This one has been on the easel far too long. Simply put: I need both the easel and the space presently occupied by the cast for other projects. It’s time to acknowledge that it is what it is; it isn’t quite what I’d hoped it would be, but I learned a few things along the way that should help make the next one better.
So what went wrong here? For one thing, the paper: I treated watercolor paper with a pumic gel / matte medium mix which was much too rough. I need to cut down the pumice gel ratio in the next batch. I actually ground a bristle brush almost down to the nib doing blending. It was like drawing on sandpaper. Also, I failed to get the brushstrokes out of the grain of the medium, something I think I now know how to fix.
The stain was also too light. It should have been at least a value step darker, maybe two. I couldn’t push the lights high enough.
Finally, the blend of hatching and actual blending with the brush didn’t come off so well. The blending made a warmish texture that looked dramatically different in character from the pencil strokes, and I wasn’t able to synthesize them as cleanly as I wanted. I’m wondering if it’s better to emphasize one of those techniques rather than try to combine them. Working on a smoother surface might help with that.
Anyway, I want to do some more simple-form study, and I need the easel for a long-pose figure drawing that should be getting underway in a few days. So this one comes off the easel, and it’s time to move on.