I can't help but use this medium..

 Welcome back! This week, I explored a relatively new medium to me. I was drawn to it because of its matte finish and seemingly great qualities when it comes to opacity and layering. Its also similar to watercolor, which is a medium I am very familiar with and have used for many years. Watercolor is fantastic but sometimes you need something a little more opaque. If you guessed the new medium was gouache, you would be correct.

I first created this small landscape study following a tutorial (Sarah Burns, YouTube). It turned out fairly successful and I liked the overall look and feel to it. Plus- the paper stayed flat with no stretching of the paper needed.

Later in the week, I attempted to make a medium-sized landscape (9 x 12 in.) which depicted a glow-y sunset behind a corn field. I quickly realized that the paint wasn't flowing as much as I liked. I think now that I should have wet the paper a bit first or used paint straight out of the tube, but in any case I abandoned that attempt and decided to paint the scene in acrylics. Right away, I could tell that acrylics would get the job done. I was able to blend the paint better and achieve correct levels of value and color temperature. Below is the finished acrylic painting:

This painting, titled "Sunset Beyond the Field" (9 x 12 in., acrylic on panel), depicts a scene from my family farm in rural Indiana. Some of the best sunsets and intense sky formations happen just after a storm, and in this painting I attempted to capture that intensity. I also love how the groups of wooded areas are layered, showing the flat terrain and sectioned farm land. In the middle ground, the corn field is reacting with the moisture from the rain and producing a thin mist. These are atmospheric effects I would have gotten with gouache but with added precision. 

Thank you for reading this and I hope this gave some insight into my artistic process and journey. 

Until next time, have a great day!

-Katie