Kennet and Avon - Take 2

Early Autumn on the Kennet and Avon 2
Watercolour and Acrylic Ink on Paper
27cm x 18cm (10.5" x 7")

This is a second version of the canal scene from Early Autumn on the Kennet and Avon. There are two more, but one of them is too horrible to post and the other is so fiddly it will take 6 months to finish.

The main differences between this version and the first version is this one relies on splashing paint to represent the leaves and instead of painting the tree trunks in the initial wash, I wiped a space for them with a paper towel.

Early Autumn on the Kennet and Avon 2
Initial Wash
Watercolour and Acrylic Ink on Paper
27cm x 18cm (10.5" x 7")

After the initial wash was dry, I splashed in the leaves with greens, yellows and oranges. The last step was to paint in the trees trunks and add some details to the bank.

Early Autumn on the Kennet and Avon 2
After the Splashing
Watercolour and Acrylic Ink on Paper
27cm x 18cm (10.5" x 7")

Splattering and messing around with washes is fun, but I usually end up with as much paint on myself as I do on the paper. Last weekend, I covered the tips of my finger and thumb in yellow acrylic ink – this doesn’t come off in a hurry no matter how hard you scrub. On Monday morning, I thought it looked like the nicotine staining of a heavy smoker, but imagined no one would notice. Sure enough the first person I met said  “I didn’t know you smoked”.