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1. Orang utan - start of watercolour painting.
After drawing a faint outline in pencil I have started on the
orang utan's eyes.
This was around 2 hours work. I am happy with the mood of the painting and the expression of the eyes.
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2. Orang utan - skin background.
I have lightly painted in the skin on the face paying attention to the darkest shading.
This was around 1/2 hour work. The colour looks quite dark to me at this stage, and I would normally not be happy about this, but
experience tells me that I need this depth of shading so that the subject stands out suffieciently.
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3. Orang utan - hair background.
I have added the orange coloured hair background and the orange skin colouration .
This was around 1/2 hour work. I am now laying the base for the hair parts.
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4. Orang utan - hair background.
Here I have started to build depth into the face. I am concentrating on the shadows and the main parts of the face that lie in darkness.
This is probably the most important part of the whole painting because if the tonal contrast is not there then your painting will look flat.
I shall be adding more depth after I have painted the orange hairs.
This was around 1 hours work.
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5. Orang utan - mouth.
I have concentrated on the mouth and lips and emphasizing the expression.
This was around 1 hours work. I am also envisioning the hair around the face and preparing to paint that in.
When I paint in watercolours I do alot of mental preparation deciding what colours to paint next and where.
I also take frequent breaks away from the painting so that my eyes remain fresh and I can correct any areas I am not happy with.
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6. Orang utan - hair.
Now I have started on the hair.
This was around 1/2 hour work. The paint has not dried properly hence the reflection in the 'white' speckles.
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7. Orang utan - hair and mouth.
I have added depth to the hair and am now building up the nose/mouth area.
This was around 1 hours work. I am also adding more lowlights to the skin.
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8. Orang utan - head hair.
Here you can see the build up of colour and depth with the hair.
This was around 1 hours work. This also helps me frame the face and check if the proportions are right all over.
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9. Orang utan - hair and face.
I have built up the main hair and shading.
This was around 1 hours work. I work alot with wet into wet paint and this means that I must give the watercolour pad time to
dry out if I need to add a few whiskers in a different colour. I usually work on a few different areas in this way.
I am also spending alot of time looking at my painting from a distance of 1 metre. By doing this I can see if I have done the shading satisfactorily
and in this way I usually notice areas that stand out - and therefore need to be changed.
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10. Orang utan - whole face.
I have enlarged the nostrils. I have also changed the lips and chin.
This was around 1 hours work.
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11. Orang utan - finished.
After a days rest I have looked with fresh eyes at the painting.
I have built up the width of the face and added more shadows to increase the depth. I also made the mouth darker and put more lowlights on the hair.
The skin on the shoulder has been added along with a colouring of orange hair. The shoulder is painted in for continuity and needs to be here to balance the painting when it is mounted.
I am happy with this beautiful orangutan. She looks rather shy and you can see her loving nature shining thru her glossy gentle eyes.
The eyes really are the window to the soul.
I hope you like my painting too and enjoyed sharing this journey.
If you would like to commission a painting please go to my contact page to get in touch with me.
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