The edge of the pond
Posted: November 24, 2022 Filed under: Uncategorized 36 CommentsI thought a lot about how to tackle this big area of foreground grass before I put a brush to paper. I don’t use masking fluid or any other form of resist in my watercolours but I wanted light areas in the grass as well as a sense of movement created by the wind coming across the pond AND depth within the grass, without being overly detailed.
My first wash was a light tone of grass colour (mostly Raw Sienna), with lots of white showing through. I tried to think about the movement of crisscrossing lines that would remain light all the way to the end of the painting, so I left some unpainted areas for that. When that bigger shape dried I started to fill in the shapes with other grasses, both behind and in front of the first shape. Then I used a lot of negative painting and smaller darks to add depth to the shapes, using increasingly finer lines. The final step in the grasses was to paint a few strokes of Buff Titanium as well as Titanium White on areas that needed highlights. It was a really good exercise in creating texture.
Shari Blaukopf's Sketchbook 
Beautifully rendered! I like looking at the complexities of your woven colors that create great depth in the woven thicket. This takes lots of patience and time as well as skill. Your careful strokes are beautifully placed. I spent a long time looking, hoping to learn to do this myself.
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Bernadette, thanks for having a long look at this. I really did get lost in the details and even though I don’t always have the patience to do this, I enjoyed painting the complexities of the grass.
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Success in getting the lightness and feeling of wind. Lovely painting.
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Thanks so much Delores!
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Beautiful! This (grasses) would be a good subject for a class.
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Katie, many people have asked for a class after seeing this painting. I will certainly consider it!
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Just beautiful! This would be a good subject for a class! I am so enjoying your classes by the way & I have learned so much. I am always in awe of how fearless you are with watercolour. I always look forward to your posts! Thank you for sharing.
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Mary, you are not the only person to ask for a class on this. I will certainly consider it! Thanks so much for the suggestion.
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Wow
Just beautiful !
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Thank you Sharon!
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Strong work! Love the depth you created within the cattail reeds and leaving some white space. Background, middle ground(paper) and weeds. I see a sunny but cold day. Great colors. That’s why your one of my favs!
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Jason, many thanks!
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The dried grasses look great! I often struggle with this type of foreground.
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thanks Sue. I often struggle with this too!
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super nice! as a photo!
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Thanks Lise.
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This is just gorgeous! Love all the detail that gives the grass so much texture!
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Thanks Joan!
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Good lessons there! Love the outcome.
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Thanks Margaret!
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Beautiful, so much depth in the grasses. Joyce
Sent from my iPad
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Joyce, thank you!
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Wonderful foreground! Must have taken
considerable time, but si worth it!
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Thanks so much Mary. Yes, it took some time but I loved painting this.
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I LOVE this post! Describing your process helps me think through similar challenges like winter deciduous trees. Thank you thank you Shari! I am grateful for all of the on-line classes and tips I have from you!!
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Brenda, I’m glad it was helpful! Thanks for having a look!
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I also love this one. What brush did you use for the finer lines?
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Judy, I used about four different liner and rigger brushes for this. Basically everything I own to get different types of line shapes and widths.
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Hi Shari!
Just wanted to let you know how much I love this one! As a fellow watercolorist, I know how very difficult it is to achieve the texture that you did in the foreground. You make it sound easy – but I know it isn’t! Really well-observed, and also great job keeping the strokes random — not inadvertently creating a human-made pattern — but still natural. Thanks for sharing!
Amelia Hansen Kalamazoo, Michigan
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Amelia, thank you. I really appreciate it!!
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So helpful to read your description, Shari. I saw this AFTER I’d done a similar-ish sketch at a nature reserve en plein air. I just couldn’t work out how to capture exactly as you describe it, the sense of dried rushes moving in the light breeze, and I even looked through your past posts for inspiration. It was a grey day and I ended up with a rather flat sketch and a bit overworked too. I don’t like the effect with masking fluid and I’ll set out with some white in my palette and study your painting carefully! Thank you for the guidance.
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Caroline, I’m so happy this was helpful!
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P.S. Re-reading it, I realise that the negative painting with dark paint to indicate the gaps and bring out the reed stalks’ shapes is super-important and I need to develop a bit more patience!
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Caroline, I actually think that part is the key to the process. A bunch of light lines just doesn’t do it. You really need the sharp little darks behind to create the depth.
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Shari, this is a beautiful painting, thank you so much for all your explanations. I can see it is so important to plan before puting the brush on the paper . I too would love a lesson/course on this type of subjects.
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Thanks so much for have a look Nieves! I will certainly consider this!
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