A New Technique in Watercolors: Rabbit Test and Iris Study

Rabbit Study with Gouache/ watercolor/ 14 x 9.25/

This is the first painting working on a new watercolor application. Using opaque watercolors and gouache, the background is dulled back. This effect is less obvious with the orange but easier to see with the grey brown in this painting.
My purpose in working on this technique is to explore painting a lit flower against a dulled background. My hope is that this will add "glow" to the transparent colors of the flower.

Iris Study with Gouache/ watercolor/ 9.25 x 14/

Here is the first painting using this idea. This allows for an abstracted background and makes the flower really glow...

Irises #1

Irises #1/ oil on canvas board/ 10 x 8/

The irises in my garden are on the last few days for this year. They have been beautiful and until just the past couple of days the weather has been wonderful to photograph them. I am working on supercargo watercolors and experimenting with more impressionistic oils.
Here is the first of this series in oil.
The darks are rich transparent colors including quinacridone rose, magenta and dioxazine purple.

Here is the latest one to bloom. Beautiful!!