I'm Painting As Fast As I Can...

BIG NEWS – times two...

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Tue, 03 Mar 2015 07:19:00 +0000

Hip Hop Bebop

watercolor, 12" x 12"

Chris Beck

BIG NEWS item #1: I got word back in early February that two of my paintings had been selected to hang in the Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours (RI) annual open exhibition at the Mall Galleries in London between March 25 and April 11, 2015. The RI was founded in 1831 and this annual exhibition is widely regarded as one of the most prestigious in the world. There was a rigorous selection process: I first had to establish a tax number in the UK, then submit digital images, and finally, submit the actual framed paintings for a second round of jurying. I'm very appreciative of the help I received from an artist friend in England to frame and transport my works to the gallery for the jurying.

In addition to Hip Hop Bebop, I will have a second painting on exhibition – Waiting in the Wings.

Waiting in the Wings

watercolor, 12" x 12"

Chris Beck

BIG NEWS item #2: This past Friday, I learned that my painting "Arabesque" had received the First Place award in the Other Media category of the Richeson75 Small Works show. In addition to a generous award, I am particularly pleased with juror Molly Johnson's statement: "A vibrant and extremely well executed watercolor. The artist's dynamic design of background and colorful subjects are whimsical yet it is a sophisticated piece of work." She really understands what I'm trying to do. The show is at the Richeson School of Art and Gallery in Kaukauna, Wisconsin from February 23 to April 4, 2015.

Arabesque

watercolor, 9" x 10.5"

Chris Beck

In addition to "Arabesque" I have a second painting on exhibit in the Richeson show – a bit of fun featuring our old friend Ruddy Duck, mixed with type and spattering for textural interest.

Quack

watercolor & gouache, 9" x 9"

Chris Beck

Eau en Couleurs Watercolor Biennial

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Wed, 17 Sep 2014 18:56:00 +0000

Chateau de Bourgogne, Estaimbourg, Belgium

The International Watercolour Biennial organized by Eau en Couleurs, the Belgian Watercolour Centre, opened on August 15 at this castle in Belgium. We had excellent weather for the opening day and enjoyed a lovely reception and wonderful dinner with friends old and new. Catherine De Ryck, president of EeC, and exhibition co-organizer Marie-Paule Dupuis did a fantastic job with the show and made us feel most welcome.

I was very pleased to be one of the invited artists representing the National Watercolor Society. Also attending, and shown with me here, were Laura Mitchell, David Poxon, me (Chris Beck), Jill Witty, and Kris Preslan.

My husband Jim took several panoramic shots of the main exhibition hall, where the NWS invitational paintings were displayed. In the first one, NWS paintings are on the left and back walls -- my painting is next to last on the left wall (toward the middle of the photo). The second shot shows NWS works on the right wall and on the small panel near the window (middle of photo). Hanging on the other walls are paintings by members of the jury and some of the juried artists.

The exhibition was hung throughout the second floor, with additional artists from the US included among the juried artists from every part of the world. Here's one of the adjacent rooms.

And lastly, a few photos of the castle grounds -- the first looking out a window in the main hall (taken on a cloudy day later in the weekend) and the second from a room on the other side of the building. The castle is now the property of the City of Estaimpuis and is used for both cultural and private events -- here the grounds are set up for a wedding reception.

Hope you enjoyed a small peek at the biennial. I spent about 10 days in Belgium and would return in a heartbeat, but that's material for another post!!

Still kicking!!

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Thu, 31 Jul 2014 07:41:00 +0000

Hip Hop Bebop in Splash 15

I was more than a little shocked to realize that it has been nearly five months since I last posted here. Life just has a way of getting in the way sometimes. But I'm still here and things are going great!! I just received my complimentary copy of Splash 15, Creative Solutions -- where my froggy band appears in company with a lot of wonderful art. Copies of this beautiful book are available through the North Light Online Shop.

Mr. Burbank's Cactus
transparent watercolor, 20" x 18.5"
Chris Beck

You already know that Mr. Burbank's Cactus is in Belgium for Eau en Couleurs, the 2014 International Watercolour Biennial. I just got word today that the painting also qualified as a finalist in The Artist's Magazine annual competition. I'm thrilled to be chosen -- many talented artists enter this competition every year and making the cut is a high honor.

