"Bob and Gus" is a full sheet watercolor based on several photographs taken by Nancy B. The commission painting was finished May 2014.
No one photograph was exactly the scene we wanted, so I played around putting the elements from several together until the composition worked. I like the triangle shape formed between Bob and Gus and the feeling of movement with both of them walking toward each other. The reflections on the wet sand were an important element. See the lines I drew to remind myself the reflection must the a mirror image, directly under the figure.
I transferred my drawing to the watercolor paper and began blocking in the major shapes. This was a foggy day with glimmers of bright light so all the colors will be muted. I work with a limited palette. All the colors so far are mixtures of phalo blue green shade, ultramarine blue, burnt sienna, and quinacridone gold. I'm saving as many whites as I can at this point. I want to get a feel for how my light and dark shapes will work in my composition.
I add some pink using Quinacridone rose to my greys in the foreground and begin putting some shape shadowing on the figure.
The background is almost finished. I've put most of the darks onto Gus but something is still not bringing him out for me. Bob is blocked in further and I've done another layer of color on the water. The reflections on the wet beach are added with a thin very wet wash. Ripples in the sand are accented with careful darks. Note the narrow undulating dark shadows under the lips of the waves which make the white foam edges stand out more.
I use sap green mixed with the phalo blue and burnt sienna in my last layer of the water. I darken the flat water between the waves and now, with the whites in stronger contrast, the waves look like they are curling and crashing, Gus stands out better too. I finish Bob with nice dark shadows and his yellow hat which overlaps the dark background hills. A bit more dark is added to the closest hills to make them have more depth. The darkest shadows on Gus are lightened to make his golden brown coat more lively.
