OceanofPDF.

com
OceanofPDF.com
 Painting Calm
CONNECT TO NATURE THROUGH
THE ART OF WATERCOLOUR
Inga Buividavice

OceanofPDF.com
Contents

Introduction

Why paint nature?

Your creative journey
Getting started with watercolours
PROJECTS
Foliage
Flowers
Light
Structure and symmetry
Final thoughts
Further reading and resources

Index
Acknowledgements
Colour Swatches
OceanofPDF.com
Introduction
MY JOURNEY

I have been interested in art since childhood, but I could never call myself
an artistic person. In fact, I had to work hard to be creative. And work hard
I did. I graduated art academy as a graphic designer, but I never drew or
painted for pleasure. It is almost weird to be a designer who cannot
draw . . . but whenever I gave it a try, the gap between my taste and my skill
was too big, I felt disappointed with my work. For years I searched for
proof that creativity is a learnable skill, I read books and articles that
claimed that anyone can learn to draw but approaching 30, I hadn’t picked
up a brush because of my fear. Now I cannot believe how much time I
wasted when I could have started painting much sooner.

Then I had a baby, and I was on maternity leave and all the circumstances
fell into the right place. I needed to do something for myself! I chose
watercolour for its beautiful effects, but also because it’s easy to clean up,
takes up little space and dries quickly – it is very easy to incorporate into a
busy schedule. I resolved to approach painting from a place of excitement,
not fear. I took class after class, looking at different artists and their
approaches, and I experimented every day even if it was only for 10
minutes. I stopped being so precious about each painting and I didn’t focus
on the finished result as much, only in the process.

The natural world is an attractive one and something I often turn to for
inspiration however, when I first started focusing on nature, I was just
looking for a subject to paint. I gradually began to spend more time
outdoors, learning about plants and eventually planting them in my garden
and in my home. I learned to look more closely at the individual
characteristics of different species and started noticing their colours and
compositions. This focus brought feelings of calm and peace and I began
trying to express and recreate these feelings through my botanical art.
Since I’ve started to share my work on social media, it has brought
commercial opportunities, but I still feel most in my element when I’m
doing personal projects. Watercolour has become my sanctuary where I can
get into the flow and calm down. It is such a precious feeling that improves
my life a lot. And with this book, I want to inspire you to pick up a brush
and get into a calm, meditative place with no fear of failure, only
mindfulness and connection. I will share my knowledge gained from years
of studying art, working in design and painting, so that you feel that I’ve
got your back when things might seem challenging. Most importantly, I
want you to enjoy all the amazing benefits painting can bring to your
wellbeing, particularly when focusing on the natural world around you.

OceanofPDF.com
 Why paint nature?

With urbanization and technology dominating our lives, we are in

danger of losing our emotional connection with the natural world –
we take it for granted, and fail to appreciate it or take care of it
sufficiently.

Yet not only do we need the natural world to survive, but there is a
lot of evidence to suggest that spending time outside can have a
positive effect on our mood and wellbeing. Gardening has a
particularly beneficial effect, as does creating art – and whilst it is
not always possible to have a garden if you live in the city, you can
always find a box of paints and a paintbrush!
CONNECTING WITH NATURE

To create an intimate portrait of a person, it’s not enough for an

artist to just copy their features perfectly. They have to be familiar
with their subject in order to really capture the deep nature of that
person. It’s the same with painting nature: you need to look at it,
touch it and smell it to be able to transfer its best features to paper.
When I started painting with watercolours I chose nature as my subject and
was constantly looking for inspiration. While trying to find new aspects of
my subject, I started going outside more often, learning about the plants in
the garden, and studying my houseplants. It is not enough to view nature as
a backdrop – learn to really look at it and find aspects you haven’t noticed
before.
OceanofPDF.com
 Your creative journey

At the beginning of a creative journey, most people have an inner

critic that is always ready to point out the things that go wrong. The
best way of silencing this voice is to trust the process. However, the
very fact that you have chosen to create art means that you are
probably sensitive to aesthetics, and it is important to you to make
something beautiful.

The ‘skill gap’ is the difference between your skill and your ability
to make something you like. It takes time and practice to close this
gap and your first works will not be masterpieces. Many people
quit during this stage because they doubt their ability to create
something they like, and this is a big mistake. What you really need
to do is trust the process and keep practising.

I don’t want you to be miserable whilst trying to master

watercolour painting and awaiting the magical moment when the
gap is closed. So here is a trick that keeps me inspired when
nothing seems to go right: create something very simple that can’t
go wrong. You could just paint circles or very basic shapes, simply
allowing the watercolours to mingle on the paper and enjoying the
results. You not only create something good to look at, but these
simple exercises will also bring you closer to the execution of more
complex shapes and ideas.
PERFECT IMPERFECTION

Nothing is perfect, yet we continue to chase perfection, which is

not only daunting for an artist but does not always lead to the best
outcome. The following story is a great example.

A Zen master had a beautiful garden which he enjoyed and took care of.
When the master took on an apprentice, he instructed him to take care of his
garden and make it perfect. The apprentice did so with extreme precision –
he got rid of the weeds, cut the grass, trimmed the trees and raked the soil.
The master looked at the garden and said, ‘You did a great job, but it is still
not perfect.’ The apprentice tried harder to make everything perfect, but the
master said the exact same thing. Then the apprentice said, ‘I give up, can
you tell me what to do to make it perfect?’ The master went to a tree and
shook it until a few leaves fell on the ground. ‘Now it is perfect.’

Too much perfection can make things look artificial and unnatural and take
away the beauty of nature, which is perfectly imperfect.

Imperfection is natural, it is honest, human and relatable. We connect with

other people through our shared struggles and imperfections. This is why
we should embrace it rather than chase the impossible.

English garden
One of the things I admire most is the wild character of the British garden.
Yes, there is a visible human touch – landscape gardeners put all their
knowledge and artistic abilities into arranging plants and creating beauty –
yet it still feels natural and free as if it almost accidentally grew this way.
This is very similar to watercolour painting, where you are always trying to
find a balance between the paint flowing freely and your own creative
expression.
YOUR STYLE

Is it important for an artist to have a style? There is no correct

answer to this, as, like most things in life, nothing is black or white.
Yes, artists with a style are more recognizable and may find it easier to land
a commission. But tying yourself to a style too early can be a real creativity
killer. Develop your style gradually and gently, leaving plenty of room for
exploration and trying new things.

Essentially, you have been developing your ‘style’ all your life – in the
creative choices you make: the way you choose to dress, to decorate your
home, the art you consume, and even in your personality traits – are you
calm or active?

Do you like patterns? Are you attracted to muted colours? Do you prefer to
make bold statements or take the gentle approach?
Personal vision
You create a style in the same way that you improve your brushstroke and
close the skill gap – through practice. Many successful artists employ a
simple, naive or loose style, which looks as though anyone could replicate it
(they can’t!). Sometimes you can copy these artists, but the struggle is to
come up with something of your own. Here are some tips to help you
develop your style.

Use your favourite colours. Not only will this give you the most
satisfaction, it will build your signature colour palette.
Repeat brush marks. If you have discovered a brushwork that you really
love, don’t just use it once – it is good practice to reuse your amazing
findings.
Incorporate your experiences. If you are a very tactile person, you can
bring this into your paintings by emphasizing textures.
Keep experimenting and adding new aspects to your art to keep yourself
motivated and excited about your work.

OceanofPDF.com
 Getting started with watercolours

The great thing about using watercolours is that you don’t need a
lot of equipment to start, although, like most artists, you will
probably feel an urge to treat yourself to some fancy new colours or
brushes and many other things you don’t even need. For an
absolute beginner, I would suggest starting with just a few basic
supplies instead of buying everything up front. Why? Because if
you are new to watercolours, you need to work out exactly what
you need – my must-have colours will not necessarily be ones you
will like.

Do you have a scarf that goes with all your clothes, or a pen that
seems to improve your handwriting? It’s the same with art supplies
– I have my favourite colours that never fail me, in which the
pigment concentration is always right, and when I paint with those
colours I always get the desired outcome. I want you to find the
supplies that elevate your work every time.
MATERIALS

Watercolours
Watercolours come in both pans and tubes, and the type you choose is a
matter of where you are in your creative practice. For a beginner, I would
suggest getting a box with a minimum of 12 pans. This should contain all of
the essential colours. In time, you will notice that you are reaching for some
colours more than others. This is the fun part as you begin to put together
your own colour palette. You can then buy new colours individually, and
eventually you will have your own custom palette, which will be a
reflection of your taste and contribute to your style.
I prefer to use watercolour tubes as these hold more paint. I buy individual
tubes and squeeze them into a plastic palette to cover it, then leave them to
dry overnight. At the back of the palette, I write the colour names and
brands in case I forget and need to buy more. I would suggest not focusing
on specific brands and just going for whatever is available to you. Keep in
mind that professional watercolours will have more saturation than student-
grade watercolours and will not fade over time. If you end up buying a
shade that you don’t like, or have a leftover watercolour set, use it for
practising brushstrokes and gestures when the colour is not important.

When painting with watercolours, always have two jars of water to hand –
one for rinsing warm colours (red, orange, yellow) from your brush and the
other for cool colours (blue, green, purple). This means that you won’t have
to change the water as often.
In this book, I have specified the colours that I have used for each
exercise, but I want to stress that you can use any similar shade that
you have, or even completely different ones. Creative freedom is
important, and since I don’t replicate exactly what I see, your colour
choices will be just as appropriate as mine!
Brushes
Watercolour brushes come in a range of sizes and with various different
bristles, and it is fun to explore what each type can do. If you are a
beginner, start with good-quality round brushes in a few different sizes and
slowly build your collection by adding more intricate ones.

Numbering systems
Numbering and sizing scales differ between manufacturers, making it
difficult to compare brushes or buy them online when you are not familiar
with a particular brand. As if this isn’t complicated enough, different brush
styles from the same manufacturer can have different numbering systems as
well. For instance, round brushes are usually numbered 000, 00, 0, 1, 2, 3,
4, 5 . . . 30, with 000 being the smallest, and 30 the largest. So in this
numbering system, brush no. 4 would be quite small. However, mop
brushes are usually only numbered from 000 to 12, so brush no. 4 is quite a
big brush. For some brushes, their size is given in inches, referring to the
width of the bristles: for example ⅛ inch, ¼ inch, ¾ inch, and so on.

