
In this painting, I will be painting around objects, leaving the white of the paper intact. Many artists will use masking fluid, a rubber cement-like substance to protect the white of the paper. I don't like to use masking fluid because I find it difficult to remove without smearing it with color, or destroying the paper.
The goals here are: to create soft edges, to incorporate warmer colors and more intense colors because I will now be working toward the foreground, and to create hard edges in the structures.
There are several ways to soften an edge in watercolor painting:
1. Scrub with a stiff brush. This is dependent on the hardness of the paper you are using. Heavy scrubbing can destroy the paper.
2. Match the value of the edge when painting the next section. This takes a slow and careful wash that will affect the blending of the colors.
3, Over painting–painting past an edge. Because the change of value and color is not extreme, painting one section into another will leave a well-defined but a softened edge.
While the wash was still wet, I lifted areas behind the trees by using a dry brush to remove some of the color. Near the darker tree mass in the background, using a wet brush, I lifted a path leading to the right background and to soften some of the edges in that area.
The next section will deal with the same issues, painting around several small buildings, scrubbing areas to soften an edge.