Snowflakes in watercolours (& Zentangles & Christmas card ideas & more)

The snowflake Judith created has it all - the cold, the transparency, the imperfection of the real (not plastic) crystal and the smoothness of freshly fallen snow in the background

Snowflakes or Ice Crystals was the subject of this week. Good for interesting watercolours, with possible use of making fluid, candles, fatty pastels (white) and salt. But also great subject for Christmas cards, and zentang-ling. Results as always creative, original, very different and hopefully inspiring!

Celina's imaginary snowflakes - wonderfully zen and good composition with a lot of depth!

The beautiful snowflakes by Hélène - the amazing background is achieved with different shades of blue and then adding salt

 Michèle C. used a little bit of masking fluid for this fantastic crystal that shines like a star and wll be even more delicate when it is finished...

Here a combination of candle wax, salt and different shades of blue paint, spontaneously combined by Marie-Claire. Next time she will add a couple of stars in white ink to perfect the picture...

Diana combined the snowflake with zentange patterns and created a lovely looking square...

 Diana's crystal is the bridge with the Zentangles that were produced and finished - a great way to spend the last 10 minutes for instance like Judith did last Thursday:

  

The start of another Zentangle by Judith, so early stages that  it is not yet completely abstract! 

 Marie-Claire's production. Her zentangles - although very different, both in colour and pen - look like aquarium- or deep sea pictures, very zen and inspiring!

  

Michele C.'s funny zentangle cats now have some starrs and balls in the background to make it all come together...

 Of course there are also the aquarelistas who paint their own subjects. Here's what they achieved this week, we start with the animals:

Carol is looking for 'bleak skies', something we don't have here in the South of France, where the sky is (almost) always blue. These Norfolk seals are so gorgeous - even when they don't have a sky yet! Watch this space for the next stage...

And how about Cathie's sheep?! Two strong and independent characters well-painted with a lot of humor - and the one-hair-brush 😊. Fantastic Cathie!

 

 Maud wasn't happy with the cat she painted last week, and started over. She was right, this one (below) is so much better & cuter! Above a portrait of Hedwig, Harry Potters' cat. Special is the use of gesso on the wings, which gives an interesting structure...

 After finishing her first robust Chess Game painting, Liz felt like doing another one. More about that next time. The large, stone pieces on the rocks are finished and the addition with a part of the black and white fields is excellent

Sandra has created these tulips in a freestyle way with a big brush. lightly inspired by Carol Carter (who will come back in this blog one day- an interesting artist!)

 Vanessa has started the portrait of her granddaughter, the lovely and funny Esmé. Drawing is the difficult part and that's now done! Very well done even . Can't wait for the next step: Adding the colours!

And last but not least: the ongoing Christmas cards-production is going pretty well ...

 (The first batch of Jutta's cards)

Michele  - Vanessa - Violet and  Diana created  some good-looking cars

Like Jutta, Leonie started a whole series of cards with different ideas...

 

Lonely little buildings in watercolours

Last weekend I drove from Amsterdam back to Chateauneuf - and on the way through beautiful France, the inspiration for the subject du jour came easy... So many different landscapes - and often they had a little house or shed or church or ruin in them, which enhances the feeling that there is a 'story' behind it...

You will see below that it was a good subject - everyone had their own ideas, and there is an amazing variety of styles and 'stories'. Most of the artists need a bit more time to finish their work. But I am excited about the quality as well as the poetry!

 

Michelle C. with a stunning August landscape. And a little lonely yet comforting barn, where you can hide for a storm...

You need to enlarge this not-yet-finished watercolour of Leonie (click on the picture) to appreciate the texture of that little stone church on top of the hill. SO delicate.

The picture doesn't do justice to Anna-Karin's super-atmospheric Tuscan house. Next week I have new and better equipment and this painting will be finished, so watch this space!

It's been a hot summer day and now a storm is coming. The wind is already blowing - such good tones chosen by Michele F . Or maybe you see another story?

 Sylvie D. went for the wet-in-wet spontaneous landscape with what I call 'Chinese' mountains. And then on the left that little house... Incredibly atmospheric

 

 Judith's lonely house, Nordicc style, but with warmth despite the cold and that reflection is superb!

Glenn finished a lonely house in the snow, also a 'Nordic' image with such a charming simplicity - and then started number 2 in the series, a warmer and more southern one - Tuscan atmosphere

 Hélène has made such an impressive start with a small house in the endless fields. Before that she worked on the Corsican mountains, with the excellent wet-in-wet sky. And the sunbeams. Unfortunately  just lifting the paint (my advice I am ashamed to admit) to achieve that, didn't give the desired subtle effect. But still, a lovely and much-admired painting!

This is a perfect postcard, created by Diana. She really had to work to get to this result, the top half was fantastic immediately but the bottom didn't come out the way she wanted. She persevered, and look what it has become. Awesome! 

And then there were 3 other subjects

This is -as you may recognize- an exercise, and it is painted by Isa. There are so many versions of the picture and this is definitely in the top 3! Well done!

 Michele C finished her poetic still life by painting a dark background. The glass is now coming out spectacularly, and balances the composition...

 Maud has started a mixed media work with a 'Zen' character... The buddha is created in charcoal and crayon, the bridge in the background is watercolours
 

'Big and small' - Watercolour theme of the week

To be finished, but already funny and sharp, like herself - Marie-Claire's maxi and mini fish

After last week's session there was a Hangar board meeting and in the busy hassle I did not take pictures of all the work! I am sorry - there was more good stuff out there... Next week I'll be back to my structured self, promise! That said - here are some great examples of what the theme 'Big and small' can lead to:

 Fabulous, these big & small  'champignons lumineuses' by Sylvie D. Out of hand, spontaneous. 

And how about the big 'coeur de boeuf' and the tiny cherry tomato by Hélène!  

Very big compliment for Michele, especially on how she expressed the metal! Couldn't be better!

After a lot of hours, Bev finished her Piazza Ducale in Vigevano!! It has so much atmosphere and on top of that a very good looking glass of chablis in the foreground. We admire your perseverance Bev!

Not yet completed, the view on a Tourtour street. When finished, this will be posted in the 'Trip to Tourtour' on the Hangar Blog.

 Maud worked very hard on her village and is really on her way to create something to be proud of!

 

 A first watercolour by Leonie. She is an experienced painter but this was a first watercolour experiment. I think this is really something she could express herself in and she liked it too, so, expect to see more!

Both Judith (above) and Jutta (below) finished their 'suggest transparency' exercise and then experimented with masking fluid. Next week: salt - and then they're ready to join the 'advanced' group. They've made their mistakes and discovered their solutions. Next step is further developing their style. Up to now I like what I see, very different but both with an interesting and personal take.

Ilse has missed a Tuesday - and worked on the background-foreground-details exercise. The photo doesn't do her delicate work justice, it is really very well executed and beautiful and I'm also sure that all she learned came back to her.

 O my, this patchwork-quilt by Celina. It is so good!! And interesting, you can really imagine a little story in each piece .

 A very good start for Sheila. When finished her watercolour quilt will be equally warm and cuddly and full of stories I'm sure