My name is Jane Blundell, and I live in Sydney, Australia. I am an artist, teacher and urban sketcher with a passion for watercolour and I enjoy capturing and interpreting my world in line and colour.
I’ve been drawing, sketching, painting and playing with colour since I was a child. My first plein air sketch was while visiting an elderly aunt in a nursing home when I was 11. I had my sketchbook and pencil with me and drew the ducks on a pond outside – I don’t have that sketchbook anymore but I can still remember it – that’s the power of sketching on location, and why I still do it today. You create indelible memories. Many of my sketches are just for me. They are not intended for sale and may not be used for subsequent larger scale paintings.
My sketchbook is my play zone. I create colour charts, colour wheels and other explorations in some sketchbooks, many of which I have shared on my website. Some I use to do teaching demonstrations. Others I use for watercolour studies on location, like this one at the property of Arthur Boyd, one of Australia’s best loved artists. It was gorgeous to sit at this spot, with the golden water lapping up to the little beach, and draw rocks I knew from Boyd’s many paintings of them.
I have painted in watercolour since I bought my first little set as a teenager. I loved the ease of getting colour onto the paper with a damp brush, and the neatness compared with the acrylics I had been using. I felt watercolour was a language I understood and have been exploring it ever since.
Watercolour can be used to colour ink sketches, pencil drawings, etchings, or alone. It is portable and fast to set up and clean up – perfect for travel. I have kept travel journals and sketchbooks for 40 years and carry a very compact sketching kit with me all the time. Here’s my larger kit (shown at the top of this post), drawn and painted life-sized in pencil and watercolour in an A4 sketchbook. As I am a realist, I loved doing this study and trying to capture the look of the different materials including wood, metal, plastic and paint.
I usually start with a light pencil layout. I check proportions then work with ink or watercolour depending what I am aiming for. In the Botanical painting ‘Waratah,’ I didn’t want any of the pencil lines to be visible so ‘drew’ the details in a very light watercolour rather than in pencil. This is painted from the live flower, though double life size. I did colour studies while the flower was fresh so I had accurate references as it started to darken and curl up.
Mushrooms are a study I love to give to my students. Very few colours are needed but they are a delight to draw and paint. This uses some of my favourite colours – Daniel Smith Buff titanium and raw umber, with a bit of Jane’s Grey for the shadows. It was a demonstration sketch in one of my sketchbooks.
I paint from life while I am travelling, but I also take a photo as it is not always possible to finish the sketch on location – it may rain or you just may not have the time. This was started on a gorgeous afternoon in Seattle, after a day of teaching. We sketched until the light faded. I enjoyed playing with some very granulating colours to create the look of the rusted metal. I don’t know why I am so drawn to rusty metal and peeling paint, but finding the beauty in ‘ugly’ subjects appeals to me. I had to finish this sketch off from a photo though, once I returned home. Where possible I complete the sketches on location but having a backup photo is essential.
Working on location can sometimes take a lot of time. This one was started with the bottom section. A year later, I returned to Singapore and painted in the top section! It is drawn in pen with watercolour over the top.
I’ve had some great experiences travelling and teaching in various places all over the world. I’m looking forward to teaching my 5-day Watercolour bootcamp in Bathurst (Australia) and then again in Bath (UK) in July. Then I’ll be off to the Urban Sketchers’ Symposium in Manchester to run a workshop on mixing the exact colour you want when urban sketching – ‘Watercolour your world one mix at a time’.
Hopefully I’ll get to the US and Canada again this year and Spain and France are on the cards. Wherever I am, I find a sketchbook is a terrific travel companion to help me to capture the world around me in line and colour.
Jane Blundell
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Dear Jane, your water color illustration are magical and exquisite. Thank you for sharing your artwork and a bit of your life. Thank you Charlie.
So pleased you liked Jane’s feature, Sharon! 😃
Thank you Sharon. Charlie treats his guests very nicely so it’s a pleasure to appear here 🙂
Thanks so much Jane! 😃
I love all your work. Your color studies have been such a tremendous help.
I agree! Jane’s studies are awesome! Thanks Teri!
Thank you Teri – good to know.
Thank you Charlie for featuring Jane Blundell. Jane is a wonderful online teacher. Her workshop “Mastering Watercolor” is a self paced course covering all aspects of watercolor painting. Her website and blog is invaluable to anyone working in watercolor. I am a fan!
I’m a fan as well! So nice to feature Jane here…thanks Carmel! 😃
Oh I do like these!
