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| Peony Row Watercolor on Yupo 11 x 15 |
As we were using Yupo in class, I recalled just one other time, many years previously, that I had used the stuff. The memory was crisp....sitting the warm sun on my patio and tackling the peony row there....on Yupo. I remember the frustration of the meandering paint, the frustration of not being able to layer. These days I am, hopefully, more accepting of such challenges. After some looking, I came upon that older work "Peony Row". At the time, I was still taking the best work to a professional to be photographed and, apparently, I didn't feel that my peony painting was worthy. Pulling it out, after all these years helped me to see that it was better than I had thought.
One quick swipe of a wet brush on Yupo takes the stroke back to the white surface...well, almost. I found that I really did appreciate the colorful residue left behind on these strokes. Very sublime.
Putting away questionable paintings is a good trick. Several years later, I am able to make a better judgement regarding its success. Sometimes, I am quite aware that the painting really does suck. And, surprisingly, sometimes the work is better than the image of it that dwells in my subconscious. That was the case here. A work that had fallen between the cracks has redeemed itself to me. Let's not be too hasty to judge.
