Old Quebec City, 1640

 Longing for normality and remembering this great summer getaway back in 2018. We stayed at this inn right in the heart of the old city.

Sketch with blocked in shading

Original Photo (Can you find Joe?)

Watercolour sketch and blocking, thumbnail

Finished Thumbnail (4x6 in)

I always fall in love with the unfinished sketch or the first wash! Maybe I find it hard to finish paintings in general. Maybe unfinished paintings just have more potential. Maybe it has to do with the struggle to let go of fussiness and detail and control, which seems to be unavoidable in finishing the pieces.

Working out the composition and a plan of attack for handling contrast of light and shadow should help a lot. Watercolour can be so spontaneous, but perversely, it also requires some forethought. Reserved whites, for example.

There were soooo many great artists there, right in that district. Quebecqois love their art and music.

Thumbnails

 So enjoying the immediacy of watercolours! Swatching and charts of my palettes are a current preoccupation, because I want to buy some new colours and recently discovered a maker of paint local to Toronto. Before I do I need to know what would augment my collection of colours, and it is instructive to do. Here is a link that got me swatching-  https://youtu.be/obiKf0QGfjo

Here are my swatches... 

Here is a link that inspired me to look again at the photos I take for painting. I wish for stronger lighting effects also in these urban landscapes.   https://youtu.be/ZKllFTjg7k4. 

Here are some just started... more photos to follow.