Painting a Glowing Rose: My 30-Minute Negative Watercolor Adventure 🌹

Hey there, fellow artists!

I'm Valerie Englehart, and I want to share something special with you today – a spontaneous watercolor painting session that turned into one of my favorite pieces. Picture this: I had exactly 30 minutes before picking up my daughter, and instead of scrolling through my phone, I decided to grab my brushes and try something completely different from my usual style.

The Setup: Working with Wet Paper and Limited Time

I pulled out my trusty Arches 9x12 140-pound cold press watercolor paper and did something I don't often do – I wet both the front and back. This technique keeps the paper saturated longer, giving you those dreamy, soft diffusions that make watercolor so magical.

Here's a pro tip I learned the hard way: when working on wet paper, you don't want puddles. Think "nicely saturated" rather than "actual lake on your paper." I placed my paper on a fabric cutting mat because it doesn't absorb water, helping keep the back wet throughout the process.

Color Choice: Why Quinacridone Pigments Are Perfect for This Technique

For this piece, I used M Graham's quinacridone color set – quinacridone gold, quinacridone rose, quinacridone red, quinacridone rust, and quinacridone violet. These pigments are highly staining, which might sound intimidating, but it's actually perfect for negative painting.

Since I was painting a yellow and pink rose, I started with the lightest values – the quinacridone gold and rose – letting the flower be the star of the show. The darker colors became my supporting cast in the background.

The Brush Switch: From Mop to Flat

I started with a mop brush but quickly switched to a flat brush, and here's why: the carving nature of a flat brush is incredible when dealing with rose petals, especially in negative painting. Plus, since my paper was already quite wet, the mop brush held too much water and would have made the pigment spread more than I wanted.

Negative Painting: It's All About What You Don't Paint

Working in negative space means you're essentially painting around your subject rather than painting the subject itself. It's like sculpting with paint – you're revealing the rose by defining everything around it. This technique really gets your artistic brain working in a completely different way!

The Challenge: When Your Rose Takes Over

Here's where things got interesting – I made my rose too big for the composition I had planned. On a 9x12 paper (which is actually small for me since I love painting big), there wasn't much room left for background elements. But you know what? This wasn't a serious piece; it was me having fun and experimenting.

Knowing Your Pigments: The Key to Success

One of the biggest lessons from this painting involves understanding your materials. There were moments when I tried to lift some paint – a technique I love using – but quinacridone pigments don't lift easily once they're down. In another situation, this might be frustrating, but here it actually worked in my favor. If I'd used pigments that lifted too easily, I might have ended up frustrated while creating those delicate petals.

This is why I always tell artists: know your pigments! Sometimes the only way to learn is by experimenting and having fun.

The Art of Restraint: Knowing When to Stop

There's a moment in every painting where you hit what I call the "fiddling point." You'll see me hover my brush over the paper, pretending to make a stroke but not actually putting it down. I'm asking myself: "Will this mark add to my piece or distract from it?"

This is crucial because once you start fiddling too much, you enter dangerous territory. One area becomes overworked, then you feel compelled to add more marks elsewhere, and suddenly something that was perfectly fine becomes overworked.

Adding Texture: The Back-of-the-Brush Technique

Near the end, I used the back of my brush to add leaf veins. This technique mars the paper slightly, lifting some pigment while creating dark lines where pigment seeps into the damaged fibers. It does damage the paper, but if you're confident in your stroke, it creates beautiful textural effects.

The Result: A "Spicy" Rose

When I finished, I was thrilled with how it turned out. My sister saw it and described the rose as "spicy," which became my new favorite descriptor for this piece. It perfectly captures the bold, vibrant energy of working quickly and intuitively.

Lessons Learned and Future Plans

If I were to paint this rose again, I'd definitely make it smaller to give myself more background opportunities. But that's the beauty of experimental pieces – they teach you something new every time.

Even though this isn't my "signature style," who cares? I wanted to have fun and do something to energize me in those last precious minutes of my day. Sometimes stepping outside our comfort zones leads to the most delightful discoveries.

Your Turn to Experiment

I encourage you to try negative painting techniques in your own work. Grab some quinacridone pigments if you can – their staining properties make them perfect for this style. And remember, you don't need hours to create something beautiful. Sometimes 30 minutes and a willingness to play is all you need.

Until next time, keep painting and stay curious!