The Red Stripe will be cold and the Guinness will be hot

As I mentioned in my last post, I will soon be putting up the photos of our wall art and color scheme of the upstairs rooms in our home, but I'm just not happy with the photos I took yet. I need better daylight to take some good pics and the weather didn't cooperate with my schedule this past weekend......so, more painting instead.

I sat down this Sunday to add another painting to my series of Jamaican roadside shops. This one is an amalgam of several places -- it truly exists only on this page. Here's a look at the process: I began with the preliminary drawing, on Arches 140lb cold press paper, using a Rapidograph pen with black India ink. Next up, laying out my watercolors to begin painting the scene. You can see where I began to lay in some color -- the bananas, the sign base - before I realized I wanted to snap a pic of the progress.

I have an array of brushes and bamboo pens. Some are natural which
are more pricey and some are synthetic which are more affordable.
It's not always the most expensive brush which becomes my favorite.
I have filberts, flats, rounds -- all sorts.

I work from several palettes - my triple set is comprised of
Rembrandt watercolors which give great saturated color -

Yes, my palettes are a wreck. I mix colors right on the brush most times,
dipping into several colors with the same brush. Here's my larger palette
(a "Frank Webb" style palette) with my pricier paints (Schminke).
The beauty of this palette is that I've got space around the outside edge to
label each pot with a sharpie on the outside. When the color inside each pot becomes virtually unrecognizable (which is quite often) I know which color it originally contained so I can replenish it.

I began by laying down pale, lighter washes of color all over the page,

knowing that I'd return and build up each area gradually,
from light to dark.

I moved around quite a bit, letting layers dry so I could go back and add
layers of shadow or deepen certain areas with several hues.
I worked on this for several hours (between loads of laundry and preparing breakfast and lunch for everybody, of course).

I'm pleased with the final result.

"Irie Vibes," 14" x 10.25" ink and watercolor on paper

Here's a look at some of the details -

The original painting is for sale here.

A print is available here.

Hope you enjoyed watching this painting come to life -- I can feel that cold Red Stripe in my hand and smell the ocean breeze, how about you?

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