Unfortunately, my summer didn't start out on such a high note. After months of unhappy decline, my mother passed away on June 1. She was 94 and had been slowly failing over the past couple of years, but it was losing mobility last October that made her life most difficult. I went home to visit her just before she took a turn for the worse -- it was a rough visit, but I'm glad I had the chance to say goodbye.

While we were back in Wisconsin for her funeral, we also managed to squeak in a visit to the reception and dinner that the Transparent Watercolor Society of America holds for its annual exhibition. A thoroughly enjoyable side trip -- filled with fabulous art and lots of laughter with the wonderful friends I've made over the years.

My time since I returned home has been spent making travel arrangements to go to Belgium for Eau en Couleurs. A rather last-minute decision, so lots of scurrying about getting everything in place. I'm really looking forward to meeting artists I've only known online and I'll try to take photos to share when I can.

Hope you're having a good summer!! I'll see you here again sometime in August!!

International Watercolour Biennial...

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Tue, 11 Mar 2014 03:45:00 +0000

Mr. Burbank's Cactus

transparent watercolor, 20" x 18.5"

Chris Beck

Back in January, I received an invitation from Eau en Couleurs – Belgian Watercolour Centre and the National Watercolor Society here in the U.S. to exhibit a painting this summer in the 2014 International Watercolour Biennial in Estaimbourg, Belgium. I've just completed a fairly large (for me) painting -- 20" x 18.5" -- based on an enormous old cactus that I saw in the Luther Burbank Gardens in Santa Rosa, California.

I want to give a shout-out to Katherine Taylor and John Cogley of Daniel Smith Inc. I met Katherine at a watercolor sampling event at a local art supply store and, a few months later, met John when I went to his fascinating talk on Primatek pigments at an artists' materials expo here in northern California. John is the owner of Daniel Smith Inc., the force behind the company's expansion into new product lines and the worldwide market, and someone who cares about and supports our artistic endeavors with quality materials. Katherine, the sales manager for the wholesale branch of the company, generously gave me watercolor dot cards and other materials so I could try out some new colors.

Cobalt Violet Dark turned out to be indispensable in this painting, along with Quinacridone Deep Gold. Quinacridone Sienna has been my go-to color for mixing darks since I first discovered it ten or twelve years ago, but the star of this particular show is undoubtedly my old favorite -- Green Gold. Thanks, John and Katherine!!

Dippy Duck #6...

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Thu, 06 Feb 2014 08:23:00 +0000

Dippy Duck #6

watercolor & gouache, 8" x 8"

Chris Beck

Dippy Duck has been a favorite demo subject -- no surprise there as he is brightly colored and quite distinctive. The title reflects the construction of the set -- the top part is a pepper shaker and the bottom half is a salt dish from which you would dip the salt with a small spoon. Oddly enough, this is the one salt shaker I don't actually own. I discovered this little fellow near the close of an eBay auction and the price was stratospheric -- somewhere around $400 -- quite beyond my budget.

This is another of the pieces I finished during a demo last fall. Like the duck painting I posted last week, the background is spattered with gouache to add sparkle and texture.

Ruddy Duck Revisited...

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Mon, 27 Jan 2014 08:54:00 +0000

Quack

watercolor & gouache, 9" x 9"

Chris Beck

Back in October, I was asked to present the program for one of the local art clubs and decided to take a slightly different approach than I usually do. Instead of working on a series showing the progression from start to finish on one image, I took several unfinished demo pieces that had accumulated in my studio and played around with them a bit. I had hoped to share things sooner, but I left early the next morning to visit my mother and help downsize her living situation yet again. By the time I got home a week later, other tasks required my attention and this unfortunately slipped out of mind.

You may remember our old friend Ruddy Duck. Ruddy has starred in a number of demos over the past few years. This was how he looked at the start of the demo:

I added the word "quack" up the side of the painting, using gouache with some oversize alphabet stamps that I found by chance at Rileystreet Art Supply in Santa Rosa, CA when I went to a product expo event there.

Because it looked pretty stark after I stamped the letters onto the painting, I decided to soften the image with spattered gouache. I cut a mask for the duck out of low-tack Contact paper (you could also use frisket paper) and pressed it lightly against the image with my fingers. Then I mixed up various colors of gouache on a spare palette tray and used a flat-bristle toothbrush to spritz it over the background and letters.

