The Pumpkin Process..maybe too much process

 I love love love process shots. Plus I love the golden mean.  Maybe I use it too much...but it works for me. Often I will layout a golden rectangle first. I will say every building I have ever designed this way (I work the foot print and elevation until is matches a masonry dimension and from there everthing "lines up" and I get more feedback..more on that later.. but proportion really means relationship and relationship is everything)

 I started yesterday morning in my mens group (my turn to lead) getting people to draw and preached my allegiance to proportion so I thought I would show it in a way I typically just incorporate (vs put it in red pencil)

 The first sketch out. I have been drawing this same pumpkin in my study of "making colors sing" for the past few weeks. The pumpkin should be glad because squirrels have taken 3 bites and then left every other pumpkin in our garden.

 Working out the shadows given two light sources

 Finish the sketch, then the tough part, getting this onto the watercolor paper. This sketch was done on trace paper, the next step is to sketch under the trace paper while holding it in place. Kind of clumsy but it works well enough with touch up.

 The under trace and the trace sketch. I really like the trace sketch and may keep it.

 Time to touch up the undertrace on the real paper

 I have to include my buddy who is drawing beside me. Way past his bed time, but if he is drawing with me...I will break the rules a little!  He is quite good, but both parents draw all the time in front of him.

 Wook it Daddy!

 The best part of Leo's sketches is that they come with a story. A great story

 And it gets pretty elaborate. Plus, I need to burn time while my paint dries

 I did the yellow first because I read that yellow afterwards muddies things. On teh dry parts I started to use blue. The point is undertones that will be knocked down by cadmium orange later. Cadmium Orange has two advantages. The rest of this palate is really transparent and it is a very opaque, plus it happens to the the exact color of my pumpkin!

 Working on the shadows on my green glass table

 I cheated and added transparent yellow because it middle ground the yellow and eventual orange.  Everyone seems to love transparent orange. I now know why. I squeezes out as mustard ochre but with water becomes the exact color of a good beer (say a Boddingtons) anyway I thought is would be a good bridge to the last step

 Working it more and showing the model

 Alittle more shadow work

 Adding the Cad Orange in layers

A semi wet finished product. I have learned I need to wait a few hours for the final and nice things happen as the paint settles out and makes friends. I will take a final picture tomorrow for the final.

I am really enjoying the making colors sing palate.

Tough day, fun night of painting. During this project I fed a kid, loaded and unloaded a dishwasher, watched the news, cleaned a kitchen, paid bills. Some decent multitasking if I do say so myself.