I’m so glad, Kim! Beautiful work, isn’t it? Jane is wonderful!
Jane your work is absolutely marvellous.
So happy you liked Jane’s work! Thanks for commenting! 😃
Thank you. I have a lot of fun with painting and drawing in many forms. It’s a never-ending journey!
Hi again from Arizona Jane :). I have great appreciation for your blog and all of your swatch and color studies. Your work is amazing and inspiring!
Agreed! So thrilled to feature Jane. Thanks Jessica! 😃
beautiful! look forward to following and seeing MORE!
Hehe! Glad you liked these, Jodi!! Jane is awesome! 😃
I’m just floored by Jane’s beautiful work! Followed her on IG and FB and can’t wait to see more!
Yay to the follows!! Thanks Teresa! 😃
I’ve been bad about heading over to IG lately though…must remember to make an effort to do so…
I have followed you by email and on FB Jane. I look forward to seeing more. Thank you for sharing Jane’s beautiful art Charlie! 🙂
Glad you liked these Susan! And yay to following Jane! You won’t be disappointed!! 😉 She’s wonderful!
This is just such wonderful work
Glad you liked Jane’s feature! Thanks for commenting Lance! 😃
Stunning artwork! Absolutely beautiful!
So thrilled you liked Jane’s work! 😃
those are gorgeous watercolors!
Agreed! Glad you liked Jane’s feature. Definitely check out her blog. It’s packed with great info and more fabulous work! 😃
Fantastic art, a wonderful and inspiring feature post. Looking forward to
learning and following Ms. Blundell’s journeys with watercolor. Thank you Charlie…(note to self, learn when to hit “send”…lol)
Hehe…I loved that…it was like a cliffhanger comment!! What’s next?! I’m glad I’m not the only one who does that. So glad you liked Jane’s feature, Haunani! 😃Her website is wonderful!!
It’s great to see Jane’s work here. It site is an invaluable tool for all watercolorists!
Glad you liked this, Shari! 😃It was so wonderful to feature Jane! I agree…her site is fantastic and such a rich resource on watercolor!
I have learned so much from your blog about watercolors! Thank you for sharing your knowledge and experience with all of us!
Isn’t it such a great blog!? Thanks for commenting Kari! 😃
Amazing. (K)
Agreed! Thanks Kerfe! 😉
Thank you for your generous comments. It’s interesting writing a ‘guest feature’ answering someone else’s questions rather than just thinking up my own. I am not as active on Facebook or Instagram as I am on my website, and I hope to get more regular blog posts happening. I have a huge list of ideas but do get in touch if there’s something else you’d like to see 🙂
Thanks so much for being a guest Jane! Your blog is a goldmine of watercolor information and resources and your work is simply stunning. I’m so happy to have you here on Doodlewash! 😃
What a wonderful guest post! Thank you Jane, your website is so full of good advice and inspiration! And thank you Charlie for featuring Jane!
Thanks Cathe! 😃So glad you liked this post! It was such a pleasure to feature Jane!
Such beautiful work!!
So happy you liked this feature! Thanks Jane! 😃
Loved your work (again) Jane. Always something to learn from you
So please you liked Jane’s feature, Gail! Thanks for commenting! 😃
Enchanting work – invites lingering.
I agree! So pleased you liked this feature Sharon! 😃
Thank you Charlie for another great feature! Jane you are a wonderful artist! Your watercolors are beautiful same your sketches and studies I enjoyed to visit your website. 🙂
Thanks Carolina! I’m so happy you liked Jane’s feature. Her website is such a treasure trove of valuable watercolor resources!! 😃
Jane, I live in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico – a perfect spot for a watercolour workshop! Your beautiful work is a treasure! Abrazos, Robin
So happy you liked Jane’s feature, Robin! Thanks for commenting! 😃
Hi Jane
I was at a workshop recently and was told by one of the participants that my favourite mixed colour (ultramarine and burnt sienna) was sometimes called Jayne’s grey. Google led me to your website and you led me here.
Your colour charts are wonderful and go beyond anything I’ve done myself, so thank you very much for those.
You mention your penchant for painting old decaying and rusting things. I wonder whether you have ever encountered the Japanese concept of wabi sabi. This is the idea that things gain value and elegance through use and age. Many of the photographs and paintings that embody this concept include old and rusted objects…
I’m a big fan of your color charts and happy to see your work featured here.
I am a long time fan of yours. Thank you for all you do and sharing your color charts and reviews.