I used ultramarine blue, spectrum yellow, flame red, and burnt sienna, along with white to brighten up some of the colors. As you can see, I've customized the toothbrush I use to spatter paint. I used a heat gun to soften the handle just enough to bend it so it has a better angle for mixing paint on the palette.

I have a few other examples that I'll be sharing as soon as possible. Right now I'm working on a large painting for an invitational watercolor biennial in Belgium this summer, so that takes precedence.

Featured artist in the NWWS Newsletter...

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Tue, 07 Jan 2014 18:00:00 +0000

Hip Hop Bebop

watercolor, 12" x 12"

Chris Beck

It's always a delight to hear that someone loves your work, so I was very pleased to get a note from Charlene Collins Freeman this past summer, inviting me to be a featured artist in the Northwest Watercolor Society Newsletter. Charlene created an excellent online interview, covering everything from my early art experience to my creative process and my thoughts on success, and she has included many of my favorite paintings in her presentation. The feature has just been published in the latest Northwest Watercolor Society Newsletter (Jan/Feb 2014). My thanks to Charlene for the invitation and resulting feature article and also to the newsletter editor, Jeff Waters, for sharing my work.

If you're not familiar with it, NWWS is a fantastic organization with enormous energy and I'm very honored to be recognized in this way. Check out the NWWS website.

My guest column in The Artist's Magazine...

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Tue, 10 Dec 2013 20:21:00 +0000

Arabesque

watercolor, 9" x 10.5"

Chris Beck

Now that the January/February 2014 issue of The Artist's Magazine has reached subscribers and is in bookstores, I can share the paintings I created for my guest column on masking fluid.

The article features expanded steps in the creation of both Arabesque and Pelican Dreams as well as several other illustrations to help you make the most of masking fluid, regardless of your choice of subject matter. If you aren't a subscriber or don't have easy access to a shop that carries the magazine, you can order a paper or digital copy by clicking here or going to the link in the sidebar.

The addition of gouache (pronounced "gwash" -- opaque watercolor -- for more info, check out this page on the Daniel Smith website) to your watercolorist's bag of tricks opens up possibilities for surface embellishment and the use of lighter colors on top of a dark base of transparent watercolor. In Pelican Dreams, I spattered gouache on the background both to tone it down and add visual complexity. Gouache would be off-limits in certain national exhibitions that require transparency, but there is a long history of using gouache, sometimes referred to as bodycolor, to add highlights and depth to a painting.

Pelican Dreams

watercolor and gouache, 8" x 6"

Chris Beck

Schnozz made his debut here about a month ago, and is just back for an encore visit. He's painted strictly with transparent watercolor.

Schnozz

watercolor, 6" x 6"

Chris Beck

In other news -- I'm sorry to report that I have closed my Zazzle shop. I discovered quite by accident that they had disabled the design controls I put on my mugs and stamps and allowed buyers to apply the images to different products in the same category. That meant the images were being distorted to fit shapes they were never intended to be displayed on. After going around and around with customer service, I learned there was no option except to re-post every item and reset the controls. And since Zazzle has periodically made other changes that required me to repost some of my products, I have no guarantee that they wouldn't disable my controls again. I cannot constantly monitor something that was supposed to be a fun, no-hassle way to share my work.

And more sketches...

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Fri, 22 Nov 2013 07:01:00 +0000

I've been playing more with Paper 53 on my iPad. This is just a quick Christmasy scene that I made up -- mostly so I could make snowflake dots!! I'm learning a lot about getting deep color, using the tools with white or light colors to lift out areas (the glow around the stars and candles, for example), and generally having way too much fun!!

Earlier in the week, I did a favorite little critter from my past. There's a long story behind my interest in frogs and someday when I'm feeling nostalgic, I'll share it here. I used the frog drawing to try out the felt pen tool and also to work on my smooth washes. I'm pretty happy with the results!!

I also got another stylus after reading reviews online. My new stylus is a TruGlide -- with a fun red case and a microfiber tip -- and, happily, it was quite inexpensive. It zooms around on the screen like an Olympic figure skater and is great with the drawing/painting app. Between the Sensu brush and the new stylus, I should be able to create a wide range of effects.

Onward!! Have a great weekend!!

More fun with the iPad...

