Using my artistic license...

Ok so I spent a good couple of hours on my first Portugal painting the other day and got a decent chunk of it done. But after all of the practice and reading i've done of various techniques, I still can never figure one thing out: why does it still always look the same??? I've been racking my brain with new ideas I can try to capture that loose quality that I admire most in watercolors. This painting in particular has a lot of architectural elements to it with lines and perspective needing to be correct. So what could I do to keep all of these angles correct on the windows for example, and still have it loose and free? Ah ha. It has struck me. I am going to try doing the next painting with very few lines drawn in and do the rest with my brush. This is something I did (mostly out of laziness) in my onsite painting from Sonoma, and I can definitely see a difference. But I think I will start implementing this as a regular practice from now on.

We're heading away for a long weekend tomorrow to Florence- yes- home of "The Birth of Venus". I promised Mike only 2 museum visits though, one to see the David, and the other to see the infamous Boticelli painting. But I am anxious to get more great pics to paint (we're spending a day in Tuscany also). I think I will need to leave my paints at home this time, but I will definitely pack my sketchbook and colored pencils.

Until next week...