Watercolors Archives - Bill Fulton Watercolors

The drought is ended

7 Comments / April 25, 2025

My slump is over. I just spent four days at Pacific Northwest Plein Air 2025, a plein air event in Columbia River Gorge. I painted seven watercolors over four days and entered three of them in the exhibition at Maryhill Museum near The Dalles, Oregon. I’m glad to say that my painting skills and enthusiasm returned. My brush is alive again!

My son, Guy, joined me as my driver and support team. He’s been a great companion and lots of help. We’re very fortunate to be able to stay with Katy’s sister, Margo, who lives in Stevenson, WA, in the Gorge.

On Monday, I met with the other artists, about 40 of us, to get our information packets, then we all spread out to paint the Gorge. Guy and I happened to find a scenic meadow underneath a looming mountain, where I made a painting. There was a herd of several dozen goats grazing the pasture. Afterwards I met the owner, who said the property has been in his wife’s family for over 60 years, and their daughter is preparing to take over the operation. Here’s the painting I made:

Afterward we drove to the Portland Women’s Forum Scenic Viewpoint near Trout Lake. From here you can see the iconic view of the Columbia River stretching out to the east. Unfortunately, my painting was too labored and tight.

On Tuesday, I attempted two paintings near Hood River, but both were clunkers. In the evening we attended a potluck with the other artists which was great fun, but I was exhausted afterward.

On Wednesday, I found an abandoned sawmill and made a painting, but the subject was too complicated and I lost my focus. After lunch we found a lovely farm above the Gorge with three red barns at interesting angles. This is a familiar subject for me, and I felt comfortable enough to loosen up, and I was happy with the result. Here it is:

it was late in the afternoon, but I was on a roll, so I painted a farm on Columbia Crest with Mt. Hood in the background. Score! Here it is:

I was happy with these three paintings, so I signed them and put them into the frames that I had brought with me.

On Thursday we drove to The Dalles Mountain Ranch, a historic ranch east of the Dalles that is now a state park. When I tried to paint a hillside of yellow flowers in front of the old ranch buildings, my powers failed me. Too complicated.

Later in the afternoon we drove to Maryhill Museum, the sponsor of the event, and turned in my three paintings along with all the other artists. It was great to visit with them and see some of their beautiful paintings. There are some very good artists here, and it’s quite humbling to be among them.

Friday was a day off, which I badly needed. Tomorrow (Saturday) is the opening reception for the show which will stay up for a month. I’m excited to see all the paintings and talk with the other artists. It’s been a great week!

The drought is ended Read More »

In a slump

13 Comments / April 3, 2025

I’ve been in a slump since I returned from the Eric Wiegardt workshop a couple of weeks ago. My brush seems to have died. Nothing I paint seems any good to me, and I’m discouraged. My paintings look clumsy and awkward. I’ve lost my confidence.

I’m not sure why I’m in such a low place. Maybe it’s just part of the ups and downs of the creative process. Or maybe the workshop raised my expectations too high. Maybe I need a break from painting, although I don’t feel burned out. Possibly it’s my anxiety about an upcoming plein air competition in the Columbia RIver Gorge. Or it may be, as Eric suggested, that I’m going through a change in my painting style that will take some time to result in better paintings.

I’m grateful that I have a good support system. Katy has given me lots of support and encouragement, and Eric even called me to offer moral support and suggestions. And I appreciate your support, too! I plan to keep plugging away, believing that this, too, shall pass.

In a slump Read More »

Learning from the Master

2 Comments / March 20, 2025

“Paint your mid-tones first, combining shapes and mixing colors. Then add your darks and lastly your lights.”

“Paint big shapes to catch the viewer’s eye, with no more than five values.”

“Catch the viewer’s eye at a distance, Lead the eye throughout the painting, and bring the eye to the area of dominance and hold it there as long as possible.”

Those are some of the things I learned last week when I attended a four-day workshop with Eric Wiegardt, my watercolor teacher, in Long Beach, WA. Each morning we watched Eric paint a demo painting, and then we tried to paint it ourselves. After a lunch break, we repeated this sequence.