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Fri, 15 Nov 2013 08:41:00 +0000

Almost every year, my fascination with Chinese Lanterns leads me to buy a bunch at the local supermarket floral department with the intention of sketching them or including them in a painting. And every year, I eventually tire of them sometime in December and discard them -- mission unaccomplished. Not this year!! I am so intrigued with the Paper 53 app on my iPad that I sat down after dinner the other night and came up with this little drawing. I'm learning as I go. The short video tutorials included with the app cover a few basic operations and the rest is just a matter of experimenting. I discovered I really like the pencil tool in the expanded tool kit: although it doesn't give quite the same control as a real pencil, the line appeals to me.

In the last drawing, I used the "loup" feature which allows you to create a magnified area so you can add text or fine details to a drawing. In this one, I discovered that I could reverse the areas that got a bit too dark by selecting the pencil tool and a cream color from the palette and cross-hatching the areas that I wanted to de-emphasize. Overlaying them with lighter color washes mellowed out the line work. I'm still not happy with my handling of background washes -- they're a bit too splotchy and clumsy looking for my tastes. That's my next challenge.

My first iPad sketch...

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Sun, 10 Nov 2013 02:33:00 +0000

This is a pretty simple little sketch -- my first try at Paper 53. I just got my first iPad for my birthday, after dithering about getting one for at least a year. I downloaded Paper 53 (free) yesterday, then shelled out a grand total of $9 for the add-on tools and palette and started playing.

I also bought a neat stylus/brush that I'd seen in an art supply catalog recently. I got mine through Amazon and couldn't be more pleased. It's a Sensu, made by Princeton Brush Co. The brush isn't essential, but it does give a reasonably good feel of actually painting. The only thing I'd like would be a way to control the size of the stroke, but you just get a single weight line -- good for filling in some color, but not quite as sensitive as a real brush. This is what the Sensu looks like -- it's like a travel brush, with the brush stored inside the handle.

Although there is a built-in palette with about 15-20 fixed colors, the Color Mixer add-on is a worthwhile addition. It was only a couple of dollars and it works much like the color controls in Photoshop -- slider bars let you control the hue, the saturation, and the value, so you have almost unlimited choices.

All in all, a fun app and the iPad is fantastic. Can't believe it took me so long to take this step!!

My "secret project"...

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Tue, 05 Nov 2013 17:51:00 +0000

Schnozz

watercolor, 6" x 6"

Chris Beck

I spent most of the month of August on a project that I couldn't discuss until it was finalized. Just got word that it's a go, so....

Sometime last spring, I was invited to be the guest columnist for one of the features in The Artist's Magazine. The Brushing Up column is devoted to technical matters of painting and my article covers one of my favorite art products -- masking fluid. There are tips on purchasing and handling it, as well as ways of using this versatile product. Schnozz is one of the paintings I did specifically for the article and there are stepped out examples of how I painted each one.

My article will appear in the January/February 2014 issue of The Artist's Magazine -- due out in early December. I'll be sure to let you know when it's available.

Zombie Peeps...

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Thu, 31 Oct 2013 07:35:00 +0000

Zombie Peeps

watercolor, 6" x 6"

Chris Beck

Last Easter, I found a box of oddly shrivelled green Peeps on the shelf at one of the local stores and initially rejected them as too creepy for Easter. But when I shifted my point of view, I decided that they might be just the thing for Halloween, so I went back and bought them. (I laugh to recall that I was worried they might not be there when I went back, two days after I first saw them. Guess shrivelled green Peeps don't say Easter to anybody else either!!)

Despite the fact that I had all the "ingredients" for a funky Halloween painting, I had a lot of other things going on and pretty much had abandoned the idea of a Peeps painting this year. But yesterday, I woke up with a bolt of inspiration. I didn't actually get at the painting until mid-afternoon and I finished at midnight (with time out for dinner) -- quite possibly a record time for me.

So, for your Halloween viewing pleasure, Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you: Zombie Peeps!!

A Pirate's Ransom...

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Fri, 04 Oct 2013 18:20:00 +0000

Capt. Hook

watercolor and gold leaf, 4" x 4"

Chris Beck

After seeing some dynamite paintings of autumn leaves with stunning gold leaf backgrounds by my friend Carrie Waller, I decided to try gold leaf to cover a dull and muddy background (don't ask!) on this painting of one of my vintage salt shakers. I'm very happy with the results and it reminds me of an icon painting now -- no blasphemy intended.

