Category: Sktchy

Watercolor Portrait of Ms. Cherry

Post author By Jana Bouc
Post date November 7, 2022
2 Comments on Watercolor Portrait of Ms. Cherry

Watercolor portrait of Tori Cherry — Ms. Tori Cherry, watercolor, 9×7”

I signed up for a Sktchy Watercolor class to see what I could learn from their teachers. I planned to make myself try the teachers’ different approaches and I did attempt the super loose, wet in wet approach Dritan Duro, the teacher for this class demonstrated, but tossed the crappy results and started over, doing things my way.

Color wheel: WN Raw Sienna, WN Perm. Alizarin, Winsor Blue Green Shade

Interestingly, the 3-color limited palette I used for this painting was the same as the one I used for my painting of Dorothy, even though the two women look nothing alike. It’s a fun challenge to work with only a 3-color limited palette. (WN Raw Sienna, WN Perm. Alizarin, Winsor Blue Green Shade).

Above is my final sketch and below is my preliminary sketch, scanned into Procreate, with a tracing of the photo over it. I used it to check my drawing and then made the corrections to the final sketch above.

Corrections marked from tracing photo in Procreate over sketch

Tori Cherry, reference photo from Sktchy.

Tags Portrait Sketch, Watercolor, watercolor portrait

Art Faces Gouache People Portrait Sktchy Sktchy Watercolor

Is She Sleepy, Bored or Annoyed?

Post author By Jana Bouc
Post date October 23, 2021
3 Comments on Is She Sleepy, Bored or Annoyed?

Sleepy Asian Girl, Gouache on paper, 10 x 7 inches

This was one of those rare and wonderful painting experiences where the sketch (below) came together by magic, and I liked it enough to not even check it against the reference photo for accuracy. I didn’t care if it was perfect. The painting just flowed and it was super fun to see and paint all the different colors and textures.

Sleepy Asian Girl Sketch, 10x8 inches, graphite on Xerox paper — Sleepy Asian Girl Sketch, 10×8 inches, graphite on Xerox paper

I kept pondering her story while I worked on the portrait. I had all kinds of ideas but settled on a bone-tired factory or sewing shop worker. Then I did a Google image search of the reference photo (below), which was supplied by a Sktchy artist for her class demo and for us to paint from.

The image search took me down a looooong rabbit hole that led to a match for the photo. It turns out the model is a Japanese artist named Serena Motola. Maybe she was just bored and annoyed to be modeling when she wanted to be painting?

Tags Gouache, Portrait, Portrait Sketch, Sktchy

Art Drawing Faces Gouache Painting People Portrait Sktchy Sktchy

Nate W. in Grey Hoodie

Nate Washington in a grey hoodie, painted in gouache. — Nate Washington in gouache on paper, 10 x 7.5”

Nate Washington (IG link) is a comedian and podcaster who shared his reference photo for this portrait on Sktchy, here. (Except Sktchy app is now called “Museum”)

Karl Staub (IG link), the teacher who used Nate’s photo for his demo did a very graphic, poster-like rendering (see below). I was tempted to do that too, but decided to just continue with my own style instead.

Nate Washington in a grey hoodie, sketched in pencil. — Nate W. in pencil, 10×7.5

Above is my original sketch for the portrait. I had fun finding the planes on his face and clothes. Below is a screenshot for the 30 Faces/30 Days – Watercolor & Gouache class on Sktchy displaying the teacher’s work.

This was supposed to be a 30 portraits in 30 days class, but I think I’m now on month three instead. That’s because since last December I started working out every morning, doing indoor cycling, rowing and running classes plus daily core classes and alternating days of weights, yoga, Pilates, and Barre and two hikes a week with friends. I paint in the afternoon.

I’m getting stronger and fitter and having fun. But it’s always a challenge to find balance between all the things that make up a good life. I’m very fortunate and grateful for the luxury of the choices I get to make.

Tags Gouache Portrait, hoodie, pencil sketch, Portrait, Portrait Sketch, Sktchy

Art Drawing Faces Gouache Painting People Portrait Sktchy Sktchy

Forest Bather in Gouache

Post author By Jana Bouc
Post date July 22, 2021

Bennett P from Sktchy in Gouache, 10×7 inches

I really enjoyed painting this calm, pleasant young man amidst the trees, seemingly bathing in the cool forest light. You can see his original photo reference on Sktchy here.

