GUEST DOODLEWASH: A Combination Of Planning And Intuition

Hi, my name is Dalibor Popović Mikša (follow me on Facebook!), and I’m from Belgrade, Serbia. The medium I’ve used for the last 5 years is watercolor, but besides that, I use pencil, acrylic and wire-installations.

I graduated from the Academy of Art University of Banja Luka. A couple of years ago, I saw on the Internet watercolors done by Andrew Wyeth, Alvaro Castagnet and Joseph Zbukvic and under their influence I entered into the world of watercolor. From that moment, watercolor painting influenced my approach in other painting technique (mist, detail omission, connecting shapes, etc.)

LIGHT AND CONNECTING SHAPES

The light is probably the main theme of all my works. Considering that I prefer to paint in studio using photographs, instead of plein air painting, I developed the ability to recognize the right photography with expressed contrast of light and shadow.

This contrast could be strong and sharp or soft and discreet. In both cases it is important to paint connecting shapes before drying, because it is the good and easy way of making atmosphere in watercolor.

DRAWING AND GEOMETRY

The base of all of my paintings in watercolor or any other technique is a solid drawing which dictates the composition and dynamics of a painting.

One of the reasons I mainly choose urban landscapes is the strong presence of geometry and straight lines, as well as the contrast the lines make to irregularly shaped objects. I also like to emphasise tram overhead lines and other electrical installations that can be seen in the streets. Playing with lines is an important part of my watercolor paintings.

COLOR

The palette of colors in my watercolor paintings is generally dim and mostly comprised of various shades of grey with a tendency towards warmer or cooler nuances.

I often get those shades of grey from burnt sienna and ultramarine. As opposed to darkness, brightly colored accents appear on pedestrians, traffic lights, advertisements etc.

MATERIALS

I use Hahnemühle 300g watercolor cotton paper.  My watercolors are Schmincke Horadam and I use Escoda brushes.

UNFINISHED PAINTING

Except light, the basic idea of my expression is the unfinished part of the picture – the contrast between hyperrealism and total lack of details. The biggest challenge is finding a best way to do that, and recognize the moment to stop painting.

It is especially hard to achieve in watercolor because it does not allow mistakes. So, I try to plan in advanced but at the same time to let my intuition guide me.

I would like to say thanks to Charlie for featuring me and to support his idea to create dooodlewash.com.

Greetings from Belgrade

Dalibor Popović Mikša
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Charlie O'Shields

Creator of Doodlewash, founder of World Watercolor Month (July), World Watercolor Group, and host of the Sketching Stuff Podcast. Sharing watercolor illustrations and stories while proudly featuring talented artists from all over the world!

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