Limestone Rocks and cliffs ( Vietnam )

“Watercolor condenses time and consolidates experience.” Frank Marcello

 While at Cam Pha sea port during his last voyage, my husband got to witness the beautiful prehistoric “Limestone Rocks”, it’s reflections and the sudden ripple in the waves caused by a passing vessel. His cargo ship had arrived there at inner anchorage for loading cargo for the next destination. He sent me a few photographs of these stunning rocks and cliffs, which dotted the sea all around and I used them as a reference to create the two water colour paintings as below. 

As mentioned in my earlier posts, I have got pretty much used to working on Chitrapat handmade paper and have taken a strong liking to it. My technique involves working wet on wet and this paper holds a lot of water and stays wet for a longer time. It’s acid free and is made of 100% cotton fibre. It works good for me. I purchase Chitrapat paper from maxa-enterprises ( online store at Pune ), however there a lot many online stores today who sell the same paper so it’s great that one can easily order it online.

Limestone Rocks at Cam Pha Sea Port

A water colour painting on Chitrapat handmade paper 

Size 5” X 7”

Wave Ripples

A water colour painting on Chitrapat handmade paper 

Size 5” X 7”

For most of my watercolor paintings, I use a mix of Winsor and Newton and Camlin Artist watercolor tubes. They are both good in their own ways. If you are a beginner, I would personally recommend Camlin tubes as it is very economical and has great quality too. Given below are my two palettes which I use for both these brands. I like the Majello palette for its large working space instead of having small wells.

Mijello Palette ( Winsor and Newton watercolors )

Mijello Palette ( Closed )

Palette with Camlin Artist’s water color tubes

Follow my latest works and techniques on INSTAGRAM and if you are interested in attending my online demo workshop send me a mail at manjupanchal5@gmail.com and I shall get back to you with details about the same.

At Benaulim beach, Goa

"Inspiration comes of working everyday."Charles Boudelaire

Today's post is a small 5"X 7"study work of a scene that I came across while I was at Benaulim beach, Goa some years back. It was this wild clustered growth of  foliage and dry thin branches against the backdrop of the vast ocean that attracted my attention. Another reason was probably I wanted to put my Winsor and Newton Cotman series, rigger brush to use.

Painting greens and foliage is always a challenge and painting such scenes from nature teaches you a lot. Rigger brush was of great help towards the end to pull out the tiniest of random branches which would have otherwise been difficult with the other brushes. I am loving the rigger brush and will write a detailed review about it soon.

At the beach

Water colour painting on handmade paper

Size 5” X 7”

Hand made paper is great for wet on wet technique and is pretty economical too. I am using Petals hand made paper which is easily available in art stationery stores in Mumbai. I would have preferred using the cold pressed or Matt version but unfortunately, it is not easily available so I settled for the rough textured one.

Petals hand made paper

If you are into water colour paintings, I would love to know about the papers that you use. Do leave in a comment.

Thank you for visiting my blog and browsing through my works. It means a lot to me. 

Follow my latest works and techniques on INSTAGRAM and if you love my works and they inspire you, share them with your friends.

My upcoming workshop :

Charcoal drawing and sketching workshop - 26th of January, 2018.

Timings 10 to 1 pm. ( Only six participants )

Painting a beach scene in water colour medium

"You only fail when you stop trying." Albert Einstein. A very meaningful quote by Einstein.

When I paint, I just paint. I do not think about failure or success. To me the journey of painting is more important rather than the final outcome. It's a day today routine. To paint, to try out something new. If it does not work, then I plan out an alternate technique to get the desired result. End of the day it makes me happy that I tried out rather than just sitting over it.

Given below is a Simple beach composition which I tried out on Arto Campap watercolour paper using the water colour medium. I created this work using one of my photographs from Langkawi, Malaysia.

I am quite happy with this paper but unless I create a few more works I will really not be convinced about using it for long term in the future. So the plan is to keep on painting different subjects to understand more about the different features of the paper and get accustomed to it. I am also in the process of checking out the Fabriano Artistico Cold pressed paper which

Morning at the beach

Water colour painting on Arto Campap paper

Size 5" X 7"

"Seashore" as a subject appeals to me a lot and I don't think I will ever get tired or bored of painting beaches. CLICK HERE to view one of my favourite beaches that I have painted in the soft pastel medium. I will get back to soft pastels but after a little while. As of now I want to continue my water colour painting adventure.