To avoid confusion, I would suggest buying your first set of brushes in an

art supplies store, then once you are familiar with the numbering system of
the particular brand it will be easier to ‘guess’ the size when buying online.
The size of your largest brush should be dictated by how big you like to
paint (or your budget). I also love buying whole sets rather than individual
brushes as they normally have a range of sizes suited to painting on A4 and
A3 paper.
MOP OVAL WASH

OVAL WASH

FLAT

SWORD
 ROUND

Shapes, names and applications

Brushes can be made from natural hair, most commonly sable or squirrel, or
synthetic. Natural-hair brushes are a lot softer than synthetic ones, hold
more water, and can be very expensive. Synthetic brushes are firmer, which
makes them perfect for painting florals, as they hold their shape, giving
more defined brushstrokes – there are lots of excellent-quality versions.
Let's have a closer look at some common watercolour brushes and their
applications.
ROUND
A round watercolour brush is an essential tool for every artist. It can have a
blunt or pointed tip, and you can create thin and thick lines as well as a
variety of different brushstrokes. It is perfect for painting flowers in a loose,
gestural style, and equally good for detailed realistic paintings.
DAGGER OR SWORD
This brush has bristles shaped at an angle, and is great for creating long,
pointed leaves and grass. It will also create strokes that are similar in shape
and size, perfect for when you want to bring some rhythmical repetition to
your painting.
MOP
A mop brush is more advanced and requires a little bit of practice, but it is
brilliant for watercolour painting. It has very soft bristles but holds a sharp
tip well and also holds lots of water. It can create a good range of thin and
thick lines, and is useful for painting leaves and blooms and creating large
washes.
 MOP

FILBERT
A filbert brush is flat with a rounded tip. It is not normally classified as a
watercolour brush, but it is very much liked amongst floral watercolour
painters due to the rounded shape and soft brushstrokes that resemble the
petals of flowers. When using the flat side of the brush you get a wide
stroke, and when using the side you get a rounded, somewhat thin line.

FILBERT

MOP OVAL WASH

This brush has an oval shape and holds lots of water. It was designed for
large washes, such as when painting skies and clouds, and I also find it
extremely helpful when painting abstract rounded flowers.
LINER
This brush is intended for smaller details and long, thin lines. It has long
bristles, making it ideal for painting details such as veins on leaves. It is a
nice addition to the floral brush collection, saving you the trouble of
constantly reloading your brush.

Every artist will develop their own application style for each brush, and you
shouldn't be worried if this is not the way it was intended to be used by the
manufacturer. I would encourage you to explore all the possible
brushstrokes you can make with your brushes.

LINER

OVAL WASH OR CAT’S TONGUE

This brush is flat with a pointed tip in the middle. It is used for painting
large washes and is also good for creating a teardrop shape. It’s ideal for
painting roses due to the range of thin and thick lines it can create, and can
be used for painting leaves, too.
FLAT BRUSH
A flat brush with straight, hard bristles. It is good for applying washes and
creating decorative lines. The brushstroke is usually very neat and it is
perfect for creating swatches. The hard bristles also make it very good for
lifting (see here).

It is important to take good care of your brushes. After you finish painting,
wash them with running water, or even soap if the paint is not coming off.
When the brushes are clean, wipe them with a rag or paper towel and shape
them back into a point with your fingers. Store them bristles-side up every
time.
PRESSURE EXERCISE

One of the best ways to get to know your brushes is by doing a

pressure exercise.
1. Load your brush with medium-wet paint and draw a line using just the
tip of your brush, pressing as lightly as you can. Draw more lines,
increasing the pressure each time until you get the widest line your brush
can make.
2. Next, draw another line, gradually pressing and releasing your brush
along the line. When pressing down use the belly of the brush, and when
releasing the pressure use only the tip of the brush.
3. Repeat the exercise, this time creating wavy lines. After doing this
exercise you will have a good idea of how to use brush pressure when
painting very loose, gestural florals.
Paper
Good artist-grade cotton paper makes a huge difference to your painting.
Student-grade paper is fine for practice, but the details can be lost on budget
paper and the colours often become muddy.

Watercolour paper can be cold- or hot-pressed. Cold-pressed paper is

textured and is a little easier to paint on; it dries more slowly, which means
you have more time to move the pigment around. Hot-pressed paper is
smooth and not my paper of choice.

The optimal paper weight is 300 gsm or 140 lb, which holds lots of water
without buckling too much, but isn’t too thick.

You can buy paper in pads, blocks, sketchbooks and loose sheets. I like to
buy large sheets and cut them into smaller pieces, so it’s not quite as
expensive and I can choose sizes to suit my project.
Other supplies
You might want to invest in a few other supplies that will come in handy
down the line.

Pencils and erasers are always good to have to hand.

Masking tape or artist’s tape will keep your paper in place or can be used to
create a clean frame around your painting.

Masking fluid is a glue that you apply to those places you want to protect
from paint. Leave it to dry completely, apply paint, and when your painting
is completely dry, you can rub it off with a hard eraser.

You can buy a masking fluid application tool with a silicone head or use
very old brushes to apply it. Never use good-quality brushes as masking
fluid will ruin them.
Mixing palettes are surfaces on which you can mix your ideal shades.
Always choose ceramic palettes to avoid beading, which is when paint dries
in small droplets. Paint that has beaded is extremely difficult to mix.

I also like to go over watercolours with other mediums as I feel that they
enrich the painting. I use gouache or 0.7 mm Posca pen to draw white
marks over dark colours. I’ve tried many different white gel pens over the
years, but the Posca pen is the only one that doesn’t turn invisible.
Gouache is a type of watercolour but much more opaque. You can dilute it
with water and mix it with watercolours as you would normally, or use a
thicker layer to paint over watercolours. You can choose not only white but
a couple of other shades too. I mostly use yellow ochre and flesh tint as an
alternative to white.

Graphite, coloured pencils, soft pastels, crayons, ink pens . . . there are
so many mediums that can be used over or with watercolours. Any
extras will greatly enrich your painting and add an unexpected touch.
WATERCOLOUR TECHNIQUES

Learning watercolour techniques is like learning chords – once

you’ve mastered them, you can play any song you like; or in the
case of watercolours, you can transfer your ideas to paper more
easily.

Watercolour paint is water-based and requires a lot of additional water when

painting. To work out the amount you need, it’s best to experiment. After
doing a few exercises you will get the hang of it quite quickly.

There are a couple of primary techniques to understand: wet on dry and wet
on wet, and you will likely use a combination of both for all of your
paintings.
Wet on dry
The wet on dry technique involves adding wet paint to a dry surface. This
could be applying wet paint directly onto paper or onto a watercolour
painting that has already dried. Wet on dry usually refers to any type of
painting with a brush that is not on a wet surface. It is a technique that gives
you more control over what you are painting and is amazing for layering
paint.

MEDIUM WET PAINT

PAINT APPLIED WITH A SLIGHTLY DRIED BRUSH

PAINT APPLIED WITH A VERY DRY BRUSH
Wet on wet
The wet on wet technique involves adding wet paint to either a damp sheet
of paper or a still-wet area of paint, or when you let two wet colours touch
and spread into each other. It results in a beautifully soft and natural
gradient. You have little control over the paint, and the outcome can be
quite unpredictable. It is also one of the most satisfying techniques as you
watch how the paint spreads around.

PAINT ADDED IMMEDIATELY TO THE WET PAINTED CIRCLE

PAINT ADDED ONCE THE CIRCLE HAS STARTED TO DRY

 PAINT ADDED WHEN THE CIRCLE IS SLIGHTLY DAMP

First of all, wet your paper with an even layer of clean water, then load your
brush with paint and drop it onto the wet area. Notice how the paint
spreads. The result will depend on the ratio of paint to water as well as
drying time, and this is why it is important to experiment. You can do so by
trying different ratios of water combined with different consistencies of
paint and by adding paint to the paper right away or waiting to let the paper
dry slightly first. Each time you will get a very different result.

Repeat the experiment using different colours. First wet the paper with one
colour, then add another colour to it. You might notice that intense,
especially complementary colours, don’t mix as nicely as lighter tones.

DOTTING ON A WET SURFACE

TWO COLOURS MEETING ON A WET SURFACE

RIGHT AWAY

1 MINUTE

2 MINUTES
 3 MINUTES

Wet your paper, then set a timer and wait for 1 minute. Add your paint,
noticing how the paint spreads. Repeat the exercise with the timer set
for 2 minutes. And so on. Make a note of the waiting time next to your
tests so that you have a record of how the paint spreads after a certain
amount of time. Notice the difference when the surface is nearly dry
compared to when it’s very wet.
EFFECTS

Glazing
Glazing is best compared with layering pieces of coloured glass. With every
layer of the same colour, you will get a darker effect; if you use different
colours you will get a new colour, similar to mixing colours on a palette.

So if you notice your watercolour paint looks lighter than you expected as it
dries, simply add another layer of the same colour.
Pulling
Pulling is when you paint wet on dry first, then rinse your brush completely,
load it with clean water, and then pull down from the still wet paint,
creating a nice soft wash.
Lifting
Also known as softening, lifting is great for creating lighter and softer areas
on your painting and involves removing some paint with a damp brush
whilst the watercolour is still wet. Dry your clean brush with a paper towel
so that it is damp but not too wet, then lift some paint where you want the
highlight to be. You might need to repeat this step many times, as the
watercolour tends to spread back into the lifted area, but with a little
patience the nice soft effect can be achieved. The drier your paint on the
paper, the more pigment you will be able to lift, so it is always worth
waiting a little before you start lifting.

LIFTING A SPECIFIC AREA

LIFTING ALL OF THE PAINTED AREA

You can also use a tissue instead of a brush – simply dab a clean tissue over
your wet paint. If you do that on a just-applied wet paint you can remove it
completely, and this is great when you want to correct any mistakes or
accidental splashes. Keep in mind that tissue can leave a very rough edge
compared to a good-quality brush.
Cauliflower (or Bloom)
Cauliflower is a cool effect created by using too much water. It adds a
beautiful texture to your painting. The effect is usually what artists either
strive for or go out of their way to avoid. But this recent watercolour trend
shows that this is a very much desired effect; it’s what makes watercolour
so appealing – it’s an unpredictable media. If you are lucky, this will happen
naturally as a happy accident, but you can encourage it by using a
combination of a very thick layer of paint combined with lots of water –
either by dropping water into the paint or using the pulling technique.
EXPLORE PIGMENT INTERACTION

To try out different watercolour effects, there is of course no other

option but to practise them.

A perfect exercise through which to explore watercolour interactions is by

painting simple circles. There’s nothing more therapeutic than painting
circles – the shape is harmony itself.

