KAREN’S TOP TIP
“Cheaper brushes can be better when it comes to creating different textures in watercolour
Karen Mai The magic of a still life is it can reveal new ways of looking at ordinary objects. Cue the work of Hong Kong-based watercolourist Karen Mai, whose recent painting In the Sun was selected for this year’s Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours’ Exhibition.
Intelligently plotted marks in luscious orange hues bring to life the juicy, plump, good-enough-to-eat clementine segments, while subtle strokes hint at the texture of the shadowy inner peel. It’s a painting that forces us to re-evaluate the beauty of a subject usually destined for consumption or, in the case of the peel, the rubbish bin.
However, elevating the everyday is not Karen’s only aim. “Still life is usually not considered the most difficult [subject],” she says, “but they’re actually difficult to do well… I think it’s a very good subject for you to challenge yourself and experiment with new ways of doing things,”
From architecture, interiors and industrial scenes to landscapes, gardens and figures, Karen’s rich array of subjects proves her versality. Becoming something of a signature, however, is her clever incorporation of the white of the paper into the composition.
Denne historien er fra August 2021-utgaven av Artists & Illustrators.
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Denne historien er fra August 2021-utgaven av Artists & Illustrators.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Still life IN 3 HOURS
Former BP Portrait Award runner-up FELICIA FORTE guides you through a simple, structured approach to painting alla prima that tackles dark, average and light colours in turn
Movement in composition
Through an analysis of three masterworks, landscape painter and noted author MITCHELL ALBALA shows how you can animate landscape composition with movement
Shane Berkery
The Irish-Japanese artist talks to REBECCA BRADBURY about the innovative concepts and original colour combinations he brings to his figurative oil paintings from his Dublin garden studio
The Working Artist
Something old, something new... Our columnist LAURA BOSWELL has expert advice for balancing fresh ideas with completing half-finished work
Washes AND GLAZES
Art Academy’s ROB PEPPER introduces an in-depth guide to incorporating various techniques into your next masterpiece. Artwork by STAN MILLER, CHRIS ROBINSON and MICHELE ILLING
Hands
LAURA SMITH continues her new four-part series, which encourages you to draw elements of old master paintings, and this month’s focus is on capturing hands
Vincent van Gogh
To celebrate The Courtauld’s forthcoming landmark display of the troubled Dutch master’s self-portraits, STEVE PILL looks at the stories behind 10 of the most dramatic works on display
BRING THE drama
Join international watercolour maestro ALVARO CASTAGNET in London’s West End to paint a dramatic street scene
Serena Rowe
The Scottish painter tells STEVE PILL why time is precious, why emotional responses to colour are useful, and how she finds focus every day with the help of her studio wall
Bill Jacklin
Chatting over Zoom as he recovers from appendicitis, the Royal Academician tells STEVE PILL about classic scrapes in New York and his recent experiments with illustration