It was an intense four days, but I think all eight of us students learned a lot. We also went out to lunch and dinner together several times, and enjoyed our time together. Everyone was very supportive. Eric’s a very good teacher, patiently repeating the fundamentals so we could grasp them.

I used the workshop to experiment with new techniques and subjects, and take some risks I don’t usually take. Here are some paintings I made in the workshop, in addition to the vase of roses above.

Learning from the Master Read More »

A painting retreat

10 Comments / February 23, 2025

The hall at Samish Island Retreat Center

Last week I spent three days at a painting retreat with about 30 members of Northwest Watercolor Society (NWWS). We were hosted at Samish Island Campground and Retreat Center, a church camp.

Three days of uninterrupted painting with other watercolor painters is a painter’s dream. We didn’t have to cook, clean, or be distracted by the myriad everyday tasks of home. All we had to do was paint.

I set up my mini-studio at a table next to other painters and made about a dozen paintings. I was especially stimulated seeing the paintings of my fellow artists, and learning from them. For some reason, I felt freed up to experiment with new approaches to painting. When I finished a painting, I taped it up on the wall alongside the paintings of others. The wall was filled with all manner of watercolors, a delight for the eyes. Everyone was very kind and supportive.

A painting retreat Read More »

Painting portraits

4 Comments / February 6, 2025

There’s snow on the ground, and my art studio is warm and cozy, so I’ve been staying inside and concentrating on painting portraits. I’ve been inspired by the book Painting Portraits in Watercolor by Charles Reid. In his book he lays out in detail his method of painting portraits. I’ve read and re-read the book, and painted all the exercises and examples, many of them more than once.

Reid lays each stroke of paint very deliberately, then softens the edges to make it blend smoothly. He likes to have half the edges in every portrait be soft edges (where one color blends into another without a hard edge). I’d like to paint like Charles Reid.

I find most of my subjects from an app called Sktchy. In this app, users upload photos of themselves, then everyone is invited to paint or draw a portrait from that photo, and upload that to the app. There are literally thousands of photos to choose from.

I’ve painted about 40 portraits in recent weeks. Here are some of the better ones. Click on an image to see the slideshow.

Painting portraits Read More »

Watery clouds and backlit trees

3 Comments / January 26, 2025

When you drive to Port Townsend, you pass through Beaver Valley, a long grassy swale bordered by forests of Douglas-fir trees. It’s dotted with barns and farmhouses, many of which make great watercolor subjects.

I like the dark trees in this painting, backlit by the low winter sun. The clouds came out nice and watery, and the road shows the reflected light from the sky. The mass of trees on the left have good mixed colors, but I wish I had done the same for the other two clumps of trees. All in all, a good effort.

Watery clouds and backlit trees Read More »

Looking back on 2024

2 Comments / January 15, 2025

Looking back, I can see two things that helped me advance as an artist in 2024:

One was a plein air workshop in July with my teacher Eric Wiegardt. Watching him paint, listening to his commentary as he painted, and being present in the moment were huge factors for me. When I look back on my paintings, I see a big difference before and after the workshop. He helped me become more confident in starting a painting, more bold with my brushwork, and more aware of design.

The second thing was my dedication to plein air painting in the later part of the year. From August through November, I made 12-15 plein air paintings a month — that’s about 3 or 4 a week. There’s something about being on location that I find very stimulating. The scene before me comes alive as I make a sketch and begin painting.

My artist friends and supporters help me immensely. I post my work on the Facebook page for Eric Wiegardt’s students, and get feedback every time. That’s so rewarding and encouraging. Commenters on my blog and Facebook posts are also great motivations for me. My friends at Poulsbo Artist League and my life drawing group are likewise encouraging, and of course Katy and Guy are my daily support group.

There were several things that were less helpful in 2024. I took three online workshops, but I didn’t really connect with the teaching and the material. I think in-person workshops are more effective for me. In 2024 I had three commissions to paint churches. I spent an inordinate amount of time on these commissions, and the pressure I felt to produce good paintings made it an anxiety-wracked experience. I don’t plan to do that again!