Try applying all the techniques from the previous chapter whilst painting
circles – you can even try making them look like planets just by adding a
few details.
You can practise many aspects of the wet on wet technique, learning about
paint–water ratios as well as drying times. You may think that you
intuitively know how much water to add or how long you need to wait for
watercolour to dry before adding another colour, but this knowledge is
gained through practice, via exercises such as this that you can do over and
over again.
The best part is that whilst practising, you will create lots of happy
accidents! Maybe you have used too much water but it has created a
beautiful effect, or you have added another layer of paint too early
whilst the previous layer was still a little bit wet and unexpectedly it
created a very interesting texture. What start as accidents become
techniques that you can add to your unique style.
COLOUR

It is safe to say that colour is one of the most impactful attributes of

a piece of artwork, conveying mood and emotion quicker than any
shape or word.

Many complex colour theories have been developed over the centuries, but
when it comes to the use of colour, it is usually down to one’s taste and
preference. Colour can be used to make a statement as an artist, yet it can
also destroy a painting when applied carelessly.

One of the most attractive elements of watercolour is the way that colours
mix and mingle on the paper, creating different shades. In this section we
will look at some fundamentals of colour and how to make the best use of
these when painting with watercolours.
Watercolour and white
The white in watercolour is the paper. To get a lighter shade of any other
colour, you need to add more water to it. It is crucial to practise this skill, as
the best way to learn is through experimentation. You may be surprised at
how much water you need to lighten a colour.

Take a very thick layer of any colour of paint and add it to your palette.
Make a brushstroke with it on paper – this is the colour in its natural state.
Next, add a little water to the palette and log it on paper again. Continue to
add more water to get lighter shades. When you notice that even with more
water the shade doesn’t get any lighter, rinse your brush a little and paint
with the pigment that is left on the brush. Keep rinsing your brush until
you’re almost painting with water with just a hint of colour.

When painting, you will want to utilize the whole range of tones you can
achieve, and not be stuck in your mid-tones – the colours that are not too
dark or too light.

Many watercolour sets will have a white paint in them, but the way
that white paint mixes with colours makes them heavier in texture and
adds chalkiness to the colour. Using it will lose the natural
transparency of the watercolours.
Mixing colours
The colour wheel is a tremendous help when mixing colours or creating
colour harmonies. Yellow, red and blue are the primary colours that form its
base. In theory, you should be able to create any colour by combining them,
but in reality it’s not that simple, and shades such as turquoise, gold or
magenta can be very difficult to create (and, I’d argue, not worth the effort).

primary colours
 primary and secondary colours

When you mix two primary colours together, you get a secondary colour.
Secondary colours are orange (yellow + red), purple (red + blue) and green
(blue + yellow). When you mix primary and secondary colours together,
you create tertiary colours.

If you continue mixing colours that sit next to each other on the colour
wheel, you will get a wide range of colour shades. When you mix all three
primary colours in equal proportion, you will get a very dark colour close to
black, because they neutralize each other.
Keep in mind that, with watercolours, the more colours you mix
together, the duller the colour you’ll get. I wouldn’t suggest mixing
more than three pigments together – two is ideal. You’ll get the most
saturated colours when keeping it minimal, and saturation is something
we strive for in watercolour painting, as the colours normally dull
when they dry.
Subtle shades
To explore more subtle shades, take two colours and gradually add one
colour to the other. Always start with the lighter shade and gradually add
the darker one. This is a brilliant way of discovering many new shades.
Neutralizing colours
When you want a less saturated shade, add a complementary colour (see
here) to it. Here is an example of what happens when you gradually add a
green colour to a pink one; with more green added, thepink loses its
saturation (intensity) and becomes a dusty pink.
Warm and cool colours
Colours can be warm or cool, and having a good balance of each is helpful
in creating colour harmonies. A painting that is on the warmer or cooler
side will convey different emotions. But first we need to learn how to
distinguish warm and cool colours. Colours reminiscent of fire – yellow,
orange, red – are warm colours, whilst colours reminiscent of the cosmos –
purple, blue, emerald green – are cool. Green can be both warm and cool,
depending on how much yellow or blue pigment is in it. You can also
decide which colours are warm or cool simply by looking at them and
deciding how they make you feel. Bear in mind that the terms ‘warm’ and
‘cool’ are relative, as each colour has a cooler and warmer shade of itself.
COLOUR HARMONIES

There are a few colour harmonies worth looking at. I will introduce
you to my favourites, which are commonly found in nature.

Analogous colours
Analogous colours are those that sit next to each other on the colour wheel.
They share similar pigments and always work well together. Analogous
colours in nature often create a very soft feel – when autumn leaves turn
yellow, orange and red on the same tree, or when the sky becomes blue,
purple and pink at sunset. Painting in analogous colours is a safe yet
harmonious choice.
Complementary colours
Complementary colours sit opposite each other on the colour wheel – they
contrast with each other and make each other seem brighter when together.

There are many examples of complementary colours in nature, such as red

berries amongst green leaves; purple and yellow pansies; the feathers of
tropical birds.

When it comes to painting, using two complementary colours doesn’t

automatically create harmony. Harmony is created when each colour
contains some of the other, so when you add a tiny bit of green to the red,
although you will neutralize it slightly, it will go better with the green. This
is why less saturated colours are often more pleasant and calming to the
eye, whilst bright colours have more energy but are much harder to balance.
Colour filter
In autumn, have you ever noticed how, when the sun is not too high,
everything has a touch of gold? This is such a pleasant moment – because
of the position of the sun, everything appears warmer and softer, as if
everything has an added touch of yellow. This is also why filters make
photographs look so much better – they add one unifying colour. When
creating a colour palette, add a little of one colour to every colour that you
use and your painting will be more cohesive.
For example, when painting mushrooms, try adding a little gold brown
colour to every other colour.
Colour proportion
The easiest way to spoil your painting is by adding too many completely
different colours.

For well-balanced colour harmony, try using bright, neutral, dark and pastel
tones of the same two or three colours. Neutral and pastel colours will make
the bright colours pop, whilst dark colours will add a contrast, bringing the
focus to your bright colours and making them stand out.

Proportion is equally important. One trick that you can apply is used in
interior design and I often follow it when painting: the rule of 60–30–10.
Use the main colour you choose for your painting 60 per cent, your second
colour 30 per cent, and your accent colour 10 per cent. I would simplify this
to say: use a large amount of one colour or colour group in your painting,
then a little of the second colour, and add a third colour here and there. It is
especially important to make one or two colours dominant if you choose to
have multiple colours in your painting.

When choosing your colours, go for both sides of the colour wheel, but
never in equal proportion. For example, you could use four different
cool shades but only two shades of the same warm colour.
Creating colour swatches
This is both fun and practical. As you will have noticed, watercolours look
completely different when wet and dry. I would often think that I had
created a perfect painting with a nice colour palette, only to find out that
certain colours had dried to be dull and dirty. The best way of preventing
these not very nice surprises is by making swatches of your colour mixes.
 NEUTRAL

OPERA

ULTRAMARINE BLUE

UMBER

SIENNA
 GOLD

There are a few benefits to this:

You will get to know your colours better.

You will know what to expect when the colours dry.
You can plan your colour harmonies.
You will make new discoveries whilst mixing colours.
You can replicate the colours you like in the future.

It doesn’t matter how you choose to keep your swatches organized, the
important bit is to always make notes of the colour mixes, and to log both
dark and light versions of the same colour, as sometimes you might like
only one of them.

You can also paint a stripe with two or more colours and observe colour
interaction and how they blend.
Making colour swatches is a great way to ease yourself into painting if
you are afraid of a blank sheet of paper. You can start by
experimenting with mixing random colours and be inspired to paint
more!
Be inspired by nature
Wherever you go, keep your eyes open for nice colour harmonies. Look at
the flowers, trees or the sky at dawn to discover new ideas.

Take a photo or make notes of the colours you like. You will thank yourself
on those days when inspiration doesn’t come as easily.
Limiting your palette
Adding too many colours is a recipe for disaster. Many illustrators focus on
a limited colour palette, and I have also learned from experience that
whenever I limit my colour palette, my painting has more focus and looks
so much better.

When there are too many elements in your painting, the viewer doesn’t
know where to look and loses interest. It is also rare in nature for something
to feature a complete rainbow of colours (except a rainbow, of course).

Try choosing no more than six or seven shades of two colours – for
example, two different shades of green and four different shades of
pink.
Tell a story through colour
Colours can have emotional associations and impact our mood. Take a look
at how the same image painted in warm and cool tones has a completely
different feel.

When thinking about your next project, consider the mood you want to
convey, then create a colour palette around it. If you want to emphasize the
calmness of nature, go with moss green, smoky grey, cream or deep brown.
If you want to add some magic, your colours are purple, black and
turquoise. Strong dark and saturated colours will provide a certain
moodiness to your artwork.
Colours are a very personal choice – choose combinations you like,
which have a deeper connection with you, and this will be reflected in
the quality of your painting.
EXPLORATIONS

Cacti
Painting cacti is super fun, really easy, and a great way to practise balancing
your colours. You can explore an analogous colour palette by playing with
greens and blues, or complementary colours by adding red next to the
green. Remember the proportions, especially when it comes to the accent
colour – it should not be overpowering.
As well as choosing conventional colours, try detaching yourself from the
realistic image and paint cacti in your favourite colours instead.
Simplify shapes
According to the principles of Gestalt psychology, we don’t always have to
depict everything – our brains will fill in the gaps and do a great job of
interpreting simple objects.

If we paint a red circle and add a leaf, our brain has no trouble interpreting
it as an apple, even if we don’t show all the details.

Try using minimal detail to reveal objects. Remember that what you paint is
just as important as what you don’t paint. Leaving white gaps can be used
to describe the shape better and show the highlights. A few dots can hint at
the texture of the object, leaving the rest to our imagination. The simplicity
of the whole emphasizes what really matters.
If you go further and start simplifying and interpreting shapes even more,
this is called stylization: when you make your own artistic choices that
might not have much to do with reality, but rather are unique to your style,
yet give enough information about your subject to make it recognizable.
Moths
When you feel ready to move on, try painting butterflies and moths. Visit a
museum of natural history if you can – you will be surprised by the number
of sizes and shapes, and their different wing patterns. Practise simplifying
the shapes, using different watercolour effects and colours.
Explore textures
Using different textures in your painting adds greater interest. I love
collecting natural elements on my daily walk and bringing them home to
paint later. You can replicate many interesting textures by applying different
brushstrokes, a dry brush effect, white Posca marks or splashes. Sometimes
just a hint of texture can be sufficient.
BE INSPIRED

Inspiration comes from all around us – it’s in the things we see, the
experiences we have, and the emotions we feel. Yet inspiration
never comes when it’s needed the most. When you are busy with
something else, the most amazing ideas come to mind, but when
you finally have time to sit down and paint, your head is often
empty! The solution is to collect objects, colours and motifs and
save them for later, so you always have something inspiring to
hand.
Collect
The whole act of creation is taking something familiar and bringing it into a
new light, which is why collecting things is so important – you are building
a library of potential painting subjects and ideas. If you see an interesting
pine cone or seeds on your walk in the park, or a shell or pebble by the sea,
take them home, as you never know what they might inspire. You can also
arrange the physical objects into a composition that you can transfer to
paper.

