Study of a Poinsettia

Sketching this poinsettia with watercolor was a motivating way to continue working on color and brushwork. I restricted this sketch to a triad of three cool colors, Hansa Yellow Light, Winsor Blue and Quinacridone Rose, and reminded myself of the power of keeping the paint choices simple. Additionally, most of the sketch is done using wet paint on wet paper, a much slower but much more defined method of painting than I usually use. I am certain that these techniques would have helped the ‘Boats at Shelter Island’ sketch from November 29 and am looking forward to going back next Tuesday to try it again.

This is a pencil and watercolor sketch on watercolor paper.