Water Color Practice Project
As one of our first projects in art and design, we created something that would teach us a technique that we could use in the upcoming projects we have in this semester, while at the same time, allowing us to create something that is new and unique. Through this project, we learned how to combine two images together, to create a 'unique' image. We did this to prepare to make a similar art piece, that we could practice for in an upcoming project. We will do this by using the techniques we learned from this project, and using that to put together two 'regular' images, in a way that can portray a message.
We started this by finding two images that we thought would go well together (that usually wouldn't be put together) (and that we were able to use due to copyright from the original owner). To do this, I researched multiple pictures that I'm intrigued by, such as elephants, flowers, eyes, a soccer ball, pretty much just random stuff, and I decided to combine something that would be a little unusual to match. I ultimately went with a bird's-eye-view of a flower, and a macro view of an eye. This design was set up as a flower with the iris (of the eye) as the center of the petals. Here are the pictures I based them off of:
We started this by finding two images that we thought would go well together (that usually wouldn't be put together) (and that we were able to use due to copyright from the original owner). To do this, I researched multiple pictures that I'm intrigued by, such as elephants, flowers, eyes, a soccer ball, pretty much just random stuff, and I decided to combine something that would be a little unusual to match. I ultimately went with a bird's-eye-view of a flower, and a macro view of an eye. This design was set up as a flower with the iris (of the eye) as the center of the petals. Here are the pictures I based them off of:
After I definitely made sure that these were the pictures that I wanted, it was on to the tracing stage! Mr. Sevilla taught us that we would copy the bigger/main picture onto tracing paper, and then copy the more detailed picture on top of that (or wherever it would be placed in relation to the bigger picture). Afterwards, we would shade the back of the tracing paper (only where we drew), and then copy over the tracing onto watercolor paper, in a ballpoint pen. Here is my first draft of the traced pictures:
I've not had much experience in art, or design for that matter, so this is why my first draft isn't very 'realistic.' When I initially started to paint my first draft (especially with the tiny details), I imagined that it would be super easy. I soon realized that I was wrong. I've never painted water color before, so I didn't know that once you paint a dark color, you can't make it light again. I realized this after I painted the four outside petals of the flower. Mr. Sevilla showed me that it was a lot easier to start out really light, and then go darker and darker, until you get to that correct color. When I was done painting the flower, I then started on the eye part of this painting. I didn't know that eye's had so much detail, until I started this project. Once I started (attempting) to paint the iris, I soon saw that it's really hard to paint all of the details in the eye. You can see this in my first draft of my combined painting:
Trying to make my second draft better, I used the critique from my classmates. The critique/recommendations that my peers gave me were:
I used the last tip as a template of how my second draft was going to be. To do this, I had to create another tracing, to get my overall picture as best as it can be. This is how my second tracing turned out:
- lighter color on the tips of the petals
- little bit more red on the edges
- make eye more detailed
- instead of having the iris part of the eye, make the pupil, and the flower look like the iris of an eye, and then add an eyelid on the outside to make it more realistic
I used the last tip as a template of how my second draft was going to be. To do this, I had to create another tracing, to get my overall picture as best as it can be. This is how my second tracing turned out:
After I copied the tracing onto proper paper, I painted it. I was pretty satisfied with my second draft, although, I had a few critiques that I gave myself: make the eyelashes a little more realistic/longer, and to make an actual eyelid above and/or below the eye. I think that this interpretation of an eye and a flower combined was much more appealing, than my first draft. I was told that it would look really cool if I added a slight shading on the left side of the flower, so it's really hard to see, but it's a little more pink on the left side than the right. So this is my second draft:
After I determined the critiques that I gave myself, I managed to fix most of them on my third draft. I was really happy how it turned out. My favorite thing about my third draft is how I made the four outside petals 'pop,' because I added a little darker outline on them. If I had time to do a fourth draft, I would still try to improve the eyelashes, as the ones that are near the tear duct aren't supposed to be there (or at least a little lighter in color). I would also make the eyelid more realistic, and connect it to the tear duct area and the very right side of the eye. I am still very proud of my work that I accomplished, even if it's not perfect. I never would've thought that I could do a decent job at painting. I had a lot of fun through our first project of the semester. (p.s. the streaks going from the center picture to the outside of the paper on the three watercolor papers are from the shadow/wrinkling of the paper, I didn't actually paint them). Here is the third and final draft of my water color practice project:
Some things that I learned throughout this project was how to trace a picture, accurately onto different paper. I would be able to use this technique in any future projects we have in this class, or even outside of school. Even though my specific image did not portray a message, I think I can use the skills that I learned in this project, in other projects (specifically the watershed project) to portray a powerful message to the public. I also learned a lot about the color wheel and color matching. I didn't know much about the color wheel, except for the basic ones, like yellow and blue make green, but throughout this process, I had to try to match the color exactly to the picture. I also learned that with just two pictures, you can make so many different combinations with them. I just showed two of them through this project, but there are so many more possibilities to combine a flower and an eye. This was a really fun project to start the semester off with, and I can't wait to see what else I will learn in this class.