective acetate bag with foamboard backing, ready to pop into any standard 11" x 14" frame. This painting is available for $60 plus USPS Priority shipping. I ship to US locations only. Please email me at Tranquility@hot.rr.com if you'd like more information. To purchase this painting, please go to my gallery page at http://paintinginwatercolor2.blogspot.com

Pink Flowers in Terra Cotta

2011-11-29T18:46:00.000-08:00

This was a quick sketch I did the other day while listening to Artists Helping Artists, a wonderful "blog radio" site that I discovered a few months ago.

Portrait of Little Girl

2011-11-27T09:48:00.000-08:00

Here is a portrait that I painted a few years ago when I was doing children's portraits. This was a practice study - not one of my commissions. I love painting portraits, but I got burned out doing portrait commissions. One day when I have more time I'll paint more portraits.

Wild Rose

2011-11-25T11:42:00.001-08:00

I hope you have been having a peaceful and relaxing Thanksgiving. Peace and calm and tranquility are so important to me. I endured alot of stress and pain, years ago, before I finally learned to eliminate the negativity from my life. Life is so short. Don't struggle with people who bring you down. Surround yourself with only those people who treat you with respect and kindness.

Red Tulips

2011-11-24T10:44:00.001-08:00

This painting of red tulips is a little more whimsy and a little less realism, but I love it. I think it's something about the colors, maybe. And I felt good about the feeling of the red color. Red is always tricky in watercolors, because it is so strong and it turns out very opaque if you're not careful. If you want to keep your painting transparent, you have to go very carefully with the red. I think you have to suggest the red, instead of really pushing it. I made some prints of this one, and they are available in my eBay shop and my Etsy shop.

My Daughter Kelley

2011-11-13T15:32:00.001-08:00

Now that I'm getting a little more settled into my new (old) house, I've started to unpack some of my paintings. I'm taking them apart, cleaning them, adding fresh mats, and taking digital photos of them (up until now I only had polaroids, and those had gotten very old and faded). Here is a painting of my daughter Kelley that I painted when she was about 10 years old. I did a bunch of paintings of her at different ages, and I'll share more of them as I get them photographed. Kelley is 38 years old now, so this was painted a very long time ago!

Petunias

2011-11-04T15:14:00.001-07:00

I'm always looking for opportunities to use my favorite complimentary color mixes (pink and green, and lavendar and green). Using beautiful complimentary colors just seems to give you an edge...a head start...on a satisfying painting. I love garden flowers tucked into everyday glass jars. This is a very simple painting, but it gives me much pleasure. Maybe I can turn this into a larger painting when I have time. Last night we had a freeze warning here in Central Texas. I think it got down to about 34 degrees here. Such a huge change from the brutal summer that we had, which only ended about a month ago. A scorching summer turned into a freeze warning so quickly. I hope that doesn't mean we'll have a record-breaking winter, too.

Mailbox in the Bluebonnets

2011-10-10T19:41:00.001-07:00

It has been a very long, difficult summer here in Texas. The worst draught I've ever seen, horrible wildfires everywhere, so many people lost their homes to the fires, hard times for farmers and ranchers, intense heat for months. I'm so grateful it's Fall, and we have finally had some nice rains.

Rosebud in Window

2011-08-13T20:40:00.000-07:00

I painted this for a Daily Paintworks Challenge. They gave us a black and white photo, and we had to create a color painting using the same values from that photo. I didn't follow the rules exactly, but I was still very pleased with the result and happy to be able to participate. I always start with a pretty detailed pencil drawing. That is the "bones" of the painting. For me, it's very important, because I paint such "loose" watercolors and I probably am a bit of a minimalist - I tend to consider a painting "finished" before most painters would. I just don't like to overwork a watercolor.

Patio Flowers

2011-07-20T18:31:00.000-07:00

I've seriously neglected my blog lately due to deadlines at work. Things are getting easier there, fortunately, and I can't wait to get back to my paintbrushes. I have an urge to paint flower markets. This is sort of a preliminary study that I did recently. I've turned it into a print. I think I'd like to make some greeting cards from this painting, too. So many ideas, so little time.

Pine Cone Watercolor Painting

2011-06-04T17:33:00.001-07:00

One of my favorite subjects. They bring back some of my favorite memories. It's amazing the different sizes and shapes they come in. This is a watercolor, of course, painted on Fabriano cold-pressed paper. I have recently learned to make prints using my new Epson printer, and this is one of the first paintings that I made a print of. They came out so well, and I'm very excited about learning to do more.

