Number 7.
The loon was tricky. I tried to give the black a sheen as well as also looking really black. In sumi-e, after the ink is down, blue is added on top for that sheen effect. White can also be added to pop it out a little more, like on the head.
The background gave me problems at first. The landmass wash didn't turn out so good, but I learned that color is fairly forgiving in that manner. The problem was rectified with a wash of a bolder color to cover up the mistake.
Number 6.
SQUAWK! This seagull's pose is a lot more animated than most of the other birds, but is there really any other appropriate way to portray a seagull? I didn't think so. So much white is tricky. Thin, fine white strokes for feathers, but before that, light layers of brown are added for a little value, because you don't want to put ink shading down where white is going to be, then the white won't stand out as well.
Number 5.
I wanted to portray the eagle in a dynamic pose, in this case swooping down to catch a fish. It's harder to color a large bird like an eagle, because the colors are so dark. In the future, I will spend more time ink shading so it strengthens the color. Also, I messed up the waves on the left-hand side by putting too much. I need to slow down and listen to the image. ;)
Number 4.
More time was probably spent on the flowers than on the birds. Only one plant is detailed so the viewer doesn't lose focus of the birds. I put gold finches and lilacs together because of the complementary colors of yellow and purple. The non-detailed flowers, leaves, and stems are done in the spontaneous style.
Number 3.
I really like how the green washes turned out. This bird was easier to color than the loon since it is smaller. And if you notice on the tree, it has some ink shading underneath the color. The daffodils are done in the spontaneous style.
Here is the 2nd image.
The background trumpet flowers proved to me that silk painting is indeed slightly forgiving. Washing out a mistake with water, or unscented white soap and water, works, and then whatever's left can be covered up by bolder colors. I like how everything turned out, just that the wood stretcher had warped, because that's what wood does, and unfortunately it warped a bit much. The stretchers are only 3/4 inches thick, which makes them more prone to warping, even though they were used within a day or two to stretch silk.
Here is piece number 1 of my Diploma Works, unframed. It is done with sumi-e ink, Japanese color chips, gouache, and tempra paint. It utilizes the fine line and spontaneous stroke styles. The following 13 images are done with the same media and styles, and they're all 11 inches by 17 inches.
Fine line is like drawing, except with ink and brush. As the name suggests, the lines made should be very fine. Spontaneous style is creating a shape with a stroke. The flowers on all of the pieces are done with the spontaneous style. It's quicker but more difficult. This bird has a green color on its wing to give it an iridescent look. Before I added the flower blossoms, I went a little crazy with the branches.
