Still Life with a Blue Bottle

Sometimes it takes me a couple of tries. It helps when painting, like playing an instrument or any sport, to warm up. I often forget to do this. I sit down and get right to it. And then this happens:

I aim for realistic colors, true proportions, and the composition I paint is based on what I see — literally, what’s in front of me. Usually, it is quite uninspired. In this painting, I didn’t succeed in filling the page (see the white at the bottom?). I didn’t get the bottle right either, which was the form I was most interested in.

Here’s my second attempt, which I painted without looking at all at the scene itself.

I like this one better: It features simpler, more pleasing forms and a tighter composition. I did a much better job filling up the page. But again I missed the mark on the bottle.

Here’s my third and final version:

Finally, something I am happy with. For me, this abstraction is freer and much more original. I like how the blue underpainting comes through. And I was able to let the paints do their thing — note how the orange from the peach blends over to the bottle to represent a reflection. Lastly, I was able to remember that with watercolors one needn’t fill up the page with paint! Often some white space really strengthens the color and transparency of the medium.

Note to self: don’t forget to warm up!