Cattle barn
Posted: May 10, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized 9 CommentsI tried out some new paper today. As a long time fan of Arches and Fabriano watercolour paper, I am always reluctant to try new sheets. After years of using them, I know exactly how paint will react on these two brands of paper but since I will be travelling quite a bit this summer, both giving and taking workshops, I thought I’d try something more portable. Not that cut sheets aren’t portable, but I haven’t used paper in blocks in a long time and I was curious. So this is painted on Canson XL series, 140 lb paper. The verdict? It is very forgiving because it really sucks up the paint. So if you go too dark with a wash, as I am apt to do sometimes, you can be sure it will dry lighter. On the other hand, if you want to get a really dark area, it’s difficult. I had to keep adding paint until I achieved the right value. I didn’t try to lift in any areas so I wouldn’t know how it stands up to scrubbing but I think it is probably more of a student quality sheet. It might be better to use with my pen and wash sketches that don’t require as many layers of pigment.
This looks so good… and also looks so big! What size is this block of paper that you are using? And was buckling of the paper a problem with the larger wash areas?
This is bigger than usual: 9″ x 12″ or 23 x 30 cm. Buckling wasn’t a problem at all although I think it looks buckled because of the washes in the sky. But the paper stayed really flat.
That’s interesting… I would have guessed it was larger by the detail in the brushwork. Is this the largest that you do… because of the size of your scanner?
No, I can scan it in sections and Photoshop will stitch it together, so that’s not a problem. But it is still really cold outside so this is the biggest I can do in the car. I am going out with my easel today but at 10 degrees C I don’t know if I will last outside.
Love this Shari, it reminds me of winter and spring and summer — quite rare.
I like that Jane. All the seasons…
don’t know much about paper, but liked the wet sky and speckled grass foreground
Thanks John. It was a wet sky day.
Without a sketch on your usual paper to compare side by side, it’s hard to see a difference this new paper makes in the end result. (beautiful, as usual) I have experienced something similar with darks not staying dark enough on Saunder’s Waterford paper.