It's been ages since I used gold leaf, and then it was to cover a little wooden box as a gift for a friend. I'd forgotten a few things in the intervening years. Such as: don't breathe any heavy sighs of exasperation when things aren't going well because you'll only increase your exasperation as bits of gold leaf in your work area scatter like real-world leaves in a windstorm!! And: be sure you don't inadvertently get any sizing (basically diluted glue) on your fingertips or they'll be gold-leafed along with your art and there'll be little holes in the gold leaf on your painting!!

It was a fun experiment and I may try to do more with this technique, but right now, I need to prep a demo I'm doing next Wednesday for one of the local art leagues. Hmmm -- wonder if they'd like to see a gold leaf background?

Flying with the birdies...

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Wed, 28 Aug 2013 17:50:00 +0000

I'm working on a special project right now and can't say any more about it, but thought I'd give you a little teaser of one of the paintings that I'm doing for it. Once again, I'm playing with my collection of salt shakers and hope the results will be pleasing to all concerned.

Tech Talk: Replacing your Mission Gold paints

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Wed, 31 Jul 2013 19:37:00 +0000

For those who have been following the reports I've made on my tests of Mission Gold watercolors, I have some encouraging news to share. I have been in email conversations since late June with Dennis Kapp, the Chairman of the Martin F. Weber Company -- the distributor of Mission Gold -- and he has asked me to share this offer.

As previously reported, according to Mr. Kapp, Mission Gold has reformulated 50 of the 90 colors in the original line, replacing pigments of poor lightfastness with more dependable ones. Mr. Kapp is offering to replace any fugitive color from the old line with its lightfast equivalent from the newly formulated colors. It doesn't matter if the tubes have been used, or even emptied. As long as you still have the tubes, you can return them for replacement.

To receive replacements, send your old tubes* of fugitive colors -- along with your snail mail return address -- to:

Dennis Kapp

4444 Lawton Street

Detroit, MI 48208

Phone: 313-895-0700

You will receive, by return mail, a new tube of the equivalent color for each tube of the fugitive colors that you send in.

I am sharing this news in the interest of my readers, but I do not have a full list of pigments used in the original line and cannot answer questions about specific colors. You can check my previous blog post for details on the colors I tested. I believe some of the same pigments were used in making other colors as well, so you may be able to determine whether you have fugitive colors by checking the labels on your tubes and comparing pigments to those covered in my review.

For those interested in learning more about pigments, I recommend two websites -- Art is Creation and Handprint -- or books by Michael Wilcox and Hilary Page.

* I'm adding my suggestion: Out of consideration for the people who will be opening your returns, remember to pack the tubes in something that will prevent them from being squashed and ruptured in the mail.

Splash 14...

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Thu, 25 Jul 2013 19:39:00 +0000

My copy of Splash 14 arrived a few days ago -- with my fun ducks featured on page 55. North Light Books does a fantastic job -- the quality of the book is exceptional and I'm thrilled to be in the company of so many wonderful artists, many of whom are my friends.

Each Splash book is a treasure trove of the best in contemporary watercolor and a wonderful source of inspiration. You can order from the North Light Books shop -- they have both hardback and e-versions available.

Tech Talk: Lightfastness tests – finale

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Thu, 11 Jul 2013 07:26:00 +0000

full view of test card at 6 months

sun-exposed half on left

same card – sun-exposed half moved to right

This is the last post for the lightfastness tests of Mission Gold watercolors that I began in mid-January. For the last month, I had the sun-exposed card in a window that got much more sun and there was even more fading to the dodgy colors. As I explained in detail last month, the fading was not unexpected because the pigments used in those colors are rated as poor to fugitive.

Since I posted my previous update, I have had several emails from Dennis Kapp, the chairman of the board of the Martin/F.Weber company, which distributes the Mijello Mission Gold watercolors in the U.S. Needless to say, he was not happy to see my negative review and said he wished I'd told them about my tests so he could have given me newer, more lightfast colors. Fortunately, I kept the email correspondence I'd had with his employee, starting with the sample set I received in mid-September, in which I'd pointed out that there were problems with the pigments used in the line. Although she told me in early January that they were beginning to look at lightfastness matters and would update me, I never heard another word until I received Mr. Kapp's first email in late June.

