Studio by the Bay

Updates from Arena Shawn Watercolor Studio

This Blog contains updates on my new works as they are completed, information regarding exhibitions and art fairs I participate in, workshops and classes I teach, and occasionally, anecdotes from this studio by the lovely San Francisoco Bay. If you want to learn more about how each painting is created step by step, as well as technical tips for watercolor painting, please go to my other blog, "Ten Thousand Square Inches of Canvas". 





Fall in a Mountain Village - September 2014 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge, Day 2

9/3/2014 11:57:33 PM

Fall in a Mountain Village, 5"h x 9"w, Watercolor on Arches #140 Cold Press Paper

​Second day's painting for Leslie Saeta's September 2014 "30 Paintings in 30 Days" challenge - I've started a couple of landscapes today but only finished this one. I have not painted this wet for a while - with paper dripping with water and the painting elevated at a steep angle, every passage is an exhilarating yet scary race against time. My aim is to finish the entire painting in one wet-to-dry cycle, getting the background mountains in when the paper is soaking wet so that the colors would run and diffuse smoothly, then putting in the fall foliage and darker shrub [...]

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Dawn Petunia - September 2014 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge, Day 1

9/2/2014 1:46:51 AM

Dawn Petunia, 7"h x 5"w, Watercolor on Arches #140 Cold Press Paper

​This is the first one of my attempt to Leslie Saeta's yearly "30 paintings in 30 days" challenge - how wonderful it is that Leslie takes the trouble hosting this event twice every year! Although I have quite a few family and school-related obligations this September, and may not be able to complete a painting each day, I will definitely try to get as much done as I can! I think the whole spirit is to try to commit to painting every day, and not linger on a piece for too long so that the freshness could be kept (which is [...]

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