The Tree of faith

This watercolor on illustration board is painted with a palette knife, a brush and a sea sponge. The colors are magenta, deep green, sometimes mixed with magenta, naples yellow, burn't sienna, sepia, orange lake & cobalt blue.


You start out painting the background first. The light yellow color at the top and graduating down to the blue and lavender. A little orange was also mixed in but not enough to really notice. You let this dry. Then using a palette knife you put in the limbs, also using a brush whenever you feel the need. The palette knife keeps the limbs from looking too mechanical. You put the tip of the knife down and pull up on the knife very much like a rigger. The paint has to be wet but not runny.

You allow this to dry and then you sponge in the leaves starting with the light magenta and orange going to the darker magenta then finally the deep green. I wanted the piece to be darker around the edges so as to give a feeling of looking up thru the center of the trees to see daylight but you don't have to to this.