Splash: Best of Watercolor Winners | Porcelain by Anne Hudec

Let’s highlight one of our winners from our Splash Watercolor art competition, Porcelain by Anne Hudec.

Splash 13 Competition Winner | Porcelain by Anne Hudec

Transparent watercolor with casein on 140-lb. (300gsm) cold-pressed Arches 12″ x 18″ (30cm x 46cm)

What Anne Hudec says about her artwork:
Maiko, in my view, represent many of the characteristics of Japan: graciousness, reserve, resilience and a history steeped in mystery and tradition. Maiko apply a thick, opaque white paste consisting of rice powder to their skin, before applying makeup to the eyebrows, eyes and lips. For this piece I used an alternative approach and turned to casein paint to re-create this foundation, covering her face, throat and eyelids—excluding her eyes—and thinning the paint near the hairline. This was followed by layers of transparent watercolor over this base to re-create the opaque appearance. The rest of the painting—the eyes, hair, ornaments kimono and background—was painted in a traditional transparent watercolor manner on the remaining untouched paper.

Anne Hudec’s piece Porcelain appeared in Splash 13: Alternative Approaches, published by North Light Books in 2012. Enter the art competition here for your chance to appear in Splash 14 & win other prizes!

Splash 13: Alternative Approaches | The Best of Watercolor