“In The Trees” Work In Progress Time-lapse

There can be some debate within the watercolour community about using white as there are people who believe that only the white of the paper should be used to represent white and can be quite indignant about it. I believe it all depends on the piece and what the artist wants to accomplish.

While I love the purity of not even having white on my palate (as is most of the time for me), I've discovered that there is a beautiful depth and softness that can be achieved by using white as a middle layer when painting some furs. I don’t do it everywhere but in select areas. I like that it isn't solid and almost disappears, I can choose to make areas fade more with a water wash, and when dry layer fresh transparent colours over the top to keep that luminous effect that is so special with this medium. It's always a juggle to not overwork that I'm constantly trying to master. So I thought this would be a fun work-in-progress video to share as it shows where I added the white hairs and how I worked it into the painting.

I've been developing this piece to help raise funds for Koala habitat reforestation of Gentle Valley, the wildlife conservation land bordering my farm, so it's very special to me. Did you know that of the 900+ species of eucalyptus trees in Australia, Koalas only feed almost entirely on 2 species in any given region? Here where we live on the southern coast there are only 2 primary types and 10 secondary types they will eat. We have some work to do to make sure Gentle Valley is ready for some koalas to be released in what is a part of our backyard here at Red Rabbit Farm.

“In The Trees” - inspired “Tenderness, of the Mother's Love Collection"

31x46cm on Arches Aquerelle Cold Pressed 300g / 140lb paper using Daniel Smith watercolours and Black Velvet brushes.