Outhouse in the Fall

Outhouse in the Fall, Watercolor on paper, 9" x 12"

Thursday I went hunting for a good fall subject for next week's class. I came upon a beautiful grassy lane at the end of which was this irresistible scene.

I printed out the picture, turned it into a "poster edge" version with Photoshop, outlined it on tracing paper, transferred it to my watercolor paper -- and then stared at it for three whole days. Where to start? Exactly what shade of brown is that background? Will I be able to make those trees appear from the dark background? And so on.

And then this morning I mixed my colors, made up a sampler, took a deep breath and applied the first wash. By 6 PM I was finished.

There are a thousand things wrong with it but I learned a lot.

What matters is the journey.