I post my paintings on INSTAGRAM and if you like my paintings please follow and share.

Thank you for all your support.

Rocky cliffs and reflections at Phi Phi Leh - A soft pastel painting

A soft pastel painting

Phi Phi Leh is nothing short of a paradise. It is a small island close to Phuket in Thailand. The island consists of a ring of steep limestone cliffs surrounding two shallow bays, Maya bay and Loh Samah.

The view out there is stunning and I have already created a few pastel paintings earlier in an attempt to capture the beauty of this heavenly place on paper. The vertical limestone cliffs, the blue waters of the ocean, the reflections and the glittering light at the tip of the waves, all added to the drama in the painting. The colours in the cliff were a mix of warm and blue shades creating a perfect harmony.

I created a thumbnail sketch for this particular scene in the month of June and was waiting to recreate a larger version of this work. It was an interesting composition and the vibrant colours in the scene helped to cheer up the mood. The pastels that I used for this particular artwork are mainly from Koh-I-Noor brand. They are soft and go well on textured surface.

The cliffs and reflections

Soft pastel painting on Fabriano Tiziano paper

Size 5.5" X 7.5"

For my soft pastel paintings I have more or less settled for Canson Mi Teintes and Fabriano Tiziano paper. Both work good for my technique and style. In future I wish to try out some sanded papers which are presently not available at the art stores near my place. 

Sanded papers can take in multiple layers of pastels without the need to add any fixatives on it. For my kind of work I normally finish my work in two layers and do not feel the need to add fixative if the art work is small in size. If the size is anything bigger than 7" X 9" then I normally spray the Winsor and Newton fixative after the first layer.

Ending the post with another of my favourite quotes

" I begin with an idea and then it becomes something else."  Pablo Picasso

A seashore at Bamboo island ( Thailand )

"Nature holds the key to our aesthetic, intellectual, cognitive and even spiritual satisfaction." 
By E. O. Wilson

The white sandy pristine beaches of Bamboo island ( Thailand ) are a very inspiring subject to me.
I visited this beautiful place quite recently during out Phi Phi Leh tour. I want to paint a whole series on these calm and serene beaches. The soft pastel painting below is created on an orange coloured Canson Mi Teintes paper. I selected this particular photograph for its sky, the tall trees on the right and the colours of the sea.

I edited the photograph using the Aviary App as I wanted the composition to be right. One third land and two third sky. While photographing a scene that appeals to me, I take care of the composition but many a times it is not possible as there is not enough time to focus and adjust the various parameters. Hence the next best option is to click and later edit it. The beach was overcrowded but I decided to go ahead with my art without the figures. Will add them in my later works.

Every subject that I select to paint has something new to offer, a different sky, a different perspective, the colours, the atmosphere.This brings about a little change in my normal routine technique and at
times I am forced to do things beyond my comfort zone. I find it exciting. I have also shortlisted a
few works with rocks at the seashore which I will be doing soon.

The Calm waters

Soft pastel painting on Canson Mi Teintes paper.

Size 5" X 7"

Pastels are a great medium to work with and I am truly enjoying working with them. Presently

I am a lot into Canson Mi Teintes paper but some day I would love to try the sanded papers 

which can taken in more than two layers. Some very popular ones are UART and Wallis sanded

papers. To know more about different pastel products one can visit Dakota Pastels which deals mainly with pastel products. 

The Limestone cliffs of Phi Phi Leh

The plan was to complete my soft pastel painting of "Niagara Falls" which I started a few days

back. However I changed my decision as I felt I needed a little more "Analyzing and Planning"

in order to handle certain elements in the painting.

Therefore I went ahead and completed another of my "Phi Phi Leh" series art work. I 

encountered this scene while touring the island in the Long Tail Boat. At one particular turn,

this scene was so amazingly beautiful that I immediately captured it on my mobile. 

The image quality on the mobile did not have much clarity but since I was there and had seen and 

observed it all, I applied my own interpretation and creativity to recreate this scene on Canson Mi 

Teintes paper. The sparkling aquamarine waters and the tall limestone cliffs added so much

beauty to the atmosphere.

The Limestone Cliffs

Soft Pastel painting on Canson paper

Size 6.5" X 8.5"

Before I started the above painting I created a small "Thumbnail sketch" Canson paper.

