Reflection
Painting reflective surfaces in watercolour I love a challenge almost as I love “My Therapist,” A Harley Davidson Softail Deluxe that I have called Dixie. I have painted this , and other Harley’s in acrylic, so I used watercolour this time. The process is the same as any of my artworks, grid up a photograph for the sketch, and then I paint one small piece at a time. As the engine is the hardest and most visually complicated part I start there first. By concentrating on a small area at a time I can paint what I see, not what I think I should see. It is very easy to get distracted, and often I don’t actually see what is in the reflection until I look from a distance. For the chrome I use a mix of Art spectrum (AS) indigo, and a wash of AS Lemon yellow that I have dirtied with a tiny but of purple to make a brown tint, and diluted. There is also some AS Phthalo blue and a hint of Holbein Bamboo green, the black is a mix of Dioxazine purple and indigo. The tank is Windsor and Newton Cobalt blue light, in places with a Phthalo blue mix. This bike doesn’t have chrome but has a lot of shiny painted surfaces, the red was Daniel Smith Deep Scarlet and Pyrrol red, with a hint of Quinacridone red to create the crimson colouring. I had to change the back of the seat to add the red cover after I had painted the seat, as the client requested it be added, this was not the easiest thing to do, as the paint has a staining quality that can be hard to remove. Luckily the painted area did lift a little with water, but some of the staining remained, so the back cover is not quite the brilliant red of the tank. Not just motorbikes Now this commission was a challenge. My art journey included a BA hons degree in Graphic Design, so Typography was something we covered, and something I don’t do very often. This was commissioned as a gift for the sponsor of the car, Geo Tech, and this was made up from a couple of different photographs, and to add a degree of extra difficulty, from different angles. Luckily both client and recipient were very happy with the result. The Series 2 SS Holden Commodore was a commission for a friends Husband. This was one of the last cars produced in Australia by Holden, hence the number plate 1OVTHELST. I enjoyed this commission but had to brighten the photograph to see any subtle details in the paint work. when I had painted the bonnet it looked really abstract, I had to remind myself, paint what you see. The best part was painting the side of the car, that hint of green in the indigo worked perfectly. My colours were Indigo (AS) Bamboo Green (Holbein)and the browns made from Australian Red gold (AS) and Dioxazine Purple, (WN) with some Phthalo blue (AS) and Cobalt blue light (WN)