It’s not always possible to bring natural objects home, especially flowers
that are growing for everyone to enjoy, but when that is the case you can
take photographs. It is better to take your own photographs than rely on the
internet, as you can choose different angles and zoom into the details.

Take photos everywhere you go – even the most mundane places can
provide the most fascinating painting subjects if you look closely! And
when you need inspiration, you can go through your library and pick
your subject.
Pressed flowers and plants
Pressing flowers and plants is a way of preserving their beauty. It is nice to
collect different elements of nature, but quite often they don’t hold their
shape over time. By pressing leaves, seeds and flowers you can keep them
for longer and use them as a reference whenever you need to.

Pressed flowers can bring a very different mood to your art, displaying
some interesting textures and qualities that you do not normally see in fresh
flowers. You’ll notice that the colours are darker and a bit dimmer, the veins
are more visible, and the petals are often translucent and you can see them
layering on top of each other.
Not every flower is good for pressing – go for those with thinner petals,
such as pansies. Usually, I choose flowers from my garden and cut them
close to the bloom. Next, I arrange the flowers, leaves and everything else
on a sheet of simple cartridge paper and place another sheet on top. I put
this sandwich between the pages of a book, close the book, then put lots of
heavy books on top. It takes about three weeks for plants to lose their
moisture and dry completely flat.
Repeat motifs
One of the best ways to develop a painting is by experimenting with a motif
and creating different compositions with it. Choose a motif you like – it
could be a leaf, flower or seed – and paint it freehand as many times as it
takes you to feel comfortable with it. Try painting it from different angles,
repeating until you are totally familiar with your subject. Then try building
up different compositions with this motif, adding stems or other elements,
and 'grow’ it into a new composition. It is very hard to just sit down and
come up with a new arrangement, but when mindlessly playing with your
motif, you let it emerge naturally.
Patterns
Patterns have a unity of form that grabs people’s attention. Painting
repeating motifs is also one of the most meditative ways to practise your art
– once you get the first element down you can just relax and repeat.

There are a few ways of creating patterns:

Choose the element you want to repeat and paint it many times. You will
notice that the more you paint the same thing, the more confident and
free your painting style becomes.
Try painting the same object but vary the size, colour and rotation on the
page. You could even come up with different textures.
Show the same object from different angles: full pear, half pear, quarter
pear, from the top, from the side, seeds only, and so on.
For a more advanced pattern you can choose a few different elements – I
would advise no more than five – and create a composition repeating all
of them.
Sketchbooks
Painting in a sketchbook is similar to journalling – it’s perfect for
documenting your findings, making notes and logging colours. The magic
of a sketchbook is that you don’t have to be neat, because it’s your place to
experiment creatively; even your average sketch looks so much cooler
when it’s part of a sketchbook spread. Think of a sketchbook as your safe
place, where you paint for yourself alone.

Sketchbooks are easy to store and a great way to keep all your ideas and
experiments in one place. Every time you sit down to paint you can flick
through the pages to get some inspiration from your previous work. You can
pick up new ideas from your sketches, develop existing sketches, combine
them or try painting them in different colours.

I would suggest having a few sketchbooks going at the same time, so that
whilst you’re waiting for a sketch to dry, you can pick up another book and
continue painting, keeping up your momentum.
The important thing about sketchbooking is not being afraid to ‘ruin’
your page. There is a simple cure for this fear, however: start by
actually ruining it! Stain your page so it’s not perfectly clean and
white, and there will be nothing left to be afraid of.
COMPOSITION

Good composition is essential for a work of art, giving it a visual

anchor and making it pleasing to the eye. A good composition is
when a painting reads well from a distance and is also interesting
up close. Whilst it's not always easy to achieve a good
composition, with a little practice and some fundamental
knowledge you will improve quickly.
To see if your painting has a strong visual structure, you need to check for
two shapes: the first shape is the image as a whole – everything that is
painted on the paper; the second shape is formed by the darker elements.

If the dark elements don’t form some kind of complete shape, the
composition will appear scattered, as if nothing holds it together, and the
eye will not know where to look. When you build this path, the viewer's eye
will naturally follow it. To check if your darker elements are in place, squint
your eyes; when everything appears blurry, you are not distracted by the
details and you can ensure your painting doesn’t look flat.

If all the elements in your painting are too similar in shape and size, it
will be boring to look at. The key is to choose one thing to focus on,
but also to have a variety of less prominent elements.
Static and dynamic
The composition can be static or dynamic. A static composition is calm and
balanced, with lots of vertical lines, giving an impression of harmony and
stability; it gives your eyes a place to rest and focus.

The dynamic is more dramatic and interesting and good for organic shapes
such as nature-inspired art.
There are ways to make your composition more dynamic: varying sizes and
proportions of elements; using intersecting elements and diagonals to create
tension and intrigue; repetition of shapes to add movement. Asymmetry,
colour variations and contrast – all will contribute to an interesting,
dynamic composition. If you make your composition open – as though your
subject is ‘growing’ beyond the edges of the page – it will also give the
impression of constant movement.
Line
The line direction of your painting plays a big role in composition. Placed
horizontally in the middle, it gives your painting a neutral mood. The
ascending line is more positive and optimistic and is good for fresh, happy
florals. The descending line will give a negative, pessimistic impression and
can be good for moody landscapes.
Rule of thirds
The rule of thirds is popular amongst photographers, and can be helpful in
planning out balanced but interesting compositions. Divide your paper into
nine equal parts by drawing two equally spaced vertical lines and two
equally spaced horizontal lines.

Align your compositional elements along any of the lines or where they
intersect. The lines work as a guide to where to draw a horizon in landscape
drawing or where to place the biggest bloom in a floral painting.
Symmetry
Symmetry is a balanced type of composition. Everything in nature is more
or less symmetrical – a pine cone, a stem with leaves, seashells, and so on.
You can utilize the symmetry in your painting by using mirror symmetry –
this is when you have exactly the same elements on both sides of the
painting.

Another interesting way to use symmetry is by reversing and rotating the

same element; this way you are keeping the balanced characteristic of
symmetrical compositions but making the composition a little more
dynamic.
Thumbnails
You can plan your painting by creating thumbnail sketches, perhaps just
deciding on your composition and mapping out the focal and dark elements
before moving on to the larger work. Carry a pen and paper everywhere you
go and, when you have an idea for an interesting composition, do a quick
thumbnail sketch. Later, when you sit down to paint, you can use your
thumbnail drawings as a reference and they will save you lots of headaches
down the line!
Geometry
Geometry can support your composition. Look at the examples and see how
the compositions follow the curves.

TRIANGLE COMPOSITION
C CURVE COMPOSITION
S CURVE COMPOSITION
 X COMPOSITION

OceanofPDF.com
 PROJECTS

In this section, we will put theory into practice with a few exercises
to get you going technically and to help you find new perspectives
when considering your painting subject. These are just examples of
what can be done – I encourage you to keep looking for different
angles to your painting and, most importantly, to enjoy your work!

For all the exercises, I am using cold-pressed 300 gsm paper (see
here). You can find all my colour swatches at the back of of this
book. If you don't have a particular colour, use a similar one or,
even better, choose your own colours! I have suggested certain
brushes, but keep in mind that you can replicate any brushstroke
quite closely with a round or mop brush (see here), and the size of
brush will always depend on the size of your sketch.
 Foliage

When thinking about painting nature, my mind instantly goes to

foliage. When a seedling unfolds its first leaf, we know it’s going
to grow, and when we see fresh new leaves on older plants, we
know that they are thriving. We can show the growth of a plant
using the direction, colour tone and size of the leaves.

Foliage makes an excellent painting theme because leaves have

simple shapes that are easily repeated. It doesn’t require much
concentration to get the shape right, so you can lose yourself in the
process, focusing your mind and relaxing it at the same time. Not
only are you painting nature, but you have an opportunity to bring
your intuitive thinking into it. There are no rules as to how closely
you need to be to the original leaf branch; your painting is a
conversation between yourself and nature. You will be amazed at
how many colours and different effects you can explore by painting
something as simple as foliage. The results are very rewarding!
GESTURE

undersea green

Before you begin painting, look at the leaves around you in your
garden or local park. There are so many shapes to take inspiration
from – long, short, round or more complex. To make painting
leaves as easy as possible, take advantage of the watercolour brush
and let it do the job for you.

1. Load your brush with paint. Moving the brush along the paper, imagine
you are painting a C curve. Start by barely touching the paper with the
tip of the brush and gradually press a little harder, releasing the pressure
at the end.
2. Repeat the same movement on the other side of the shape, connecting
the leaf top and bottom.
3. Fill in the middle and finish with a stem.

When using watercolours, the fewer adjustments you make to your

brushstroke, the cleaner the shape, but don’t be afraid to go over the
leaf again if you are not happy with it.
Practise painting the basic leaf shape, creating different curves to show the
leaf from different angles. If you are observing the leaf from above, it will
have a more symmetrical shape; if you are looking at your leaf at an angle,
certain parts will be thinner than others. You can start experimenting from
here.

Create your own way of adding veins. Additional line of text to follow

No matter how complex your leaf shape, try to always follow the same
principle of pressing down and releasing the pressure of your brush.
Folding parts of the leaf require a little more attention, as the curved part of
the leaf needs to be narrower and straighter.
FOLIAGE IN DIFFERENT SEASONS

Payne’s grey

Trees are the longest living organisms on earth. Yet you can
observe the whole cycle of life in a single leaf: how it’s born,
grows, changes from fresh bright green to deeper shades, then in
autumn turns into a myriad of colours and textures before falling
and decaying into the soil. Looking at the leaves throughout the
seasons provides lots of inspiration for painting.
Winter
No matter where you live, there are certain aspects of stagnation in
winter. For me, it’s the season when everything becomes a little
more grey, and luscious summer bouquets fade into delicate, dried
flower arrangements. Painting a branch of leaves using only one
colour is a great way of focusing on the tonal values instead of
being overwhelmed with too many design decisions.

