Volcanic Rock

Pumice
Watercolour on Paper
24.0cm x 15.5cm (9.5" x 6.25")

Elaine gave me a Moon and Lagoon Bath Caddy Tray for our Anniversary - to use in our new bath. The set came with this pumice stone. If you look carefully at the Moon and Lagoon website, you can find the item in question.

The picture is inspired by the Volcanic Rock topic in the Earth Textures chapter of Creating Textures in Pen & Ink with Watercolor by Claudia Nice.

I strived to make the drawing as precise as possible – which is a strange choice for this subject. It is not like a face where everyone can tell whether it is accurate. I had to reposition the cord a couple of times before I was happy with the relationship between rock and rope. 

Claudia suggests applying paint with a natural sponge to create some of the texture on the stone. This was fun and worked well.

Initially my painting of the rope was too dark. I dry brushed over it with tinted gouache. This improved the colour and gave it an interesting texture as well. 

When I read the topic heading, I immediately thought of the granite landscapes of Devon and Cornwall, but I had to save my holiday snaps until next time because Claudia has given Granite its own topic.