According to Mr. Kapp, Mijello has reformulated 50 of the 90 colors in the line after receiving feedback at a watercolor society opening last year that there might be a lightfastness problem. (I strongly suspect that the feedback to which he is referring was set in motion by my comments to a watercolorist friend during the National Watercolor Society reception in late September last year. My friend brought my concerns to the attention of a watercolorist friend of his -- a woman who had been distributing sample sets of Mission Gold at the NWS reception. But perhaps somebody else also expressed alarm about the pigments.)

In his first email, Mr. Kapp listed the pigment changes to the paints that I tested. I've checked them against the lists of reliable pigments, and they are all acceptable. He also explained that they are creating two versions of some colors -- those labelled as "bright" will be less lightfast.

Mr. Kapp tells me that they have been shipping the newly formulated colors to their dealers for about 60 days now and have instructed their dealers to give replacements for any of the fugitive colors, even if the tubes have been partially used.

I applaud the company for taking this step, but I have to caution you to be careful. Dick Blick is the only major art supply house that is selling Mission Gold, as far as I can determine. There is no indication that they are selling a reformulated line and the product numbers are identical to the sample tubes I received last fall. The local art store that carried Mission Gold removed the product after seeing my lightfastness tests last month. They said nothing about being offered the newly reformulated paint that has supposedly been going out to dealers for the past two months. If you decide to buy this line of watercolors, ask questions and do some research before purchasing.

Here are some ways to check on pigments: both Michael Wilcox's The Wilcox Guide to the Best Watercolor Paints and Hilary Page's Guide to Watercolor Paints are available through online booksellers, although both are now somewhat out of date -- quite a few new pigments have been added to the world of art since they were published. I also know of two websites that deal with pigments: Handprint and Art is Creation -- Handprint is chock full of information, but the pigment charts on Art is Creation are much easier to read.

I hope you have found this series of posts instructive and helpful. I strongly feel that artists must demand quality materials -- to accept less is to dishonor our time and talent.

Color Blending Workshop

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Wed, 03 Jul 2013 19:06:00 +0000

Dramatic Color Blending workshop -- Day Two

Despite abnormally high temperatures in our area this past weekend, sixteen intrepid artists worked to complete a dramatic floral painting using "un-poured" color blending techniques. By masking and then dabbing color in loosely with large brushes, we achieved the look of a poured painting without the messiness of splashed paint. Color was subsequently reinforced or modified and details were added in with a variety of brushes.

My finished demo painting

Finished paintings posted for critique

Seeing all the paintings at the end of the weekend was quite a treat!! Although not everyone was able to stay to the finish on Sunday, we had 13 fabulous completed paintings to share!! (If you'd like to see each of the paintings individually, Guy has posted additional pix on his blog.)

Huge thanks to Guy Magallanes for hosting my workshop. Guy is the most accommodating and upbeat person -- it's always a pleasure to spend time with him and teach at his studio.

Tech Talk: Lightfastness tests – 5 months

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Thu, 23 May 2013 01:20:00 +0000

full view of my test card –

sun-exposed half on left

center panel compares full-strength color –

sun-exposed paints to left of center

center panel compares tints (diluted washes) –

sun-exposed paints to right of center

Back in January of this year, I began a lightfastness test of these Mission Gold watercolors after receiving some samples of the paints. Because they are new to the market, there were no published lightfastness tests, and many of the pigments used in the manufacturing of these paints were poorly rated in the resources I have. (See my previous posts here (introduction), here (at 2 weeks) and here (at 6 weeks).) I put half of the sample sheet in a folder made of acid-free matboard and stashed it in my flat files. My sun-exposed half of the test sheet started out with several hours of winter sun each day, but at this point, the sun is blocked most of the time by trees. I've now moved the sample to a spot that gets sun for about 4-5 hours most mornings and will continue the test for about six more weeks. However, there are such clear changes at this point that I would be remiss in not sharing the results.

I took these photos in full sun yesterday and have done a bit of digital cutting and pasting on the second and third images so you can more easily see the comparison of the full-strength pigments and the tints. (Note that the sun-exposed pigments are on the left side of the full-strength sample and on the right side of the tint sample.)

I should point out that pigments ranked as lightfast on some lists may indeed be lightfast in other media, but unreliable in watercolor paints. As I understand it, this is due to the binding agents used -- oil and acrylic paint bases being more protective of the pigments than the gum arabic used for watercolor.

As noted in earlier posts, the full-strength Permanent Yellow Light (PY17) has darkened with exposure and it has also faded significantly in the diluted wash. Quite a predictable outcome, since the pigment is known to be fugitive.