1. Start with the stem: moving from the point of natural growing direction,
paint the leaves in oval shapes.
2. Keep adding leaves whilst varying the amount of water you use. This is
a brilliant way to develop your muscle memory about the paint and
water ratio. Allow your leaves to merge into one another.
3. When you are happy with the way your branch looks, stop adding leaves
and leave it to dry. Add a second layer, showing which leaf is on top and
which is behind, to create a sense of depth. Add veins for detail.
Spring
Spring is usually associated with rebirth and is a new growth stage
for leaves, when colours have not yet reached full saturation.
Whilst the dominant colour is green, there is nothing to stop you
adding more colours. Hold on to the concepts of freshness and
naivety, but also bring your own perspective.

buff titanium, burnt sienna, green gold rich, perylene green

1. Choose four colours that you like and arrange them in order of how they
would sit on a colour wheel. This is to make the gradient as soft as
possible.
2. Start with your lightest colour and make sure it is very watery. When
adding new leaves, gradually bring in darker colours. The colours will
bleed into each other, creating a soft gradient. This exercise is ideal for
practising your colour sense and tonal understanding.
Summer
Summer is the time of year when nature is thriving. Foliage gains
darker, more saturated colours and becomes very lush. To paint
summer foliage, think of big, fat, saturated leaves at their most
healthy stage. They grow and curl confidently and so should your
brushstrokes!

indigo, phthalo green, quinacridone gold

1. Grow your leaves, starting from the bottom of the branch with darker
colours and vary the amount of water you add to enable those beautiful
watercolour effects. Don’t be subtle or shy – try painting a very light leaf
next to a dark one to create blooms.
2. Add leaf veins and try using unexpected colours (some veins here are
green and some are gold).
Autumn
Autumnal colours are my favourite for painting leaves. Lots of
earthy tones bring peace of mind and make you feel closer to
nature. When leaves start changing colour in the autumn, they do
so gradually, creating all kinds of colour gradients and textures that
we can play with in watercolour.

1. Follow the process used in the other seasonal projects and simply vary
the colours using rich autumnal shades.
2. In autumn there are many fallen leaves on the ground which you can
arrange into a pattern on your paper.
LEAF MANDALA

indigo, green gold, quinacridone deep gold, rose dore

There is a reason why mandalas are used in art therapy. Repeating

shapes help your mind to focus and enable you to let go of stress
and tension. In this exercise, roughly follow the spiral composition
whilst painting leaves. Just keep in mind that your branches will
grow from the centre towards the edge in a spiral, like a whirlpool.

1. Using a compass or medium-size bowl, draw a circle on the paper with a

pencil. Start painting the first leaves close to but not exactly in the
centre.

Add more leaves, following the circle, varying colour and tone by
adding different amounts of water.
2. Continue to paint your leaves branching out like a spiral, but
occasionally breaking the spiral slightly – we are painting something
organic, after all.

Try not to think too much about what you are doing, just relax and let
your hand lead and the watercolour do its thing. I usually find that, by
the end, my leaves are much more natural compared to those I started
with. The tension just disappears.
3. Fill in the whole circle, letting some of the leaves overlap, creating
beautiful transparencies and even more colour.
4. Finally, breathe some life into your mandala. Give it some texture by
adding splashes and veins to the leaves.

Once your painting starts to dry, you can go over some of the leaves with
another layer of paint if they have dried to a duller tone than expected.
I love adding something contemporary to the composition too, such as
dots or abstract brushstrokes, to emphasize the modern aspect to my
painting. There are no rules: it’s your painting and you can do with it
whatever you want.
PAINTING TREES

I have chosen three very different-shaped trees for this exercise, so

you can see how to apply different brushstrokes to each of them.
The important thing to understand about trees is that the leaves
come in clusters that are darker at the bottom and lighter at the top.
It is always a good idea to paint some sort of ground beneath your
trees – even if it's just a hint – otherwise it will look as though your
trees are floating.
Maple

permanent sap green, green gold, burnt umber

1. Mix sap green with a touch of green gold paint and add lots of water.
Load your brush with a medium-wet mixture and, using a circular
motion, create some random scribbles in a triangular shape. Leave a
space between clusters of leaves so you can add branches later. Add
slightly more colour to the bottom leaves.
2. Whilst your foliage is still wet, use medium-wet burnt umber to paint a
trunk. Add some branches between the clusters of leaves, letting them
touch the foliage.
3. Rinse your brush completely and paint a thick horizontal brushstroke
using clear water at the bottom of the trunk to replicate the ground.
4. Add some thicker sap green paint to the bottom of each – still wet –
cluster of leaves and leave to dry completely before moving on to the
next step.
5. When your tree is completely dry, load your brush with thick sap green
paint and use a scribbling motion to add another layer of shadows to
each cluster of leaves. Make the scribbles less dense than the first layer.
Aim to add more shadows at the bottom of the tree and less towards the
top.
Pine

Mayan blue genuine, burnt umber

1. Mix Mayan blue genuine paint with lots of water, stirring well. Load
your brush with a medium-wet mixture and drag it lightly across the
paper to create short brushstrokes suggesting clusters of pine needles.
Move from the top of the paper towards the bottom, making each row
wider to create a triangular shape. Use differing amounts of water with
each row of foliage, making some rows lighter to give them a more
natural look. Leave white space between clusters.
2. Whilst your pine is still wet, use medium-wet burnt umber to paint a
trunk.

3. Rinse your brush completely and paint a thick horizontal brushstroke

using clear water at the bottom of the trunk to replicate the ground.
4. When your tree is completely dry, load your brush with thick Mayan
blue genuine paint and use short brushstrokes to add another layer of
shadows to each cluster of pine needles. Make the brushstrokes shorter
than the first layer.
Palm tree

serpentine genuine, burnt umber, permanent sap green

1. Mix serpentine genuine paint with lots of water. Load your brush with a
very wet mixture and use short outward strokes in different directions
from the centre of the paper to create feather-like leaves of varying sizes.
2. Whilst your leaves are still wet, use medium-wet burnt umber to paint a
long, slim trunk.
3. Rinse your brush completely and paint a thick horizontal brushstroke
using clear water at the bottom of the trunk to replicate the ground.

4. Mix a medium-wet sap green with serpentine genuine. When your tree is
completely dry, load your brush with the mixture and add another layer
of just a few branches with leaves. To avoid a harsh edge where your
leaves come together to a point, use a completely clean, damp brush and
lift some of the paint to soften the edge (see here).
These simple tree sketches can be used as part of a landscape painting,
or they look just as good on their own too. Practise painting different
types of tree, varying the colour, brushstroke size and density.
PAINTING FORESTS

In this exercise, we will paint a misty forest within the shape of a

circle, giving the impression that you are looking at it from a
distance through binoculars.
Abstract pines
As a warm up, paint very simple pine trees – even more simplified
and sketchy than in the previous exercise. You just need the
suggestion of the silhouette of a tree, which will give it a more
mystical feel.

1. Paint a thin vertical line as a trunk.

2. Using a scribbling motion, add random short brushstrokes to create a
tree shape – like a somewhat irregular triangle.
3. Practise painting a few trees and notice when they start to look more
natural.
A misty forest

green gold, indigo blue

1. Using a compass or medium-size bowl, draw a very light circle on the

paper with a pencil. Load an oval wash brush with lots of clean water
and paint two half-circles inside your pencil guide. Let them both touch
in the middle with gaps at the sides.
2. Mix a very light and watery green gold and add a few drops to the
middle of the wet circle and a few to the sides.
3. Whilst the green gold is spreading, add indigo blue to your palette with
just a little water. Load a brush with indigo paint and start painting
circular lines around the main circle, touching it in some places and
leaving gaps in others. Add the same indigo paint to the middle of your
wet circle and let it spread freely. Leave it to dry completely.
4. Now we will add some trees in the background. They should be as light
as possible, and for that we need lots of water. Mix indigo blue paint
with water and test it on a separate sheet of paper to see how light it is;
it’s better to make it too light than too dark as you will always be able to
drop more paint but not the other way around. Using a size 6 round
brush, start painting trees on the middle line of the circle. To create a
nice rhythm, paint a variety of tall and short trees. When the bottom of
all your trees creates a harsh line, rinse your brush completely and soften
it with a damp brush, pulling all the way down to the circle border until
the harshness disappears (see here). Let this layer dry completely.

5. To the previous light mixture of indigo blue and water, add slightly more
indigo; it should be medium-dark when you test it on paper. Paint
another layer of trees, but let the background trees show in between the
gaps. Let this layer dry completely.
6. Take a very dark indigo blue straight from the pan, and paint pines in the
foreground, again letting some trees from previous layers show through.
Keep softening the bottom line with a clean brush, as this will give more
depth to the ground.
 Flowers

Flowers have been a much-loved subject of artists throughout the

centuries, and this is not surprising given their beauty and ubiquity.
Many occasions are celebrated with flowers; a simple bouquet of
flowers can lift your mood and decorate your home; and flowers
also have symbolic meanings.

Painting flowers is a perfect way to express yourself creatively.

Their shapes are very forgiving, and you don’t have to be too exact
when trying to depict a flower – it will still resemble one – leaving
you free to concentrate on expressing your emotions and getting
pleasure from the process.
HAND MOVEMENT IS KEY

You cannot translate an emotion into your art if you’re feeling tense
– it will show in your painting. And you won’t relax if you’re
thinking too much about what you’re doing, so try the following
exercise whilst painting a simple poppy meadow.

1. Take a large oval skywash brush or the biggest brush you own.
2. Using a circular hand movement, start painting abstract blobs of colour.
Try to see flowers in them. Are there any that look slightly more like
poppies than others?
 Keep going until your brushstrokes feel confident and you're not
overthinking the shape.

3. Once you feel confident, repeat the same abstract shapes, placing them
randomly on your paper and adding stems, darker centres and a few
poppy buds.
Learn to look
It’s the details that give away how closely you have studied your subject.
Whilst you can be as abstract with your florals as you wish, it is always a
good idea to paint from real life subjects. A basic knowledge of the shapes
of different blooms will make your abstract flowers more believable and
relatable. Take a good look at how stamens connect to the centre of a
flower, for example. Where do they curl? How does their shape change
when you look at the flower from different angles? When do they become
shorter or barely visible? Try to capture your subject accurately, so that
even stylized or almost abstract stamens resemble the look of the real
flower.
DIFFERENT FLOWERS

Painting with watercolours allows you to translate complex shapes

into simple brushstrokes whilst also taking advantage of the
beautiful effects of this medium. The following exercises look at
different flowers and will help build your confidence to create your
own!
Buttercup
Use any colours – this is purely about accuracy of shape

This is a great exercise with which to practise the study of a single

flower. Use a simple five-petal buttercup shape as your reference.

1. Start by looking at the flower from above and try to paint what you see.
2. Rotate your flower and paint it from different angles to study how the
petals change shape, when they start to curl, which ones look longer and
which shorter.
Sunflower

sepia, etchr yellow, quinacridone gold

When painting sunflowers, you should aim to emphasize the

overlapping petals.

