A2: Proj3 Stage 6 Combining textures and colour effects

Assignment 2: Stage 6 Combining textures and colour effects - exercise 1

from the class notes:

"Choose a background fabric – white, black or a primary colour. Choose threads – perhaps primary colours of equal intensity. If possible find the same colour in different yarns or ribbons – matt, shiny and textured. Try working them together, mixing them and separating them. Make the knots very dense so that the background is not visible. Then work further apart so the background has its own effect on the colours. Add a third colour (different from the background or yarn), maybe a secondary colour."

Assignment 2: Stage 6 Combining textures and colour effects - exercise 2

This time we had to use pastel colours and "[m]ix the colours so that a gradual colour movement occurs across the sample".

I don't really like pastel colours much, but I was happy with the final piece / sample.

the photo shows both exercises:

 
review
were you able to mix and match colours accurately?
yes, I think I was able to colour match the original colours after mixing the paints. I enjoyed the colour mixing and colour exploration exercises. it was great to see how the combinations of colours created other colours, and the variations you can create by changing the quantities of the source colours.

were you able to use colour expressively?
yes, I think so. I think my early sketchbook work was quite tentative, but the later examples after I'd completed these exercises is showing improvement.

can you now see colour rather than accepting what you think you see?
yes, I can see different tones and ranges of colours and now I try to guess how the colour was created.

did you prefer working with watercolours or gouche paints? what was the difference?
at first I hated the watercolours, but I did a couple of online courses and learned some techniques such as "wet on wet" and "wet on dry", which may be basic techniques, but I hadn't been aware of what to look for in each of these, so it was really useful. so now I love watercolours — being able to water down the colours and apply in layers to add depth to the colours, and even to create new colours. the guache was good too, but the paint is thicker. it does feel nice to paint with, more silky. but I am now trying to practice watercolours more.

how successful were the colour exercises in stage 5? how did they compare to the painting exercises?
I enjoyed learning the French knot stitches, as I hadn't done those before. and it was good to see how the threads merged the colours and created blends when the colours changed gradually, and stark changes when they didn't. the colours "popped" more when there were blocks of colour. I think it was easier to blend the colours whilst painting as you can change the graduation more. this may need more practice to be able to "draw/paint with threads" also

is there anything you would like to change or develop?
I'd like to practice more of the stitching, and see where that leads. and I'd like to (and am) practice watercolour painting more, as I feel that I'm starting to get the hang of them (with later paintings such as the "pears", not the earlier exercises, where the paint is applied quite roughly).