My wife bought me a one day painting workshop taught by
Eleanor Lowden Pidgeon at the
Calgary School of Art. The title of the workshop is "Courageous Watercolor" referring to the bold colours in her painting style.
At first I wasn't too sure if Di picked the right course for me because Ms Lowden Pidgeon's paintings are quite different than how I see my style. But I think that is why I liked the workshop so much. I got to see two demos and try a completely new process of painting. I was exposed to new things, as opposed to if I'd taken a class on techniques I was already familiar with.
She is quite careful about planning her paintings. Choosing the colours and the order they will be applied. Making sure not to mute or muddy the colours, except of course when she means to.
The colours in this painting are a bit muddy, but we decided it was okay since these are meant to be shadowy areas.
The top photo is what I produced at the workshop. I was pretty happy with it at this point, but not 100%. So I took a photo and brushed some water over the trees and sky meant to appear distant. I didn't want those trees to be as boldly coloured as the foreground trees. The second photo is the result. I had unintentionally scrubbed whole trees from existence. The third photo is the final result. I painted distant trees again, but with paint much more diluted in water.
Viewing these three photos of the painting, it is also quite apparent the photoshop treatment is not consistent. the trees on the right were not repainted but the contrast changes quite a bit between photos.