1. Load your brush with sepia paint and use the tip in a dabbing motion to
paint the seeds of the sunflower. Leave some areas white to replicate a
natural shine.

2. Using various shades of yellow, paint the first layer of petals – use
different ratios of water to achieve as many tonal values as possible. Let
some petals touch the dark centre, allowing different colours to mix.
3. Once the first layer is dry, paint the second layer of petals over the first
using a very wet brush to make them more transparent (a thick layer of
paint will simply cover up what is beneath it). If desired, use a Posca pen
to add white dots to the seeds to emphasize them.
Rose

permanent rose, buff titanium

The classic rose has a well-defined spiral shape. The petals in the
centre are smaller and darker, getting bigger and lighter in tone as
they move outwards.

1. Load the tip of your brush with a thick layer of permanent rose paint.
Start by painting ‘C’ curves in a spiral motion, trying not to press too
hard in order to retain the fine line.
2. Whilst the paint is still wet, rinse your brush in clean water. Continue
creating ‘C’ curves, working outwards from the centre, pressing harder
with the brush to create larger petals.

3. When you are happy with the shape of your rose, add a few drops of a
very watery buff titanium paint to bring a different shade to the outer
petals. Rinse your brush again, using a paper towel to dry it as much as
possible, then lift some of the paint from the petals as if you were
painting the same ‘C’ shapes (see here).
4. Once your painting is completely dry, apply a second layer of very light
paint to the centre of your flower and a little to the larger petals, though
don’t overwork it.
Anemone

ultramarine blue, indigo

The anemone has five or six large round petals, so is the perfect
subject when trying to depict a flower at an angle, due to its very
simple shape.

1. Mix ultramarine blue paint with a little indigo. Load your brush with
paint and use the side to paint oval petals, applying gentle pressure.

2. The petals at the back should be slightly wider and higher than the
others. The petals to the sides will be thinner, as you can see only their
side profile.

3. Add the petal that is closest to you, which will be wide and short, then
finish by adding a stem with a single brushstroke.
4. Make an oval shape in the centre of the flower using very thick indigo
paint. Add stamens coming from this centre – these don’t all have to be
precise; some can just be dots. When the paint is dry, add white details
with a Posca pen to create shine.
Daisy

buff titanium, ultramarine blue, sepia

Daisies are often associated with simplicity and when painting one
you should aim making it look light and effortless.

1. Mix buff titanium paint with a little ultramarine blue. Load your brush
and start painting petals, applying more pressure at the start, then
releasing at the end to create an elongated drop shape. Place all your
petals in a half-circle, converging on one point.

2. Load your brush with a thick layer of sepia paint and create a half-circle
where the petals meet. The paint will bleed slightly into the petals so be
conscious of the paint consistency; if you use a watery dark paint there is
a risk that it will spread too much.
3. Add a few smaller petals peeking out at the back of the flower, then
finish with a stem using a single brushstroke.
Iris

ultramarine blue, indigo, quinacridone gold; yellow ochre gouache

The most beautiful features of the iris are its distinctive sculptural
shape, curly leaves and the contrast between the centre and the
petals.

1. Load a brush with medium-wet ultramarine blue paint. Applying

pressure, paint a single curly petal. Lightly rinse the brush, then use the
remaining paint on the brush to create one petal on either side of the
first, pulling colour from it.
2. Create two wavy lines at the top of the flower, letting the colours bleed
from the initial petal. You will notice that the colour doesn’t bleed
equally – this is the beauty of watercolour.
3. Apply medium-wet quinacridone gold paint to the centre of the flower,
letting it spread as much as it wants. When the paint has nearly dried,
use clean water to paint the small petals at the sides and back of the
flower. Leave to dry completely.
4. Add directional lines with a small brush to give your iris more volume,
then add some white lines with a Posca pen for variety. Add a dash of
yellow ochre gouache to the centre of the flower to emphasize it.
Daffodil

quinacridone deep gold, buff titanium, green gold

Daffodils are the first sign of spring! They have a beautiful curly
crown, which is usually darker than the other petals.

1. Load your brush with quinacridone deep gold paint and create a
cylinder-like shape with a curvy edge for the trumpet, leaving some
areas white to emphasize the shape.

2. Pick up some very transparent buff titanium paint and start painting
petals by pulling colour from the centre (see here), allowing the darker
colour to bleed into the base of the petals. Leave to dry completely.
3. Using thick quinacridone deep gold paint, apply a shadow layer to the
trumpet to build the shape. Next, add a little green gold paint to the
centre of the trumpet and add a stem of the same colour.

4. Once the paint is dry, use a small brush with some quinacridone deep
gold to add directional lines.
Next step
Here is a great exercise: take a sketchbook and try painting different flowers
over the course of a few days. Paint all the flowers you know, then research
a few more or make up your own.
At the beginning, you might feel a bit tense, but over time, painting
floweres should start to feel easier and more natural, and you will find
you come up with plenty of ideas.
BLOOM COMPOSITION

winsor red deep, Payne’s grey

You are now ready to start creating more detailed compositions,

using both leaves and flowers. This exercise is a simple
arrangement of just two colours, allowing you to focus purely on
the spontaneity of the design.

1. Mix winsor red deep paint with a little Payne’s grey, load up your brush
and start painting petals. For each petal, apply a different water ratio and
varying amounts of each colour. Leave gaps between your petals to
allow for layering.
2. Whilst your painting is still very wet, rinse your brush completely and
use it to pull down a line from your bloom, creating a stem. Add a
couple of leaves too.
3. Use Payne’s grey to paint another branch with leaves. The dark grey
colour will bleed into the wet areas of the first flower.
4. Follow the instructions in Steps 1 and 2 to paint a second flower, this
time from a side angle. Allow to dry completely.
5. Using the same colour mixture on a very wet brush, paint another layer
of petals and leaves. Add veins and stamens using a Posca pen.

Use this as a framework to create similar compositions of your own –

relax your hand as much as possible and get into a flow.
MEADOW

burnt sienna, quinacridone deep gold, scarlet lake, burnt umber, rose dore, perylene green, green
gold

Get ready to challenge yourself by bringing together colours,

shapes and brushstrokes in a rich, blooming meadow. This project
provides an opportunity to use different interacting shapes and
create varying moods.
1. Tape the paper to your work surface with masking tape.
2. Start painting various bloom shapes, using different combinations of the
warm paint tones. Use a filbert brush (see here) to create more defined
oval petals and an oval mop brush (see here) to make more abstract
shapes. You can be very playful with your brushstrokes.
3. Roughly concentrate your blooms in one area, otherwise you will lose
the focal point of your painting and your viewer won’t know where to
look first.
4. Using a size 6 round mop brush (see here), paint the stems and some
leaves of your blooms. Use perylene green as the dominant colour,
mixed with a little green gold and burnt umber to create a connection
between leaves and blooms. Leave to dry completely.
5. Add a second layer to your painting, bringing more detail to the flowers
and adding some overlapping leaves. If some of the leaves have dulled
down a bit as they dried, paint over them with another layer of the same
colour.
6. Bring everything to life by adding details! Use a brown coloured pencil
and yellow ochre gouache for veins. Use a smaller brush to paint
stamens. Vary the intensity of the details – try to find the balance
between repetition and variety.
Creative choices
Whilst I strongly encourage you to take inspiration from nature, if, like me,
you prefer a more modern approach to art, you will not want to replicate
exactly what you see. So, why bother studying the natural world if you end
up painting something quite different? Because we need to feed our
creativity – take notice of the beauty around you; think about natural cycles,
about the changes that occur in nature and be inspired by and create
something new with them.

We have to constantly think about what touches us in order to bring

another layer of meaning to our art.
MOVEMENT

buff titanium, burnt sienna, neutral tint, scarlet lake, burnt umber; flesh tint gouache

Nature is constantly changing. When adding movement to our

work, we create a path for the viewer’s eye to follow, making our
compositions instantly more defined and interesting. In this
exercise we’ll explore movement in the flower bouquet.

1. Start painting your blooms as if you were creating an ‘S’ shape. Use a
very wet buff titanium for lighter blooms, and burnt sienna for the
centre. For darker blooms, use a mixture of neutral tint, scarlet lake and
burnt umber. Let your blooms touch each other so the paints spread
easily between them.
2. Load your brush with a thick layer of neutral tint paint and add a couple
of blooms to the ‘S’ curve. Also add a few lighter blooms and start
filling the gaps.
3. Add leaves at the top, curving to the right, and leaves at the bottom,
curving to the left. Use dark neutral tint to bring contrast to your
painting.
4. Add more leaves and abstract hints of flowers, keeping your curvy ‘S’
line in mind. Now that your bouquet is growing, you will lose an
immediate recognition of the ‘S’, which is good – you don’t want it to be
too obvious. Stop when your composition feels complete and let it dry.
5. Add details with flesh tint gouache on the dark blooms, and neutral tint
on the lighter blooms.
CHANGE THE PERSPECTIVE

perylene green, phthalo green, serpentine genuine, quinacridone gold, burnt umber

To avoid painting the same thing over and over again, step back
and consider your subject from a different angle. Zoom in as if you
are a small bug and everything is incredibly large; zoom out as if
from a bird’s-eye view; look up from the bottom as if you were
laying on the ground and observing trees in a forest. In this
exercise, we will paint a meadow as if we were very small and
laying on the grass, so all the plants are leaning towards the centre
and obscuring our view of the sky.
1. Tape the paper to your work surface with masking tape.
2. Mix perylene green paint with phthalo green to create a very dark colour
and start painting heart-shaped leaves with stems coming from the edges
and pointing towards the centre. Alternate dark leaves with some painted
using just water to create contrasting effects and blooms.
3. Continue ‘growing’ your painting, making lighter leaves more dominant
than darker ones, to allow for layering later on. Stop when you have
filled a good amount of the canvas but still have room for other plants.
Leave this layer to dry completely.
4. Take a medium-wet serpentine green and start painting plants with
longer, thinner leaves, to create variety in both colour and shape. Leave
this layer to dry completely.
5. Using quinacridone gold, start painting relaxed, gestural buttercups. Add
stems using burnt umber – although this isn’t the true colour of their
stems, we are using creative licence to make the overall composition
warm and summery.
 Light

An interesting use of light will bring focus to your subject, creating

emotion and adding drama. When something stands out in your
painting, compared to everything looking the same, it creates
intrigue and allows you to tell a story.

