meldrum art
To combat my annual winter blues I try to take myself to a sunny place as often as I can. This year I travelled to Makarska, Croatia. It was a great choice, I totally enjoyed painting everyday from morning to sunset. I had been to Croatia once before when I was very young, actually it was still called Yugoslavia, it was that long ago. It’s a beautiful country, I totally recommend a visit.
It’s here at last, Episode 29. I really enjoyed this watercolour. It took two days to film. I did a pencil sketch on the first day but then had to wait a day to paint the final watercolour because I ran out of daylight. I talk a lot about composition and my approach to simplifying the subject. I hope you find it interesting.
Yes, it was the premiere for Meldrum Watercolour Demonstrations yesterday evening.
It went well I thought even if the sound wasn’t 100%. I have already solved that little technical problem.
A full video of the live demonstration is available to my supporters on Patreon.
https://www.patreon.com/meldrumart
I hope these videos help those of you who want to develop as watercolour artists.
A good friend of mine asked me a few weeks back to do a watercolour demonstration for his daughter and her friend. He decided that he would also like to join in. I haven’t had any courses since last year mainly because I felt it took up too much of my time as an artist. The Corona virus has changed my outlook somewhat as I haven’t been earning much since it struck in back in March.
I was very pleased they wanted to learn from me but I was going to have to do some work beforehand. What subject would I paint? I’d need to practice the painting several times so I didn’t look like an idiot. So I did, I painted it twice on quarter-sheet, the first had an electric blue sky which I didn’t like, the second attempt pleased me though and so I felt ready for the demonstation.
The day after it was demontration time, to my relief the watercolour turned out fine. My students had fun applying what they had learned to their own paintings. I was happy with my wee course. I wonder now if I sould start offering courses again, I am not sure, what do you think?
This watercolour has got a great response on social media, I am very happy about that. Personally I think it is one of my better sketches. The scene was very complicated to begin with and so decoding it and getting it down on paper was a real challenge. A challenge that I really enjoyed. The weather was warm and sunny too, a wonderful day, I have a clear memory of it because of this sketch. I can’t rest on past success though, today I will paint another watercolour and try and improve my skills, every brush stroke should be beautiful.
Kungsträgården sketch 18 x 13 cm
Click the thumbnail below for the full-sized image.
In this video I paint a watercolour scene of islands in the archipelago while on holidays. My goal with these demonstrations is to help others who are trying to or thinking of sketching outdoors. My tip for this episode is that there is rarely a perfect sketching location to be had. Just sit down somewhere quiet and start, that’s the hardest step.
The watercolour to the left is the one featured in the video. 13 x 18 cm
Hello! In this episode I stay local. I paint the scene using gradients and I have a wandering caterpillar to deal with.
I do all this while holding a camera above my head! I hope this video inspires you to sketch and paint outdoors. If you would like to support the making of these videos please visit my Patreon page, there you can follow my weekly vlog, see bonus material, and even receive original watercolours. www.patreon.com/meldrumart
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This watercolour was filmed when I visited Gålö, a nature reserve just south of Stockholm. It was a damp autumn day and I had to use my gas burner to get the watercolour dry. It was such a beautiful place so I didn’t mind the fight. To see the film click the this YouTube link: https://youtu.be/Xbmed57s_UE
(Click the thumbnail below to see full-sized image.)
Hello, I visited Gålö a few weeks back and painted in sometimes challenging circumstances which demanded drastic action. I don’t how many watercolour artists use a blow torch to dry their work but I do, when it’s just not going to dry.
All in all it was a fun day, I just love painting outdoors.
