Monday 24 September 2007

Salted Anemones



I liked the composition of these anemones when I did them in pastel, so I went on to do them in watercolour.
The background has a lovely mottled effect, that gives it a nice depth.
This was a tip I picked up over the weekend browsing through the art books in town.
You simply sprinkle salt over the watercolour as it dries, just before it looses it's shine.
The salt absorbs the colour, leaving tiny crystalline shapes,like miniature snowflakes.
It's not hugely obvious in my painting 'cause I put another layer of colour over the salted one.
One thing I'd say is if you sprinkle the salt too soon it takes ages to dry out and if you get impatient, the wet salt can smudge as you try to remove it.
I learned the hard way!!

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I want..