Pink Floral Watercolor Painting

2011-04-30T09:07:00.000-07:00

A little more impressionist, a little less realist. That's what I like.

Zinnias Watercolor Painting

2011-04-21T17:49:00.000-07:00

Zinnias are such a perfect plant for our scorching Texas summers. They are so good about tolerating the heat, and I love the variety of colors. They have the oddest hollow stems! This watercolor is available. Please check my Available Watercolors 2 blog for details.

Red Tulips

2011-04-09T12:42:00.001-07:00

I love tulips. They are such tidy, clean-looking flowers. When I paint red tulips, I use so many reds and pinks. Carmine, Geranium, Madder Lake, and some orange mixed in. Red is a tricky color in watercolor, I think. There are so many other colors that seem to clash with red, so paintings with red need to be kept simple. Course I can already think of one very special exception, Shirley Trevena. She can put red with anything and make it look great. I just don't have that knack.

Yellow Daisies

2011-03-30T19:15:00.000-07:00

I love to use green with pink, and vice versa. It's my favorite color combination, the most complimentary mix I know of. Pink doesn't go with every color, though. For example, I think pink and dark blue or navy blue are usually wretched when placed beside each other. I've ruined many pink florals by trying to add a dark indigo background. I hope I won't make that mistake again. While pink and green are my favorite compliments, pink is also the best color to "grey down" a sharp green. I'm not sure why. I need to go back to the Handprint site and see if it's addressed there. Whenever I'm stumped, I check the Handprint site.

Purple African Violets

2011-03-21T20:16:00.001-07:00

I've never learned to mix my own purples, but who cares when there are such nice pre-mixed purples that are perfect for African Violets. For this painting, I used Grumbacher Mauve and Grumbacher Thio Violet. Old fashioned colors, but they're such nice clear, transparent purples.

Pink Flowers in Terra Cotta Pot

2011-03-07T19:28:00.001-08:00

To tell the truth, I don't know what kind of flowers these are. I was going for something lacy and soft, like petunias or dwarf azaleas. Here in Texas, we use alot of terra cotta pots in different shapes. I love the fat ones that have groves all around. I can't seem to stop painting pink flowers in terra cotta. The color combination (pink, green and madder) is so pleasing to my eye, I can't get enough of it. I had painted several hydrangea paintings prior to this painting, and was so frustrated with them that I needed to go back to my favorite formula in order to get rid of the frustration. This watercolor is available.

Umbrella in the Rain

2011-03-04T12:21:00.000-08:00

I've been wanting to do some more "umbrella in the rain" studies. I love painting rain. It surprises me, because I HATE to paint water, like in sea or beach scenes. This type of painting just appeals to me because I prefer simple, uncomplicated themes, where you don't tell the whole story. And I guess painting rain allows me to paint lots of "controlled blooms" (my favorite watercolor technique). You've got to grey down your colors when you paint rainy scenes, though, I think. I greyed down my greens and blues here with sepia. I'm going to attempt two umbrellas in the rain (working on that now), and then three...

Pink Chrysanthemums

2011-02-09T16:17:00.001-08:00

I'm so happy with the progress I've made painting chrysanthemums. They put up a struggle at first, but we've made friends now and I'm having so much fun with them. I love this one so much! I guess I've painted a dozen pots of chrysanthemums in the last few weeks. I suppose some painters would get very bored with painting the same subject over and over. It doesn't bother me, though. It's just the approach I use to get a handle on a subject that I love. I just keep hammering away at them until I find my way. I've rearranged and updated my web site, too, in the last few days. That's right, I make my own web site. It's pretty easy! I don't do it from scratch though. I use Tripod website hosting. They have great templates, and you just choose one and fill in the blanks, sort of. OK, it's a little more than that, but I figured it out, and I'm not a tech person, so anybody can do it.

Pink Chrysanthemums

2011-02-04T13:45:00.001-08:00

Another step in my series of chrysanthemum studies. I feel like I'm making progress here, towards what I have in my head. I really like this one. To some, it may seem like I'm going backwards, or deconstructing --- with less detail. What I'm really doing is trying to paint the mums looser and more watercolory and fluid. That's just the type of watercolors that I like. Watercolorists will understand that it takes alot of practice to make it look easy-breezy.