Among the highlights of the year were selling three paintings at the Whidbey Plein Air Festival, offering a portrait demonstration at Poulsbo Artist League, and being accepted into the 2025 Pacific Northwest Plein Air competition.

My plans for 2025 include an in-person workshop with Eric Wiegardt; plein air competitions in the Columbia River Gorge, Whidbey Island, and Moscow, Idaho; and lots of plein air painting on my own and with friends at Plein Air Washington Artists and the Northwest Watercolor Society.

Here’s to a good year of painting watercolors!

Looking back on 2024 Read More »

The Egg and I Farm

8 Comments / January 13, 2025

In 1945, Betty McDonald wrote a very popular book called “The Egg and I,” based on her life on a chicken farm near Port Townsend. In the book, she describes her neighbors quite colorfully, which they did not appreciate once they found out about the book. Lawsuits followed and snarled the book in controversy for decades. The name of the book lives on in Port Townsend businesses such as a bar named “The Keg and I”.

There’s actually a road called “The Egg and I Road,” and a farm named “The Egg and I Farm.” It’s nestled below a line of trees with pastures below, quite a lovely scene. I took a photo of the farm and made series of paintings from it. This is painting number seven.

For the trees I tried a new combination of colors. I started with a red and a blue (alizarin crimson and ultramarine blue), then added a yellow (transparent gold) to bring out the green of the foliage. I think the overall effect is good. The mist behind the buildings was unintentional, but I like the atmosphere it provides.

Here are some of my previous attempts. Click on an image to see the slide show.

The Egg and I Farm Read More »

“You are accepted”

December 23, 2024

I’m happy to say that I’ve been accepted into the 2025 Pacific Northwest Plein Air event in the Columbia River Gorge April 21-26, 2025. This is my third time to apply to this event, and my first time to be accepted.

I’ll be joining about forty other painters in Hood River, Oregon, for the opening get-together. From there, we’ll spread out to paint anywhere in the Columbia River Gorge. It’s a great honor to be selected, and I’ll be painting alongside some excellent painters. I’ll have to be on my game!

As more and more people take up plein air painting, there are increasing numbers of plein air festivals like this one. Typically, a small number of artists are selected on the basis of the plein air paintings they submit in their application. On the first day of the festival, each artist gets their papers or canvases stamped on the back, as a way of certifying that their work has been done in the time period allowed.

Usually artists are given four or five days to produce their paintings. On the last day, artists bring their framed paintings to a gallery where they’re hung for an exhibition. The judge selects the award-winning paintings, and a reception is held for the public. Often these are gala affairs with wine, refreshments, and lots of people, including collectors. Paintings are sold!

Here’s a link to the event.

“You are accepted” Read More »

Try, try again

5 Comments / December 12, 2024

Sometimes I paint a subject several times in an attempt to improve my painting skills. If the subject is interesting, I try to find a way to improve the composition in the subsequent paintings. Maybe I can sharpen the center of interest or move things around to make the painting more balanced. As I paint the subject a second or third time, I feel more confident in my choice of colors and I try to improve my brush work, especially by creating soft edges and blended colors. Although subsequent paintings aren’t necessarily better, I think I learn something through the series of paintings.

I first painted this farm near Kingston on location, and since then I’ve taken several more stabs at it to improve my painting. See what you think.

My original plein air painting, 11 x 15 inches. A little rough

My first studio version of the plein air painting. You can see how I changed the composition by omitting the sheds to the left. 11 x 15 inches.

A second studio version, 11 x 15 inches. I like the crisp edges of the barn that draw the eye to it as the center of interest, but the background line of trees is too sharp. Also I feel there’s too great a contrast between the dark green pasture and the bright sky. The pasture should be lighter, or the sky should be darker.

I made this small painting for our annual Christmas painting exchange at Poulsbo Artists League. 5 x 7 inches. I like the softness of the barn, the pasture, and the background trees that melt into the clouds, but that line of dark trees going down to the right needs to have a softer outline.

My latest version. 7 x 11 inches. I like the softness of the barn, the cows, and the background trees, but, again, that line of trees going down to the right is too hard-edged.

Try, try again Read More »