Due to its translucency, watercolour is an ideal tool with which to

depict such a subtle thing as light. You can smudge the edges of
your subject, and play with shapes that almost disappear into the
background or are sharp and clearly defined in contrast. Wet your
paper with clean water and add a few drops of paint – when the
paint spreads you will get a lovely effect of morning mist and your
painting will gain an immediate sense of atmosphere.
USING LIGHT

Explore how you can add focus to any sketch by creating a lighter
area. Yellow pigment is especially good for pushing out darker
paint and creating an illusion of a soft spotlight. Try it for yourself.
1. Using any blue colour, paint a branch with leaves. Alternate darker and
lighter leaves by adjusting the amount of water you use.
2. Now that you have your floral blues, add a dash of any yellow colour to
a lighter part of the painting. The yellow pigment will spread and start
pushing the blue away, gradually creating a highlighted area. Now you
have a focus that immediately draws attention.
BRINGING FOCUS

Payne’s grey, neutral tint, indigo, quinacridone gold

This next project is a more complex arrangement utilizing the same

principle. We will work mainly in a monochromatic palette, but
will bring focus by adding bright light to part of the painting –
imagine taking a nature walk in the middle of the night and
concentrating your torchlight in one spot, leaving the rest in the
darkness of the night.
1. Using three colours individually – Payne’s grey, neutral tint, indigo –
and also mixtures of the three, start painting your dark flowers. Again,
try to create a basic ‘S’ shape with the elements.
2. Keep ‘growing’ your painting in different directions, adding a thick layer
of quinacridone gold where you want your focal point to be; I prefer that
the focal point is never in the middle, so the composition is less static.
 When working with a monochromatic colour palette, don’t just use one
single colour; use at least tw different tones, for example, a warm grey
and a cool grey. Using only one tone of colour will result in a painting
that is flat, whilst one done in different tones will have a lot more
interest to it.

3. Add as many elements as you want until you are happy with your
composition. As you are not using a wide variety of colours, it is a good
idea to vary the size of the leaves and blooms instead. Leave to dry
completely.
4. Add veins and other details. For this type of moody composition, you
might want to consider not only adding white details on dark, but also
dark on dark, as it feels very powerful.
GOLDEN HOUR

Mayan blue genuine, buff titanium, quinacridone deep gold, burnt umber, quinacridone orange,
green gold, yellow ochre gouache

In photography, ‘golden hour’, or ‘magic hour’, is the first hour

after sunrise and the last hour before sunset, when the light appears
very soft, making everything look warmer and more magical. In
this exercise, we will paint a golden-hour-inspired meadow by
building layers, with each layer darker than the previous one, to
convey the softness of light and depth.
1. Mix Mayan blue genuine paint with buff titanium and add lots of water –
you want to make the first layer as light as possible. Paint a line of
plants, constantly varying the proportions of the two colours to create
variety. For long leaves use a dagger brush, and for shorter leaves a
round brush.
2. Add some quinacridone gold to the plants for contrast, still keeping the
layers watery. Leave this first layer to dry completely.

3. Using short brushstrokes, add leaves using burnt umber, and a layer of
berries using buff titanium, quinacridone deep gold, quinacridone orange
and a dash of green gold. This layer should be watery, though not as
watery as the first layer. Leave to dry completely.

4. For the third layer, load your brush with perylene green straight from the
pan and paint some leaves in the foreground. Also add some darker
berries. Once this layer is dry, add veins with yellow ochre gouache and
dark burnt umber paint.
MAKE IT PERSONAL

ultramarine blue, rose dore, indigo

This exercise is very personal to me. In Lithuania, Joninès (or

Rasos) is a celebration of the longest day and shortest night of the
year, in June. On this magical night, you search for a mythical fern
flower, which it is said will bring you luck and special powers. I
love this meaningful connection with the nature of the past, and it
reminds me of my night walks in the forest, closely examining
every fern.
1. Using a pencil, make a very rough sketch of the fern – just a couple of
directional lines are enough. Then, using masking fluid and its applicator
(see here), draw a fern.

Remember that when you remove the masking fluid you can still erase
any pencil marks, but you won’t be able to once you lay down the
watercolour layer.
2. Take the biggest brush you have and load it with clean water. Wet the
area of the paper around the fern. At the top, add medium-wet
ultramarine blue, and towards the bottom, very light and watery rose
dore. Let the paint spread freely.
3. Whilst still wet, add a thicker consistency of indigo at the top. As the
paint starts to dry, add a few drops of clean water, which will push the
pigment away, creating a misty effect. Leave to dry completely.
4. Now add stars using white gouache. It always looks more natural when
you paint your stars by splattering rather than trying to paint them
individually. Cover the areas of the painting you want to protect with
sheets of paper. Then, to create splatters, load your brush with medium-
wet gouache, and tap the brush with your finger. Use two smaller
brushes to create different sized stars.
5. When you are happy with your starry sky, take a small brush and, using
the white gouache, paint rays on some of the stars, and add a moon.
When your painting is finished and completely dry, take a hard eraser
and erase the masking fluid.
Consider bringing your personal experiences into your art. You don’t
have to reveal the details to everyone, but your connection with your
art is what makes it unique. Can you think of any traditions,
experiences or beliefs you have around nature? How can you
incorporate these into your art?
 Structure and symmetry

Subconsciously, humans are drawn to mathematical structure and

even numbers. The relationship between plant architecture and art
composition has been explored by artists for centuries, and many
compositional theories are based on the geometrical progression
and dynamic symmetry observed in plants.

Dynamic symmetry is a wide and complex subject to dive into, and

if you are interested in exploring it in more depth, you can find
book recommendations in the Further Reading and Resources
section (see here). But there is also a simple and playful way to
take structural inspiration from plants, and this is what we will look
at next.
DYNAMIC SYMMETRY

Dynamic symmetry – or symmetry in biology – is the symmetry

that occurs in natural elements. As you may have noticed, plant
growth is never random, and all plants have some sort of pattern.
Leaves grow in a spiral direction in succulents.

The petals of many flowers become progressively smaller towards the

centre.

There is always repetition in leaf arrangements on a stem (the term for how
leaves are arranged on a plant stem is 'phyllotaxis').

We can use these patterns in nature as inspiration for our designs.

MANDALA

deep sap green, indigo, serpentine genuine, perylene green, quinacridone gold

Putting the rules of dynamic symmetry into practice means using

the mathematical progression occurring in plants within our
composition. For this mandala exercise, we are going to take
inspiration from the gradual colour change that occurs when plants
grow new leaves. We will start with darker elements in the centre,
becoming lighter as we move outwards. We will also place larger
elements in the centre.

1. For this painting, it is best to do a rough pencil sketch first, otherwise it

will be hard to make the gaps between your elements equal. The sketch
is just a guide, so doesn’t have to be too accurate. Make sure your pencil
marks are light, so they are not too prominent under the layer of
watercolour.
2. Mix sap green with a little indigo paint to create a dark green colour.
Load your brush with a medium-wet mixture and start painting the inner
leaves, leaving the veins white. Start by painting one side of the leaf first
to make it easier to preserve the white. This process is not hard but
requires a lot of concentration. Paint all the leaves in the inner circle.
You don’t have to wait until they are dry to move on.
3. Load your brush with medium-wet serpentine genuine and repeat the
same process, painting another circle of similar leaves, this time in a
lighter colour. Add a little medium-wet perylene green to the centre of
each leaf – the colours will blend nicely and the contrast between both
circles of leaves will be gradual and not too strong.
4. For the next circle of leaves, mix quinacridone gold with a little
serpentine genuine paint. Load your brush with a medium-wet mixture
and paint another outer circle of simple, smaller leaves. When you have
finished, return to the leaves you painted first and add some slightly
thicker perylene green to the inner tip of each leaf.
5. Load your brush with medium-wet quinacridone gold and paint dots
around the leaves.
6. Mix quinacridone gold with lots of water and load your brush. Then
press all the bristles of your brush down to make a mark. Make these
marks all around your mandala, reloading your brush with paint when
needed. If the inner leaves are now dry, add leaf veins, dots and other
details with thicker sap green and a Posca pen.
PLAYING WITH FRAMES

You can instantly elevate your artwork by introducing a frame. This

will bring a structure to your painting and can be an easy way to
help with composition. There are a couple of ways you can do this.
Use masking tape on the edges of your paper to create a clean border.
Masking tape not only holds the paper in place but is a great tool for
composition. The white space, and especially the even amount of it around
your painting, is important. Notice how paintings feel different depending
on the addition or absence of a frame.

When your painting is borderless, you feel that you are inside the painting,
standing in the forest amongst the trees and leaves.
This small frame gives the painting a defined edge, creating a contrast
between the forest and the surrounding area.
This large frame creates the feeling that you are looking at a part of the
forest through something – a window, perhaps. It helps to isolate your
painting and bring focus to it.

Another method of giving your painting a frame is to create an ‘invisible

border’.

You can see here that the border is not painted, but that the plants fit into a
square. To achieve this, draw a light square on the paper and paint your
composition within it. You don’t have to fill the whole square, just enough
to make it visible. When you have finished and the paints are dry, erase
your pencil border.
Your frame can be any shape: square, rectangle, circle, oval, or even a
shapeless blob – as long as there is a contrast between your painting
and the surrounding area, it will bring another level of compositional
structure to it.

OceanofPDF.com
 Final thoughts

Even though painting makes you feel good, sometimes it’s not easy
to start or to keep the momentum going. If you occasionally
encounter mental resistance when you want to paint, it doesn’t
mean that it is not for you. In today’s world, a wealth of
entertainment is just a click away on our phones, and our brains
will often seek the easier option. Here are a few tricks you can
apply to build a lasting creative practice and keep yourself inspired.
BUILDING A CREATIVE PRACTICE - TIPS AND TRICKS

A dedicated space
Having a space where you always paint will help to set your mood when
you are there. It doesn’t have to be a studio – a simple table containing your
art supplies and anything that inspires you or puts you in a creative mood
will do. Put your favourite music on and make it your calming place, where
you take time for yourself.
Have your supplies ready
Nothing kills the creative mood more than a long preparation. When
inspiration strikes, imagine having to take your art supplies from a drawer,
unpack them, prepare your brushes, pour water into jars, open your
sketchbook and try to find your pencil . . . By the time everything is ready,
either your creative mood will have disappeared or you will have run out of
time.