A thumbnail sketch works like a guideline to help me follow a particular colour pattern, 

the composition, form and shape etc. I do make changes as and when necessary. Creating a 

"Study work" before proceeding with the actual artwork has now become a habit with me and

it helps a lot as I rarely have to discard a painting midway.

Thumbnail sketch

Size 3.5" X 4.5"

Ending with some beautiful words on nature, 

"I felt my lungs inflate with the onrush of scenery - air, mountain, trees, people. I thought,
"This is what is to be happy."  Sylvia Plath. The Bell Jar       Courtesy buzzfeed.com

I get inspired by beautifully written quotes and thoughts so I share them on the blog. Some days
we are all self motivated and on other days we look for inspiration.

I am conducting a two days workshop in charcoal as well as soft pastel medium in the last week
of this month ie June 2016. To read more about it CLICK HERE.

The crystal clear waters at Phi Phi Leh

The more I travel, the more I get inspired to paint some beautiful moments spent in
nature. Sharing a small poem that I came across recently,

On Nature 

" There is a pleasure in the pathless woods,
   There is a rapture on the lonely shore,
   There is society, where none intrudes,
   By the deep sea, and music in its roar,
   I love not the man less, but Nature more."

   By George Gordon Byron

Nature has so much to offer to us humans. We in return can appreciate and value the
wealth of treasure and take care of it by saving the environment from deterioration.

Continuing with my soft pastels, I completed my third painting in the "Phi Phi Leh" series
and I still have a long list to go. The soft pastel painting below is yet another magnificent
view that we got to see while we were on our tour around Phi Phi Leh island in the Long
tail boat. I have used colours as per my perception and interpretation of the scene.

Harmony

Soft pastel painting on Canson Mi Teintes paper

Size 6.5" X  8.5"

Every tourist who comes to Phi Phi islands pays 20 Baht towards waste management.
There are more than one thousand tourists coming to Phi Phi islands every day and we
were glad to see the place ( Phi Phi Don ) clean and well maintained.

I take art workshops from time to time in different mediums. If you are passionate about
art and are interested in learning the basics of Charcoal or Soft Pastel please mail me
at manjupanchal@hotmail.com and I will get back to you.

Thanks for browsing my artwork.

Phi Phi Leh island - A paradise on Earth

My second painting in "Phi Phi Leh" series just got completed. This painting is a cropped up
scene from a bigger photograph wherein the entire island could be seen as a big boulder
emerging from the ocean. My mobile photograph is not too clear, hence I am posting an image Courtesy :  travelblog.org ( This site refers to the island as Paradise lost and found and I totally
agree with it )

Approaching Phi Phi Leh

Photo courtesy: Travelblog

We started out tour at around 11 am in the morning from Phi Phi Don in the Long Tail boat.
The next six hours were spent in admiration of the island, the cliffs, the crystal clear waters.
It was a visual treat. What I saw as an artist was a perfect harmony of colours in Nature.

The vertical limestone cliffs at Phi Phi Leh have a wide range of colours. As per my observation
and interpretation I have used the shades of blue, violet, green and brown. The crevices and
fissures have been painted with very dark colours. I have painted the distant cliffs in  much
lighter values to add atmospheric depth. There are sparkles of light on the water surface
which I have painted with a very pale shade of pink.

The Approach to Phi Phi Leh

Soft Pastel painting on Canson Mi Teintes paper

Size 6"X 8"

These days I try and use more of my KOH-I-NOOR soft pastels as they are soft, and work

well on Canson Mi Teintes paper. I have used fixative only for the first layer. The second layer is

normally the final layer for me and Canson paper cannot take more than two layers of paint.

To know more about these island and to view photographs taken by tourists 

one can visit TRIPADVISOR.

My next soft pastel painting in progress is of my favourite scene from Himachal,

ie Dhankar Monastery in Spiti Valley. This painting has been long due

but for some reason I never got to start it. Now that I am already into

painting mountain scenes, I decided to start off with this too.

Adding colours to a Seascape ( Langkawi island )

The pastel painting below is created with reference to my photograph taken at  Langkawi 
( Malaysia ). All my recent works of beaches have been created on Twilight paper by Canson. 

I decided on this reference photograph as it gave me the opportunity to work on the background trees and forest, wherein I have not created any sharp edges and the details too are subdued. I have added darker and more saturated colours in the foreground tree which is casting its shadow on the sand.

Morning at the beach

Soft pastel painting on Canson paper

Size 6" x 8