A watercolor of poppies and daisies with little purple or violet flowers in a pickle jar.

Poppies and Daisies in Pickle Jar 2019

Posted on August 21, 2019 by victoria A. Olson

In the spring I like to paint the wild flowers since they are so colorful and my favorite painting theme.

A picture of a watercolor in process. You can see a light grid, pencil drawing and red watercolor paint of poppies.

I started off with a grid and a light drawing, then I started putting in the poppies.

Since I’m painting from life, I put in the poppies first before they wilt.

A watercolor of red poppies, daisies and a glass jar in the process of making.

The next step I take is painting all over the paper since all the shapes and colors influence each other.

Then I start putting in other flowers, not forgetting about the equally important background which includes the glass pickle jar.

Here I am almost finished. Just putting in the finishing touches. Not too many.

The watercolor is almost finished here. I paint what I see and leave a lot of the white of the paper.

Here it is finished. Poppies and Daisies in Pickle Jar 2019 Watercolor on Arches 300gsm 19×28 cm – 7.5×11 in

This year the wild flower season was brief. Less rain, less flowers…

My Watercolor Exhibition Experience at Arte Studio in Madrid May-June 2017

Posted on June 3, 2017 by victoria A. Olson

I realised that I had to focus. First I got a body of watercolors together 2014 to 2016.

Here’s a short clip of the watercolors in the show and a few pictures.

Red Poppies with Wild Flowers in Glass Jar April 2015

Red Roses in Blue Vase 2015

A street view of the Paseo del Prado in August 2016

Three Glass Bottles with Pear 2014

When I got together around 50 watercolors, I started matting them.

Summer Melon with Red Bottle 2016 – Watercolor on Arches 640 GMS – 20 x 16 inch ( 50.8 x 40.6 cm) – Swiss Clip Frameless Frame with Plexi-glass Ready to Hang

This is the style I used for presentation – A beige mat with plexi-glass and swiss clips.

Once it was all set up, the show looked really nice. I Saw a lot of family and friends I hadn’t seen for a long time as well as meeting new friends.

Flor, Victoria and Cani

Although it was very hard work, it was something I wanted to do and I’m glad it happened.

The light in Madrid, Spain is always inspiring.

White Almond Blossoms in Talavera Vase Watercolor March 2017

Posted on April 23, 2017 by victoria A. Olson

This spring I was only able to paint one watercolor of the white almond blossoms. They bloomed, it rained, it was windy and they were gone.

These are some of the steps taken.

I started out by putting the vase and the flowers on the paper first.

Then I start working around the paper putting in the colors and shapes I see.

Here I start looking for contrast.

Looking for depth.

Looking for atmosphere too.

Line & Wash of September Roses 2016

Posted on October 1, 2016 by victoria A. Olson

September Roses and Silk Scarf 2016 on Arches 300 gsm

I thought that watercolor season was over since we’re already in September, but not yet. There are a bunch of orange roses blooming on the terrace.

Sketch with grid

Pencil on Arches 300 gsm

Line and Wash

September Roses with Silk Scarf 2016

Yellow Melon with Red Bottle Summer 2016

Posted on August 16, 2016 by victoria A. Olson

Melon with Red Bottle and California Wild Flowers Summer 2016

When I saw this melon come into the room, I just knew I had to paint it.

Yellow Melon with Red Bottle and California Wild Flowers Summer 2016

The most interesting thing about this yellow melon was the way it reflected color. I was interested in capturing the reflection.

California Wild Flowers in Red Bottle with Melon Summer 2016

California Wild Flowers in Red Bottle with Summer Melon 2016

Here it is finished.

White Rose with Crystal Vase Spring 2016

Posted on August 15, 2016 by victoria A. Olson

White Rose with Crystal Vase Spring 2016

White Rose

I decided to develop the rose thinking it was going to wilt too fast.

White Rose with Crystal Vase

Then I started drawing the crystal vase with a paintbrush, the same way I drew the rose.

Crystal Vase with White Rose

Then I started developing the crystal vase trying to give it the same attention as I did to the rose.

Whte Rose with Crystal Vase and Books Spring 2016

White Rose with Crystal Vase and Books Spring 2016

The books and the crystal vase are competing too much. Thinking back, I should have stopped in the previous step or developed the books more.

Three Still Life Watercolors

Posted on August 11, 2016 by victoria A. Olson

Vibrant color and immediacy is what I like the most about the watercolor medium. consistent practice is important whether inspired or not.

I start with the idea of putting the exact shape and color.

I use a grid here to keep my parallel lines parallel. I paint little pieces at a time so I can transfer the color and shape exactly as I see it.

I work around the paper always going to a blank part on the paper instead of building up any one area.

I want the painting to have balance, so work on different areas going to opposite places on the paper and touching the corners as well.

Since I used an a la prima technique, I stopped when the surface of the paper was covered.

I was happy with how it turned out, so I did two more water colors the same day.

I started out with a diamond grid.

Even though I wanted to use the same exact technique, I didn’t. I painted larger areas and didn’t work around the paper. The left side is too heavy for starting off.

Finished Watercolor

Since it was too heavy on the left side, I automatically tried to balance it out by making the right side heavy too. I finished quickly to start again.

Started out with my favorite part.

I focused on the flower and built around it, trying not to fill in large areas to start with.

Working around the paper.

I wanted to give the same importance to every object but I got hung up on the white rose and gave it too much attention neglecting the glass work.

Finished Watercolor

No matter how many times I paint this motif, there is always something new and different in each flower and reflection.

A painting of Spanish wild flowers in an exhibition at La Casa del Reloj del Matadero in Madrid, Spain

Posted on June 17, 2016 by victoria A. Olson

Spanish wild flowers are so colorful, ideal in watercolor.

In this post, I’m going to show a few steps in the making of a painting which was presented and accepted in The Salòn de Primavera 2016 of Madrid, Spain.

I started with my favorite part and visualised the finished composition in my mind without a preliminary drawing.

Here, I continued by using the first flower as a measurement for the rest of the painting.

I continued building around the first flower while observing shapes, colors, linear directions and placement in the picture plane carefully. In watercolor, you only have one shot.

This is the finished watercolor, called Spanish Wild Flowers in Blue Vase 2015

The exhibition was held in the Casa del Reloj at the Matadero in the Arganzuela district of Madrid, Spain

Here is my painting exhibited in the Salón de Primavera 2016 in La Lonja Sala of Casa del Reloj in Madrid, Spain.