Peter Woolley- Landscapes in Watercolour.

Wonderful Watercolour Landscapes -demonstrated by Peter Wooley on Friday evening kept us all both interested and entertained. 

Peter is a well known watercolour artist who shared his tips, techniques and advice on how to approach painting a landscape . He showed also the thinking that helps him make a decision on what to include in a composition and what to leave out. A preliminary sketch showed a more simplified version of his original photograph, and  created a more focused and clearer image which perfectly  drew the viewers eye into the scene. 

Using a limited palette of Cadmium red, Cadmium Yellow, Prussian Blue, French Ultramarine, Burnt Umber and Alizarin  Crimson, Peter began by working wet on wet- covering all of the paper. He then used tissue to lift out areas of highlight- such as the water and the sun-touched areas  of the trees. 

Building up layers, working from light to dark, the scene of 'Janet's Fosse' appeared before us. Although Peter used a photograph as his starting point, he emphasized that this is just a guideline and he added to the picture more spontaneously as the painting progressed. 

Peter's easy style and informative commentary I am sure will have encouraged many of us to revisit watercolours, particularly landscapes, to explore the tips and techniques shared.