I was looking through my reference photos to get an idea of what to sketch next. I had painted my Rudbeckia flower on the left side of my two page spread and was looking for another flower to paint on the right side page.
I kept coming up with Itoh peonies.
I started to sketch the main peony flower and a flower bud. I took my creative license and added some green leaves below the peony flower.
I used my Uni-Pin 01 permanent ink pen and sketched the lines I wanted to keep. I also added a few details to the flower and bud. Once I finished my inky sketch, I used my kneaded eraser and rolled it across my sketch to remove the graphite from the paper. I find this rolling technique works nicely over the Luchetti paper and doesn’t damage or disturb the paper’s texture.
I can’t really call this a two page spread as there is nothing in the middle linking the two pages together. While I do like having a white background for my Rudbeckia (left side) it’s not really a finished painting. I’ve put it on pause as I’m not sure I need to add a third green leaf. Maybe I leave that painting alone with just a white background. Less is better, right?
For my Peony flower, I painted the first layer of colors in a light wash and I tried to keep certain areas white for the highlights. I also went ahead and painted the green leaves. Here’s what my two pages look like in my sketchbook.
I had planned on filling in the foreground and background with green leaves, but I did not want to overdue it. If you noticed, the overall shape of my peony flower is not round. On the left side my flower the petals appear to be squished a bit compared to the right side. I decided to add more green leaves so the flower petals appeared to be resting on them. It’s definitely looking better.
Now that I’m looking at my picture I can see my page looks a bit more balanced and not too cluttered.
With my brush, I picked up some Quinacridone Rose and used the tip of my brush to paint fine lines around the petals. This helped defined the curves of the flower petals and gave the flower more depth. I also used the same color to add more depth to the center of the flower. I also added more Indian Yellow to the center to brighten the peony flower.
I gave each flower petal a nice light wash of Quinacridone Rose. I also added a tiny bit of Prussian Blue into my paint mix to create a soft purple color. I painted a few flower petals with this purple color to give a bit more interest and not look so flat. I let the layers of paint dry completely. For the final layer and wet-on-dry technique, I dipped the tip of my damp #8 point round brush into the paint and painted the final detail lines into the flower petals.
I actually like how I’ve painted my peony flower. I’m leaving it alone for now. My brain has told me to stop and trust my gut instinct. I might leave this unfinished painting as is in my sketchbook. When I stare at my artwork, it appears my peony flower pops off the page. I’m happy with that.
Pen: Uni PinFine Line in 01 size with Light Grey permanent ink
Paint: Daniel Smith Extra Fine Watercolors in Indian Yellow, , Quinacridone Rose, Prussian Blue, Sap Green, and Cascade Green
Brush: Rosemary & Co R13-Sable Blend Pointed #8. This brush can be found at Art Toolkit at this link.
Journal: Luchetti True Flat Sketchbook. Mixed Media. 100% cotton. Cold Press. 8″x8″ with 22 sheets/44 pages. 600gsm (300lb). Archival. Acid-Free. Gelatin-free vegan sizing. Vegan PU leather covers. The sketchbook can be found at this link.
Leave a Reply