Watercolor Painting Demo | Joan Iaconetti’s “Subway Series,” Exit Only

watercolor painting demo, final painting | watercolor painting
Showcase your talent and win big in Artists Network prestigious art competitions! Discover competitions in a variety of media and enter for your chance to win cash prizes, publication in leading art magazines, global exposure, and rewards for your hard work. Plus, gain valuable feedback from renowned jurors. Let your passion shine through – enter an art competition today!

Joan Iaconetti finds endless wonder in the depths of New York City, accentuating its grit in blurred effects and exhilarating texture in her watercolor painting. View some of the progressive stages of her piece, Exit Only, below.

Learn more about Iaconetti’s watercolor painting in the October 2015 issue of Watercolor Artist, available now in print or as an instant download at northlightshop.com, and on newsstands beginning August 18.

Or, for just a few more dollars, subscribe to Watercolor Artist and never miss an issue! Get the issues in the mail or as digital downloads.

 

Step 1:

Reference photo

watercolor painting demo step 1 | watercolor painting
Iaconetti takes photographs holding her camera at a slight tilt, conveying a sense that it’s a hand-held, candid shot, taken while rushing to or from the train. This sense of immediacy will carry through to the finished piece.

 

Step 2:

Manipulating the Photo

watercolor painting demo step 2 | watercolor painting
With the Google Picasa application, she converted the color photo to black-and-white, then exaggerated the contrast with the Highlights-Shadows filter. Sometimes she also uses the Pencil Sketch filter to make an even simpler linear image.

 

Step 3:

Value

watercolor painting demo step 3 | watercolor painting
She applied Picasa’s Posterize filter to her original color photo to see the image simplified and in high-contrast, allowing her to  gauge and adjust her values.

 

Step 4:

Study

watercolor painting demo step 4 | watercolor painting
Iaconetti used a free program called PosteRazor to enlarge the image to 30×22, and transferred it to Arches 300-lb. rough watercolor paper. She then created several studies in various smaller sizes, using overlaid spatter in various light colors, to explore ways to improve the composition.

 

Finished Watercolor Painting

watercolor painting demo, final painting | watercolor painting
Exit Only (watercolor on paper, 30×22) by Joan Iaconetti

 

 

 


MORE RESOURCES FOR WATERCOLOR ARTISTS
Subscribe to Watercolor Artist magazine

Get the 2014 Watercolor Artist CD archive

Watch watercolor art workshops on demand at ArtistsNetwork.TV

Get unlimited access to over 100 art instruction ebooks

Online seminars for fine artists

Sign up for your Artists Network email newsletter & receive a FREE download

Related Articles

Join the Conversation!

Become a member today!

Choose an option below to join now.

$14.99/month

Join Now

 

Free Gift Included

$99.99/year

Join Now

 

  • Stream over 850 videos anytime, anywhere.
  • Enjoy exclusive events with live discussions from today’s top artists!
  • Get access to the Artists Magazine archives and save 30% on additional magazines.

View All Benefits

*Membership cannot be purchased with Gift Cards.