Yellow Orange (PY65 and PO13) is composed of a very reliable yellow pigment, but also contains the same unreliable orange pigment as Orange (PO13). Both show darkening at full strength and fading as a diluted wash, although it's more pronounced in the Orange sample.

The Permanent Red (PR112) is only slightly changed at either strength, but Permanent Rose (PR122 and PR209) is quite faded both at full strength and as a tint. A bit of a surprise, actually, since Permanent Rose is a mix of two supposedly reliable quinacridone pigments. [added note: There is some disagreement on the lightfastness of PR122, with Michael Wilcox labelling it as unreliable.] The Rose Madder (PR83:1) is actually alizarin crimson, a pigment which has been replaced in most professional-quality product lines by a more lightfast substitute. This paint changed only slightly at full strength, but is noticeably faded as a tint.

Permanent Violet (PV3:1) is anything but. It began showing signs of fading by the second week of sun exposure and is now seriously changed both at full strength and in the tint. This comes as no surprise, because the pigment is a known bad actor.

All three blue paints in my sample -- Ultramarine Deep (PB29 and PV12), Prussian Blue (PB27), and Peacock Blue (PB15:3 and PG7) -- seem quite reliable, despite the inclusion of a mystery violet pigment in the Ultramarine Deep. I can find no information in any of my resources on it, but it doesn't seem to affect the color stability.

Viridian (PG7) is actually phthalo green, which makes it very stable, but also a very strongly staining paint. Sap Green (PG36, PBr25, and PY17) includes the same yellow pigment as Permanent Yellow Light, which means it shares the same problems -- darkening at full strength and very noticeable fading in the tint.

Burnt Sienna (PR101) was a definite suprise -- fading badly across the board. Not a true burnt sienna, it is composed of a red pigment that is supposed to be very lightfast, but this sample didn't live up to the reputation of the pigment.

VanDyke Brown (PBr9) is made of a pigment that does not appear in any of my resources, but is similar to one that is rated fugitive/unreliable. It faded particularly badly as a tint -- in both samples!! I had to go back to check my photos at 6 weeks to verify that there had been a noticeable difference in the exposed and non-exposed tints at that time. I therefore have to conclude that simply exposing this paint to air will cause it to deteriorate at tint strength.

So I'm sorry to say, but my advice would be to avoid Mission Gold paints as they are currently formulated -- unless you're planning to channel Picasso's Blue Period or keep your work in a drawer.

My demo for CWA...

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Fri, 17 May 2013 07:58:00 +0000

My demo painting -- next to last step

I had a great time as the guest artist for the California Watercolor Association at their May meeting on the evening of the 15th. My husband drove over with me (their meeting spot is about 70 miles from my home), served as general roadie, and also took these pictures during the demo. He managed to capture most of the steps along the way, although he was unable to get a picture of the last step I did during the demo. But I'll be posting more photos after I finish the piece, so you'll be able to see all the steps after the last image posted here.

I originally had a different image drawn out (in five steps), but realized about a week before the demo that it was much too complex for a 90 minute demo. At that point, it was scramble time so I decided to give my favorite vintage salt shaker another turn in the spotlight. In addition to painting on this image, I talked about prepping my images, chosing background resources, and using masking fluid to save highlight areas and frisket film to protect the shaker when stamping or spattering the background.

Starting point

I had the body painted in before I arrived. The main color is new gamboge, mixed with some Daniel Smith quinacridone deep gold and a little Winsor violet (dioxazine) for the shadowy areas on the base of the shaker.

Step one -- painting the head

I'm using French ultramarine blue for the main color on the head and mixing the blue with a bit of Daniel Smith's quinacridone sienna for a deeper tone to model the three-dimensional form.

Step two -- the wing is complete

Next, I painted in the wing, using cobalt green. Because I wanted to show how the glaze on the wing bled into the body, I lightly painted a clear water wash on the yellow body so the green would drift into the yellow slightly.

Step three -- painting the bill

I'm using scarlet lake for the main color on the bill and a mix of scarlet lake and Payne's gray for the darker red that I pulled along the edge of the bill to give it form. In this photo, I'm adding an orangy-red -- made by adding a bit of new gamboge to the scarlet lake -- to the center of the bill to give it a subtle highlight.

