There is something about watercolors that intrigues me. Don’t know what it is though. I’ve tried acrylics and they didn’t do it for me…oh, and oils…I sucked, SUCKED at oils!!! Watercolors just seem more forgiving to me.
My Nana was an artist. She was an oil painter. She was rather prolific. I have no idea how many canvases she painted, I’m guessing more than 50. I believe Nana started oil painting later in life. I remember her taking classes when I was quite young, but she was probably in her late 60s or early 70s. I wonder if it started after she and Poppa closed the egg business or before? I don’t know, should probably ask Lynn, I’m sure she would know.
I do remember watching Nana paint a few times while they still lived on Sherman Way. Poppa got sick shortly before or after the move to Londelius. Nana tried to paint some after Poppa passed but I don’t think her heart was in it.
I so wanted to be like Nana, gifted artistically like Nana. So much so that I signed up for the first oil painting class offered at Sepulveda Jr. High. Mr. Weinstein was the teacher. As much as he tried to come off as a gruff old guy, he was a softie with a great sense of humor. He and I had connected when I had him for 7th grade art and I couldn’t wait to take his Oil Painting class.
I remember the first day of oil painting class…we had to go home and scour magazines, books, whatever we could for an appropriate subject to try and paint. I had Mom take me to Nana’s house. I knew she had tons of ideas stashed away. Nana was famous for saving everything and anything that might inspire her…especially postcards and the covers of greeting cards. I knew I could find something to paint in Nana’s Library!
Nana and I finally did find something…it was a pastoral scene. Lots of blue sky, purple mountains majesty, a river running across the foreground, with a fly fisherman in said river. PERFECT, not a ton of detail for that first attempt. GOD, I sucked at oil painting. I had absolutely NO CLUE! I didn’t realize nor understand the colors of things. It kind of reminds me of a scene in "The Girl with the Pearl Earring" where Vermeer takes Scarlett Johanssen’s character to the window and says tell me what colors you see in the sky. My response back in that oil painting class would have been blue and white. I didn’t get the concepts of saturation, hue, value, brightness, etc., I didn’t get that the river had flecks of grey, brown, and white in addition to blues and greens. I was color-blind in a sense.
Now that I am older and hopefully a bit wiser, thanks to scrapbooking, photography, and photoshop, I am really intrigued with learning to paint with watercolors. I played with some of the techniques listed in some watercolor books I got through my paperback swap group. I had everything already, a sketch book, brushes, and paints…and the lessons out of the book and those I found online flowed and made sense. It was fun and I’m anxious to try and stretch my wings in another creative venue. When I complete something worthwhile, I promise to post it.
Filed under: Art
