The Girl and her Cat - a Watercolor Illustration Series, and some valuable artist encouragement!

Hi everyone! 

After my last post, I am happy to share with you this emerging series about a little girl and her pet cat. This has been so much fun! Even though there isn't a written story behind it, these are inspired by my own childhood that was truly filled with lots of fun adventures with pets. Making time to sit down and paint wasn't always that easy this week though. With kids being done with sickness and going back to kindergarten, then getting sick again, and my husband's dad flying in from the US to spend several days with us, it has really been something.

How has your week been? How much time were able to give to art? Did you post about it anywhere where I could see? Let me know!

Why this series

There were a couple reasons behind this series. 

1. It's easy to paint because it's connected to fun memories. And this girl is the kind of a character that I happen to draw a lot, and even though she doesn't look completely like me when I was a kid, I kind of associate myself with her. Oh, I did give her my eye color! 

2. I haven't done much art in color lately, so this was a great opportunity for that! Also it's like illustrating a children's book (which is a childhood dream of mine) even though it doesn't have the written text behind it. 

3. I really wanted to share something fun with the Paint Party Friday group! (if you haven't heard of it - it's a really fun way to be connected to other artists and cheer each other on! If you are an artist with a blog, why not join?)

The medium

Watercolors became one of my top favorites in the last few years! I used to work with colored pencils a lot more but my time is a lot more limited now, so I love that I can create something of full color in much less time. I love to use a brush and apply color and see how things change in front of my eyes. It did take me a while though to get used to watercolors. I am quite a perfectionist and for a while I was frustrated with watercolors because the first stroke never remained the same, and I didn't have that problem with colored pencils. I mean, whatever you draw is what it will be. But then I accepted the watercolor challenge and realized how much freedom it provides, and how nice it is to let things flow a little differently and be more flexible. The watercolors that I'm using are Koh-i-noor brilliant watercolor. Koh-i-noor is a fantastic art supply brand here in the Czech republic. I grew up with it and I will certainly remain faithful to it. 

Making it personal

I could have probably chosen something more commercial and try to think more sales. I certainly tried that many times in the past. And while it worked and I was selling, it became more overwhelming and much less enjoyable. So I threw that out of the window, and came back to the hobby that art is for me. I don't know how far it will go, but I know my heart and mind is in its calm place, which at this stage of life is the right place. It also shows who I am as an artist more. Not a seller, but an artist. Cause I'm sure you can relate. If you are an artist yourself, you don't need to be selling to remain an artist. You are an artist, because that's who you are. It's really that simple. It's more personal than sales. It's more personal than others' suggestions. It's more personal than others' criticism. It's who you are. And you can take the best of everything that life brings your way, and not suffocate under the world's expectations. When you're an artist, you will hear everything. That's because the value that art has is different for every person. It's different for every artist. For every buyer. For every beholder. And you can't possibly please everyone. And you shouldn't feel that just because someone doesn't find your art beautiful enough or modern enough, that it's not good enough. You are an artist first because art is valuable to YOU. It's just that personal. So let it be that. And do allow yourself to get better! That's good and healthy and everyone should aim to be their better self. But don't give up apples for oranges if you like apples better, ok?

Also, here are the speed painting videos if you care to watch them ;)

Have a great Friday everyone and a wonderful weekend!


Kate