Olives Watercolor Art

by Winsor & Newton |

Item # 302227297P48
Intermediate 1-2 Hours

SUPPLIES & TOOLS:

  • Winsor & Newton Cotman Watercolors Sketchers' Pocket Box Colors:
    • Lemon Yellow
    • Cadmium Yellow
    • Alizarin Crimson
    • Ultramarine Blue
    • Intense Blue
    • Sap Green
    • Yellow Ochre
    • Burnt Umber
    • Chinese White
  • Winsor & Newton Cotman #6 Round Brush
  • Winsor & Newton Cotman #2 Round Brush
  • 9"x 12" Cold Press Watercolor Paper (trim sheet to have one 8x 10 piece)
  • Ceramic or Plastic Watercolor Palette Well (9 wells needed)
  • Glass of Water
  • Paper Towel

DIRECTIONS:

To find the downloadable patterns click on the "GET PATTERNS" tab above.

  1. Cover your work surface with a disposable covering and fill a glass or cup with water.
  2. Cut one sheet of 9in x 12in watercolor paper to create one 8x10 sheet of paper.
  3. Transfer or Freehand Draw Outline. Use a Lightbox or well-lit window and a graphite pencil to transfer the provided outline, or freehand draw the outline by using the provided outline as a guide.
  4. Mix Six Paint Colors. To mix the six colors used in this project, start by placing the #6 brush into the glass filled with water. Stir it around in the water to help the bristles evenly absorb the water. Then, use the brush as if it were a spoon and place two "scoops" into six wells on the artist's palette. Mix the following six colors into those wells until you have an equal paint to water ratio:
  5. Bright Green: Equal Parts Ultramarine and Lemon Yellow
  6. Middle Green: Two Parts Ultramarine and One Part Cadmium Yellow
  7. Light Green: One Scoop of Middle Green Paint and Two Parts Chinese White
  8. Olive Green: Equal Parts Yellow Ochre and Sap Green
  9. Dark Olive Green: Two Parts Ultramarine and Cadmium Yellow and One Part Burnt Umber
  10. Purple: Four Parts Alizarin Crimson and One Part Intense Blue
  11. Apply Bright Green and Middle Green to Some Leaves
  12. Use the #6 brush in this step. Work one leaf to completion at a time. To the leaf that is numbered "1" on the outline, apply an even layer of Bright Green to the leaf. Then, while the Bright Green is still wet, apply Middle Green to the upper third of the same leaf where the leaf connects to the stem. Allow the two colors to merge and bleed into each other.
  13. Repeat this process to the leaves numbered 3, 9, and 12 on the outline.
  14. Apply Light Green to Remaining Leaves.
  15. Use the #6 brush in this step. To the remaining leaves (2,4,5-8, 10-11, and 13-17), apply an even layer of Light Green.
  16. Apply Color to Stem.
  17. Use the #2 brush in this step. Paint on the top quarter of the stem using Dark Olive Green. Paint on the middle two quarters of the stem using Middle Green. Paint on the bottom quarter of the stem using Light Green. Allow the colors to organically merge ad blend into each where they meet.
  18. Apply Color to Olives.
  19. Use the #6 round brush in this step. Work one olive at a time, using the outline as a guide that assigns each olive a letter.
  20. Olive A - Begin by applying Olive Green to the entire olive, intentionally leave one or two spots without paint. This is called negative space and will serve as the highlights on the olive. Then, while the olive green is still wet, drop on Dark Olive Green to the top and left side edge of the olive. Drop in additional Olive Green to the middle. Allow the two colors to merge and blend into each other where they meet.
  21. Olive B - Begin by applying Olive Green to the entire olive, intentionally leave one or two spots without paint. This is called negative space and will serve as the highlights on the olive. Then, apply Purple to all but the lower left edge of the olive. Drop in more Purple to the upper edge of the olive. Allow the two colors to merge and blend into each other where they meet.
  22. Olive C - Begin by applying Olive Green to the entire olive, intentionally leave one or two spots without paint. This is called negative space and will serve as the highlights on the olive. Then, apply Dark Olive Green to the top of the olive. Finally, apply Purple to the entire left side of the olive. Allow the two colors to merge and blend into each other where they meet.
  23. Olive D - Begin by applying Olive Green to the entire olive, intentionally leave one or two spots without paint. This is called negative space and will serve as the highlights on the olive. Then, Middle Green to the right side of the olive. Finally, apply Purple to the top, down the middle, and the lower left edge of the olive. Allow the two colors to merge and blend into each other where they meet.
  24. Olive E - Begin by applying Olive Green to the entire olive, intentionally leave one or two spots without paint. This is called negative space and will serve as the highlights on the olive. Then, apply Purple to the top and both sides of the olive. Drop in more Olive Green to the bottom of the olive. Allow the two colors to merge and blend into each other where they meet.
  25. Olive F - Begin by applying Olive Green to the entire olive, intentionally leave one or two spots without paint. This is called negative space and will serve as the highlights on the olive. Then, apply Dark Olive Green to the top, bottom, and right edge of the olive. Drop in additional Olive Green to the middle. Allow the two colors to merge and blend into each other where they meet.
  26. Apply Middle Green and Dark Olive Green to Some Leaves.
  27. Use the #2 round brush in this step. Work one leaf to completion at a time.
  28. To the leaf that is numbered "5" on the outline, apply Middle Green to the leaf, intentionally leaving a thin line along the middle of the leaf to serve as a center vein. While the Middle Green is still wet, drop in Dark Olive Green to either the half of the leaf above the center vein or to the half of the leaf below the middle vein. When working on the other leaves in this step, vary if the paint is applied to either the top half or bottom half, as this will create movement in the final piece and make it appear as though the leaves are turning in different directions.
  29. Repeat the above process to the leaves numbered 6-8 10-11, 13-14, and 17 on the outline.
  30. Apply Dark Olive Green to Two Leaves and Light Olive Green to One Leaf.
  31. Use the #2 round brush in this step. Apply Dark Olive Green to the entirety of leaf 4 and 15.
  32. Then, apply Light Olive Green to the entirety of leaf 2.
  33. Apply Bright Green to Some Leaves.
  34. Use the #2 brush and Bright Green when painting the leaves in this step.
  35. To leaves 1, 3, 9, and 12, apply Bright Green to each leaf, intentionally leaving a thin line along the middle of the leaf to serve as a center vein.
  36. To leaf 16, apply Bright Green to the left side edge of the leaf using a stroke that is approximately 1/8" in width, and then apply it to the right side edge as well using a stroke that is 1/16" in width.

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