Sometimes the simplest ideas for your artwork is the best. However, sometimes simple doesn’t paint the picture you wish to paint. The drawing to the left was done for a future watercolor. Although the simple, lone figure will be the main focus, he will be sitting amidst a very busy painting. Why? because that is what I wanted to paint when I began toying with it. The painting is still in the planning and sketching stages, but is coming along.

Not all paintings tell a story, but many do. I wanted this one to show an elderly gentleman sitting on a planter area surrounded by exhibit booths. The gentleman sits reading a newspaper oblivious of the “going on” around him. He also is oblivious to his grandchildren sitting next to him (one on each side) that appear to have ridden their bicycles up to meet him to spend time with him during his break from working one of the booths.

With sketchy parts, scissors, tape and some time, I began formulating the idea.

This painting will never work if I don’t get all the beautiful colors into it. This is one time that graphite sketches may not give me the value work the way I envision. Color is going to be everything.

The overall composition of the future painting is beginning to show signs of breathing…slowly, but surely, it’s coming alive. The great challenge has been the perspective. Although, It has been a tasking situation that truly tested my abilities, it was worth every agonizing moment. When I say agonizing, you might notice the drawing with the torn and dark spot created by the many times I placed the graphite pencil tip into the vanishing point. The composition is still “a work in progress.” There are still other booths to vanish on down the line, but since I’ve done the hard work figuring their proper location, it should be relatively simple.

Now, my great challenge is to plan the overall color scheme of the painting. With the vegetation and colorful exhibit booths (umbrellas are red) diminishing into the vanishing point on the left and working back to the front on the right, hopefully it will direct the viewers attention to the main focal point, Pappy and his two grandchildren. I wish to paint the palm and ficus trees in the background to set the overall color of the composition. My intention is to paint some loose abstracts of the painting, experimenting on this.

I took some snapshots of foliage when I was in Miami a couple of years ago. The picture of the elephant leaves are in the background drawing sketch behind ‘pappy’ and his grand children. The colorful leafy plant will wrap around his head like an umbrella. If it works out???

The photo to the right was my inspiration to Pappy’s Tropical Fruits and Drinks stand with its colorful fruits laid out on top of the counters.

I’m sure you can see that color work will be the success or failure to this hope to be watercolor.