An absolute game-changer for me was when I started leaving all my

supplies ready on a dedicated table: the watercolour pan was always open,
water always in the jars, sketchbooks were open with half-finished
sketches, and so on.
Not only does this make it easier to immediately start painting when you
have a spare five minutes, it also creates a very inviting environment –
sometimes you might be passing by your supplies and sketches and feel a
sudden, unexpected urge to put a brushstroke down!
Ease yourself into it
When you want to start something big, but are afraid to because it feels too
ambitious, simply start small. A great way to start is by creating swatches –
there is zero responsibility and they never fail to inspire me to paint! You
could also begin with something you already know how to paint – don't set
any expectations, and you will notice that every time you paint the same
thing, it turns out slightly different and you become really good at it.
Another way to ease yourself into a creative place is simply by looking
through your swatches, previous paintings, or organizing your sketches.
Mindless sketching
Do some mindless sketching whenever you can. Nothing relaxes your hand
and mind more than doodling without thinking. It works as a warm-up, and
by the time you are ready to paint, your hand will feel less tense and you
will have a nice motif that you can develop later on.
Use your previous work
If you paint almost every day, you are bound to create something beautiful,
but it is unrealistic to expect that every sketch will be perfect. Surrounding
yourself with the paintings you like is the key to keeping your motivation
up. Use your work as a reference, take the elements that you like and repeat
them in the next painting.
Always in process
If you have a painting that you need to finish, it’s always easier to return to
that than to start a new one. If you leave your painting to dry naturally,
instead of using a hairdryer to speed up the process, coming back to it a day
or even a week later can give you a completely new perspective on it.
Sometimes a painting that you have deemed ruined can also show itself in a
new light. Don’t always strive to finish everything in one sitting – having
works in progress keeps you in a constant creative cycle.
CALM LIFESTYLE

I hope I have convinced you that painting can (and definitely will!) have a
positive impact on your life. And not just in those few hours a week that
you dedicate to your creative practice. You will begin to look at your
surroundings differently, constantly seeking inspiration in nature. You will
stop rushing around and notice the beauty of big, glorious landscapes or the
close-up texture of trees. It can inspire an exciting lifestyle of constantly
seeking creative triggers and spending more time outside, shifting the fast
pace of everyday life to a more calm and conscious outlook. It will make
you care more about the natural world and connect with it in different ways.
The great creative journey is ahead of you, and it starts with picking up
a brush.

OceanofPDF.com
Further reading and resources
TO READ

Creative Illustration by Andrew Loomis, Titan Books, 2012

A useful book about image-making, ideas and composition.

The Elements of Dynamic Symmetry by Jay Hambidge, Dover Publications

Inc., 2000
An in-depth look at dynamic symmetry and how it translates into
compositional principles for art.

Art & Fear: Observations on the Perils (and Rewards) of Artmaking by

David Bayles & Ted Orland, Image Continuum Press, 2001
An encouraging book on creating and enjoying your art without fear.

Steal Like an Artist by Austin Kleon, Workman, 2012

How to be inspired and use the work of others that were creating before
you, without copying their work.

Mindful Thoughts for Artists: Finding Flow & Creating Calm by Georgina
Hooper, Leaping Hare Press, 2020 An inspiring book about creating art
from a mindful place, finding your flow and expressing yourself.

Dare to Sketch: A Guide to Drawing on the Go by Felix Scheinberger,

Watson-Guptill, 2017 and Urban Watercolor Sketching by Felix
Scheinberger, Watson-Guptill, 2014
Felix has long been my guide in free and fearless sketching and creating.

Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad
Ones by James Clear, Random House Business, 2018
Lots of good thoughts on how to change your habits when you’re building
and maintaining your creative practice.
Fellow artists and teachers
Anna Koliadych: academy.dearannart.com
Cara Rosalie Olsen: rosaliegwenpaperie.com
Sushma Hegde: sushmahegde.com

TO WATCH
A calming and aesthetic artist studio practice by Valerie Lin.
https://www.youtube.com/c/ValerieLin

The Creative Brain (2019)

An eye-opening movie about creativity and how it works.

TO LISTEN
Podcasts
Ted Talks on art are often inspiring and emotionally moving to me. You can
listen to them as podcasts or watch the videos:
https://www.ted.com/topics/art
The Laura Horn Art Podcast
Creative Pep Talk podcast by Andy J. Pizza
Do It For The Process podcast by Emily Jeffords
Music
'Levitate' - a Spotify playlist
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/37i9dQZF1DWVY5eNJoKHd2?
si=4033ed07d7c94c5c
Some of my favourite artists to listen to when painting: Sigur Rós, Bat For
Lashes, CocoRosie, The xx, Röyksopp

TO FEEL
Scent
Skandinavisk scented candles are my favourite to burn when painting.
The most relaxing mist that you can spray on anything: The Ritual of Jing:
Hair & Body Mist by Rituals.

TO USE
Art supplies
My favourite non-beading plastic palette: Loxley plastic folding palette

My favourite watercolour brands: Blockx, Daniel Smith; Winsor & Newton

My favourite brush brands: da Vinci (I have collaborated with da Vinci to

create a set of brushes perfect for loose florals); Panart Global; Silver Brush
Limited, Escoda; Princeton

My favourite paper brands (all cold-pressed, 300 gsm): Arches, Canson;

Moulin du Roy, Canson; Heritage, Fabriano, Artistico
Budget paper: Canson XL
Handmade paper: Khadi Papers; Panart Global
Sketchbooks: Hahnemuhle, Khadi; etchr lab

OceanofPDF.com
Index
A
anemones 108
artist’s tape 26

B
bloom composition 114–115
British gardens 15
brushes 22, 79
numbering systems 22
pressure exercise 25
shapes, names and applications 23–24
buttercups 105

C
cacti 54–56
collections 60
colour 38, 79
analogous colours 44
be inspired by nature 50
colour filter 46
colour proportion 47
complementary colours 45
creating colour swatches 48–49
limiting your palette 51
mixing colours 40–41
neutralizing colours 42
subtle shades 42
tell a story through colour 52–53
warm and cool colours 43
watercolour and white 39
composition 70–71
bloom composition 114–115
geometry 77
line 73
rule of thirds 74
static and dynamic 72–73
symmetry 75
thumbnail sketches 76
creative choices 119
creative journey 13
creative practice 147
always in progress 152
calm lifestyle 153
dedicated space 148
ease yourself into it 150
have your supplies ready 149
mindless sketching 151
use your previous work 152

D
daffodils 111
daisies 109
dedicated space 148
have your supplies ready 149
dynamic composition 72–73
dynamic symmetry 140

E
ease yourself into it 150
effects 32–5
cauliflower (bloom) 34–35
glazing 32
lifting 33
pulling 32
equipment 20–27
erasers 26
explorations 54–69

F
flowers 101
bloom composition 114–115
change the perspective 122–125
creative choices 119
different flowers 105–111
hand movement is key 102–103
learn to look 104
meadow 116–118
movement 120–121
sketchbook exercise 112–113
foliage 81
autumn 88
 gesture 82–3
leaf mandala 89–91
painting forests 96–99
painting trees 92–95
spring 86
summer 87
winter 84–85
forests 96
abstract pines 96
misty forest 97–99
frames 144–145

G
geometry 77
gouache 27

H
harmonious colours 44–51

I
inspiration 60–68
irises 110

L
leaf mandala 89–91
light 127
bringing focus 129–30
golden hour 131–133
make it personal 134–137
using light 128
line 73

M
mandalas 89–91, 141–143
maples 93
masking fluid 26
masking tape 26
meadow 116–118
mindless sketching 151
mixing palettes 27
moths 58
movement 120–121

P
painting nature 9–11
palm trees 95
paper 25, 79
patterns 66–67
pencils 26, 27
perfect imperfection 14–15
perspective 122–125
pigment interaction 36–37
pine trees 94, 96
pressed flowers and plants 62–63
primary colours 40
projects 81
flowers 101–125
foliage 81–99
light 127–137

R
repeat motifs 64–65
roses 107
rule of thirds 74

S
secondary colours 40
simplifying shapes 56–57
sketchbooks 68–69
static composition 72–73
structure 139–145
style 16
sunflowers 106
symmetry 75, 139
dynamic symmetry 140
mandala 141–143
playing with frames 144–145
T
techniques 28
wet on dry 29
wet on wet 30–31
textures 59
thumbnail sketches 76
trees 92–95

V
vision 17

W
watercolours 19, 20–21
colour 38–53
effects 32–35
exploring pigment interaction 36–37
watercolour techniques 28–31
work in progress 152
OceanofPDF.com
Acknowledgements
I want to say my most sincere thank you to the Leaping Hare publishing
team for being so kind and helpful on this journey. Thanks especially to
Monica Perdoni for approaching me, inspiring me with her positive energy
and believing in me and this book. To my most brilliant editor Charlotte
Frost, who was kind and generous in her guidance and support and
ultimately making it happen. Also to the amazing people who helped
bringing this book to life: Nicki Davis and Rachel Malig, I have been so
lucky that you have worked with me!
Thank you to my family. Arunas – my beloved husband and best friend
who always believes in me and pushes me to take big steps, especially for
his help in being able to make time for painting and writing. My son Lukas,
who is responsible for me starting to paint, and who is now my biggest fan
as well as my biggest inspiration. Thank you to my parents – Irina and
Alfred, who always encourage me and are proud of me unconditionally.
Thank you to my Instagram community for following along my journey
and letting my art be seen. This book is for you!
OceanofPDF.com
 COLOUR SWATCHES

QUINACRIDONE DEEP
RAW UMBER BURNT UMBER PERYLENE MAROON
GOLD

ROSE DORE PERMANENT ROSE NAPLES YELLOW BUFF TITANIUM

MAYAN BLUE
GREEN GOLD DEEP SAP GREEN UNDERSEA GREEN
GENUINE

PAYNE’S GREY INDIGO NUETRAL TINT SEPIA

QUINACRIDONE
BURNT SIENNA QUINACRIDONE GOLD OPERA ROSE
ORANGE

SCARLET LAKE WINDSOR DEEP RED ETCHR YELLOW SERPENTINE

GENUINE
PERMANENT GREEN OXIDE OF CHROMIUM PERMANENT SAP PHTHALO GREEN
LIGHT GREEN

PERYLENE GREEN ULTRAMARINE BLUE LUNAR BLUE

OceanofPDF.com
First published in 2023 by Leaping Hare Press
an imprint of The Quarto Group.
One Triptych Place, London, SE1 9SH, United Kingdom
www.Quarto.com

Text and illustrations © 2023 Inga Buividavice

© 2023 Quarto Publishing Plc

Inga Buividavice has asserted her moral right to be identified as the Author of this Work in
accordance with the Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilised in any form or by any means,
electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and
retrieval system, without permission in writing from Leaping Hare Press.

Every effort has been made to trace the copyright holders of material quoted in this book. If
application is made in writing to the publisher, any omissions will be included in future editions.

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 978-0-7112-8184-4 EBOOK ISBN 978-0-7112-8185-1

Commissioned by Monica Perdoni Edited by Charlotte Frost Designed by Nicki Davis

OceanofPDF.com