Veronica Aldous mixed media artist

Painting an Apple in Watercolour- Veronica Aldous

1 . Place your apple on a white piece of paper so you can see the shadows and highlights.

2. Sketch out a simple drawing, it must be accurate- simple means without much detail.

3. Remove most of the graphite.

4. You may mask highlights;  the stalk and any other areas which need highlights ( white areas) preserved. Leave this to dry thoroughly. You may choose to mask water droplets but do ensure these are a believable shape and placed correctly.

5. You may start to paint in the base colours using a watery mix of underpaint. Put yellow- green ( Sap  Green and Lemon) where you see that colour and red-pink ( Alizarin Crimson- Permanent Rose

6.Work in delicate layers, letting each layer dry  before moving on to the next, deepening  and strengthening areas where there are stronger tones using the hues selected. Be careful to notice TONE distinct from local COLOUR. i.e. One side of your apple may be darker than the other.

7. Ensure you preserve highlights. At some point you may remove any masking fluid and glaze and soften those areas with some light washes. You may wish to re-mask highlights in any water droplets .

8. Make the area round the stalk a dark COLOUR. Do not use black.

9. Make the stalk look 3d by leaving a streak of white down it. Paint the stalk an appropriate green/yellow shade.

10. Shadows under the apple. Ensure these are a COLOUR, not grey.

11. Streaks may be painted on with a drier brush. Spots may be lifted out. ( wet the area and lift out with tissue paper).