I started with a pencil sketch on copy paper. Then to check my drawing, I compared my sketch to the photo by scanning my sketch into Procreate with the original photo. On a new layer I traced the photo with a red line and layered that over the sketch (see below). Using the red lines as a reference, I corrected my original sketch on paper, transferred the sketch to watercolor paper and then painted.

Bennett’s reference photo was part of the Sktchy “30 days in Watercolor and Gouache” class taught by Mike Creighton, one of my favorite Sktchy teachers. I thought it would be interesting to share his painting; such a different feel from mine!

He used a limited palette and did a lot of mark making with his brush. I know the idea of the Sktchy classes is to try to mimic the teachers in order to learn a variety of different approaches and techniques, but I almost always end up taking what I like and then going my own way.

Tags Forest, Gouache, Gouache Portrait, Portrait, Portrait Sketch, Sktchy

Art Gouache Painting People Portrait Sktchy Sktchy

Mystery Girl Detective in Purple

Post author By Jana Bouc
Post date June 9, 2021
1 Comment on Mystery Girl Detective in Purple

Kate K. from Sktchy, gouache on paper, 8.5 x 7 inches

While I worked on the sketch for this painting I listened to a mystery audiobook with a female detective so when it came time to do the painting, I decided to make her a detective in a dark subway or tunnel. Using a limited, complimentary palette of mostly purple and yellow (because of her hair, see reference photo below) I put her in a purple trench coat.

The teacher for this lesson on Sktchy Art School is a big fan of patterned backgrounds, as you can see in this link to her painting. She used “Acryla Gouache” in her demo, which I have tried and don’t like. It’s basically just opaque and matte acrylic, not “real” gouache in my opinion.

In the sketch above you can see that I indicated the divisions between the shadows and light areas. I’m trying to focus on keeping my value families separated, keeping the darks together separately from the lights family.

Tags Gouache, Portrait, Sktchy

Art Drawing Faces Gouache Painting Portrait Sktchy Sktchy

Librarian (?) in Gouache with Zorn Palette

Post author By Jana Bouc
Post date May 18, 2021
4 Comments on Librarian (?) in Gouache with Zorn Palette

Stacy D from Sktchy in Gouache using Zorn Palette, 10x7 inches

I dramatically changed the setting of this portrait from a graffiti-covered wall (photo at bottom) to a library. There was something about her expression and clothing that made me think judgmental librarian, not the hip artist she appears to be in her photo feed on Sktchy. (Not that librarians can’t be hip artists! I was thinking of the mean school librarian who was always shushing us and glaring if we giggled.)

This was the last lesson in Mike Creighton’s Sktchy class on gouache portrait painting and color mixing. This lesson was about the Zorn palette: white, yellow ochre, cadmium red light and black. I’m really enjoying playing with limited palettes and discovering all the varieties of color possible with them.

In my initial sketch below, I hadn’t decided on the background yet.

Stacy D. from Sktchy, initial sketch on Xerox paper

When I decided to change the background from the wall in the reference photo below, to a library I did a quick internet search and found the photo below, right, which I used as inspiration.

Internet photo for library photo reference

Tags Gouache, Librarian, Limited Palette, Portrait, Sktchy, zorn palette

Art Drawing Gouache People Portrait Sktchy Sktchy

Triadic Color Scheme in Gouache

Post author By Jana Bouc
Post date May 17, 2021
2 Comments on Triadic Color Scheme in Gouache

Jennifer L. from Sktchy, weird 3-color gouache triadic color scheme, 10x8 inches

A triadic color scheme is one in which three colors are chosen for the palette that are equal distance apart on the color wheel. For example, either the three primaries (red, yellow, blue) or three secondaries (orange, purple, green) or tertiaries like red-orange, blue-green, etc. The colors I chose were a little weird: Linden Green, a greenish yellow because I wanted to capture the brilliant greens in the garden, plus Ultramarine Blue and Cadmium Red Light.

I thought the Linden Green and Cad Red Light made some interesting skin tones.

Mixing experiments with triad of Linden Green, Cad Red Light and Ultramarine Blue

Like all of the reference photos that Mike Creighton chose for his Sktchy gouache and color class, I wasn’t particularly attracted to paint this reference photo (at bottom of post). So I tried to think of it not as a portrait but a puzzle to play with color mixing plus a chance to practice my drawing.

In my initial sketch below, her hand and fingers were the most fun and most challenging.

Overall I’m not thrilled with this one. I don’t really like looking at it. But the puzzle process and mixing experiment was really fun.

Tags Gouache, Portrait, Portrait Sketch, Sktchy, Triadic color scheme