The odd one out

 The red apple when all the others are green, by Liz

 

Last week's inspiration was picked up in a great way by all participants! We saw a diversity of fruity interpretations of 'the odd one out'...

Glen put an apple between the oranges

And Marie-Clair put an orange (slice) between the apple slices. And coloured them blue

Between these two beautifully painted tennis balls there will be an apple that looks like them but definitely is different! Very clever. By Carol

In the mean time, fantastic work by the starters:

Out of her washing exercise Jutta created this abstract. It reminds me of a happy butterfly on its way to the sun. Well done, in composition as well as colour balance!

Judith also created an exciting abstract composition - the volume really works well and it makes you look more than once every time. Love it!

  Judith (above) and Jutta (below) have both started with the 'Layer' exercise, where a cityscape at night, seen from the sea, appears after 4 washes. Funny how different they can be!

Ilse finished hers but has second thoughts about the sea so an adapted version may be shown next time!

 

 Next to her 'Odd one out', Liz finished her rainy day painting. It worked out super well, that wetness!

Sylvie's fantasy fish. On the one hand it is mosaic, on the other hand, looking so lively and quicksilvery! Excellent!

And to give something to drool over, here's Cathie's onion-painting in its' finishing stages...

Round & Rectangular

Cathie and Carol worked on still lives, they are very different, except that both are absolutely awesome!

Last Tuesday we got together to paint with watercolours. The weather, the music and the tea all helped to get the best out of all of us. We finished the Totem poles, started a new project (nothing to show for yet but you'll see some results soon) and the three new aquarellistas worked on their exercises, with success! See and enjoy all below:

Michele's Totem Pole, Detailed and Funny. Well done!

Last Week's Jury prize in it's full glory with luminous star on forehead by Violet

Absolutely fabulous, this totem by Brenda. It is the blue sky and the light and shadow that makes it so real. Love it!

 And here's another funny totem, by Marie-Claire - the stick it has between its teeth says 'Marina' . I interpret it as being the thing that helps it bear the pain 😆

Ice cream with sprinkles to make your mouth water! By Liz

Glen joined us again and painted the blossom tree with amazing light - as well as a very contemporary still life with tomatoes.

Lynne worked on the background of a flower still life. It will all be about the detailed sunflower that is not yet there - but it is already looking fantastic!

So looking forward to see this wet-in-wet painting of a rainy day (by Liz)  when it is finished! There's still quite some masking fluid on it and the white will make all the difference.

And here are the amazing results of a first (and second) tries of 3 new aquarellistas:

Ilse has washed her painting of last week and is now using the dark and light tones and 'patterns' to suggest depth and volume!

 The Balls I - by Judith. They look fantastic - and the lower 3 on the left are done with complementary colours, see how 'soft' they are?

 The Balls II by Jutta - completely different, very soft and balanced.

Then they started with the Washing Exercise and it is amazing how fast they go.... ! Both are already quite strong and exciting - Next stage they will be washed and become very light and transparent - and then get volume. Above Judith's and below Jutta's

Abstracts & Eyes and more - in watercolours

 Lydia has a great feel for watercolours, amazing this is only her second try...

As part of the getting 'acquainted with watercolours'- program, the starters group worked on an abstraction exercise. First doodle with pencil, colour all compartments without colours bleeding, wash the whole painting and then give it volume using light, shadow and patterns. Amazing, Picasso-like artwork happened last week! I am so happy with it!

 Avril also worked on the exercise and it is already showing real volume, look at those brown checkers and red stripes!

 

 Board member Cassie passed by last week and participated, and this time we used her experiment as a demo and to try stings out. Look how great it looks!

 Other subject: Eyes. Coming weeks we are painting our own eyes, as a preparation for our group expo in 2019... They will form a series and give a personal touch! Here are the first ones:

 Vanessa

 Brenda

 Marina

 Liz

 

 And of course the Bottle & Brush challenge continues! So many great versions - and it looks like we're going to create the perfect one someday soon!

 

Sylvie D. finished hers - and it is amazing!

 Carol did the first brushstrokes, it looks very good, with interesting, sharp white light light

Brenda gave her water a last wash and now it is done, she achieved a very special effect! Love it...

And last but not least, Cathie is experimenting with gesso and other textures. I think this cup is absolutely stunning!!

the Bottle& Brush challenge AKA 'Is It a Painting or Is It a Photograph'

Last week Cathie was 'Chief Aquarellista', and to the delight of all, she started  

"The Bottle & Brush Challenge".

It is all about this picture, posted on the Facebook group 'French Riviera Art' with the question - is this a painting or a photo?! The replies varied from"'certainly a photo!!" via "not really sure" to "looks like a painting to me"... Whatever it is, it is definitely a fantastic image, showing that moment in which the transparent paint hits the water. The weird thing however is that nobody can find the answer to the question 'is it a painting'. So Cathie (in the "it's a photo"-camp) decided that the painters should be able to prove that it is a painting.

And there's the challenge! This will all be explained and organised in the near future via the Facebook Group, but some Aquarellistas already gave it a first try. Both Cathie and I are very impressed with the results sofar!! It is truly awesome how Real they all look. Respect!!

 

 Sylvie M

 Isabelle

Hélène 

Sylvie D.

 Marie-Claire

Brenda finished her Tuscan view - I think it is breathtaking! 

Fantastic Flower - great work, by Patience (who else?!)

And before starting the Bottle&Brush challenge, Hélène finished her sunset through a glass... 

Very well done!

Thank you Cathie for your time & help & excellent ideas & input!!