All the large color areas are complete

At this point, the main areas are colored in and it's time to add the black details. I mixed up a nice deep black with French ultramarine blue and Daniel Smith quinacridone sienna and am starting to paint in details around the eye in the next photo.

Step four -- painting in the black details

Step five -- bringing the highlights to life

In the last step I have to show you, I have removed the masking fluid and am softening the edges of the highlights to make them look realistic. This step also shows the preliminary background -- I painted a rosy purple across the background and then stamped it with masking fluid using a stamp I'd cut out of a compressed sponge. I protected the painted shaker with frisket film (actually a transparent, low-tack contact paper that I bought at either a hardware store or drugstore).

The last step of the demo was to pull a deeper purple wash across the background to make the stamped images pop. Unfortunately, my husband didn't capture it with the camera. When I finish this painting, I'll remove the masking fluid and very likely spatter some gouache on the background to soften the pattern and keep it in a supporting role to the main character.

Hope you enjoyed the demo. Stay tuned for the final results.

New Color Blending Workshop...

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Sun, 14 Apr 2013 01:31:00 +0000

I'm really excited to be doing another watercolor workshop at my friend Guy Magallanes's studio!! Guy has created such a congenial space -- it's just a pleasure to be there. We're expanding this workshop a bit (starting on Friday afternoon and continuing with full days on Saturday and Sunday) to make sure everyone will have time to complete this painting. I'll also be showing you some simple things you can do to make a rather plain resource photo pop with energy. I hope you'll join me in June!!

Fourth Annual Peeps Challenge!!

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 05:37:00 +0000

Little Bo Peeps

watercolor, 6" x 6"

Chris Beck

I hauled out my artistic license for this one: anyone who collects vintage tableware will undoubtedly recognize the girl salt shaker as Little Red Riding Hood, but by cleverly painting the hood pink instead of red, I have magically transformed her into Little Bo Peeps!! If you look closely, you'll notice that two of the Peeps are also salt shakers -- a lucky find just as I started planning my painting.

Equality for All Peeps

watercolor, 6" x 6"

Pablo Villicaña Lara

Happy Hour Peeps

watercolor, 10" x 10"

Kathleen Ballard

A Fistful of Peeps

oil, 11" x 14"

Geraud Staton

I'm pretty sure the original Peeps Challenge was something Pablo dreamed up in a moment of grand silliness, but now it's almost an institution -- four years and, Peeps willing, forty more!! Pablo and I have shared this challenge each year since then, with a changing cast of other participating artists. Joining us this time around are Kathleen Ballard and Geraud Staton. I love the creative fun that this challenge provides and, judging from their witty results, so do my fellow Peepsters. I've provided links to posts about the challenge -- hop over to read more.

Catching up & a teaser...

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Sat, 30 Mar 2013 05:07:00 +0000

Hip Hop Bebop

watercolor, 12" x 12"

Chris Beck

I've been doing the happy dance here on a regular basis lately. Hip Hop Bebop was recently selected for the Northwest Watercolor Society's upcoming international exhibition on Mercer Island, WA by juror Mark Mehaffey. The show dates are April 15 to May 31.

Then, yesterday, I heard that Hip Hop Bebop was also chosen for publication in Splash 15: Creative Solutions, part of the ongoing series published by North Light Books. Publication date is set for Summer 2014.

Waiting in the Wings

watercolor, 12" x 12"

Chris Beck

And a few weeks ago, I learned that Waiting in the Wings will be included in the Transparent Watercolor Society of America's exhibition (May 4 to August 4) at the Kenosha Public Museum in Kenosha, WI. Jurors were Robin Berry and Paul Jackson.

And please keep an eye out for these little guys! >>>

I'm joining with my friends Jelaine Faunce, Pablo Villicaña Lara, Kathleen Ballard, and Geraud Staton in the Fourth Annual Spring Peeps Challenge!! We plan to post by Sunday morning.

Mugs, mugs, and more mugs!!

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Beck) — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 05:01:00 +0000

There's a sale going on in my Zazzle store this week -- 40% off on all mugs until Thursday night at 11:59 PDT. This is a great opportunity to buy your favorite mug or give one to a friend!! Use code LUCKY4CLOVER at checkout to get the discount.

(In addition to the mugs shown above, there are four more -- two feature vintage ceramic critters and two feature coffee beans on a background inspired by African mudcloth designs.)