Welcome June!

I’m a bit behind on posting this since I’ve been so wrapped up in other projects I’ve wanted to share. Remember the idea of creating “color and pattern” inspirations? When I wrote that post I encouraged everyone to “try it” and I hope maybe you did.

So, in case you missed that post, you’re probably wondering what I’m talking about and exactly what “it” is. Well, it’s simple. It’s looking at a scene — in plein air, in a photograph, in a magazine or newspaper illustration — and quickly “gathering up” the colors and patterns you see represented. With a mixed media sketchbook and a small set of watercolors, it’s easy to create a “collection” of all those colors and patterns.

I created the first one in April as part of a Sketchbook Revival demonstration by Faith Evans-Sills. It was “collected” from the April page of a calendar. I had so much fun doing it, I repeated the process in May, once again using a page from the same calendar. I decided to do this every month. Here are April and May:

And, yes, I did June.

I did this page of inspirations after playing with a few “color mixing” exercises. As you can tell, I was feeling very loose and free as I splashed and splattered my watercolors. As before, it’s nice to have this “collection” in my sketchbook where I can look at it and be inspired when I prepare to do other paintings. I like these colors and the “pattern” of the green — that was a grassy area in the picture. I also like the “pattern” of blue flowers in a garden of pink. It’s nice to have these ideas “on file” where I can see them and maybe use them in the future.

Now, once again, I’ll urge you to “try it” — you might like this simple painting exercise. I am already looking forward to July and to the opportunity to gather up more beautiful colors and patterns to add to my collection.