Color the Emotion

Pick a few colors and create without stiffness.

Using White as a Color in Painting and Drawing

In this post, we explore the color white and find ideas on how we could change the way we use it in art-making.

Käännekohta - Turning Point, oil on canvas, 50 x 61 cm, by Paivi Eerola, Finland.
Käännekohta – Turning Point, oil on canvas, 50 x 61 cm.

I posted this painting about a month ago, but I still had to fix it! You might not notice the difference, but it matters to me. I have changed the center of the painting so that it is more abstract.

Painting over details with a thin brush.

A long time ago I thought that it doesn’t matter if I don’t like some detail of my work or if I don’t like some of my work in general. I thought there would always be someone who would like it.

But the longer I’ve been painting, the more important it has become that I have to be a fan of my own work. When you are a beginner, quantity is more important than quality. But I’ve been working for a long time and the equation has thus turned the other way.

Before and after - fixing a white painting.
Before and after. I changed the center and some other details.

I know some would prefer the more realistic flowers, but I don’t! I have too much reality around me, especially now when the weather has been too cold to be spring.

Living in a White Country

This painting is also special because it has so much color that is difficult for me – white! There is far too much white here in Finland. Even if now is the end of April, we got a lot of snow a couple of days ago!

Spring in Finland - snowing can still happen.

I think white is a terrible color because it is full of emptiness.

Artist Paivi Eerola and her oil paintings.

Finnish people usually have white walls and white furniture, but our home is full of colors. I love to display my paintings on this yellow wall.

Not One White But Many Whites

In the recent painting, I wanted to play with pastels and show the side of white that is often not talked about.

A detail of a white oil painting by Paivi Eerola. Many whites and pastel shades in one painting.

For an artist, there is not just one white. There is a warm white that holds the promise of the sun. There is a purple-toned white that falls in love when it sees a deep cold red. There is a white that allures you with a hint of sweet mint. So, many whites, not just one Finnish white!

It’s exciting to mix various whites and then see how the pastel colors slowly begin to appear. You need a lot of white and just a little bit of color to get the toned whites and pale pastels.

Titanium or Zinc White?

The most common white in paint tubes are Titanium White and Zinc White. In oils, you have to be careful with zinc white because it can cause crackles. I mostly use only Titanium White. I would love to use Zinc White because it’s more transparent. In this painting, I have tried my best to bring the soft transparent effects mostly with Titanium White, but it’s not easy!

Vapauden puolesta - For Liberty, oil on board, 45 x 45 cm. By Päivi Eerola, Finland.
Vapauden puolesta – For Liberty, oil on board, 45 x 45 cm.

In acrylics and gouache paints, you can use Zinc White more freely.

When White is Not Needed

Beginners think that adding white on top can fix everything. Ten years ago, I was madly doodling with a white gel pen. What went wrong, got covered with white circles. But white also can make the piece busy and destroy depth. Here’s a quick example of the small collage piece that I made in 2014 (here’s the old blog post with the video too). The first is the old piece and the second is a photoshopped version showing how I would fix it now.

A collage piece that lacks depth and has too much white and a demonstration of how it could be fixed.

When I tone down the white, the image gets clearer and the depth grows. The highlights in the central parts get more attention and it’s easier to know where to look. I wish someone would have pointed this out to me back then. It took a lot of time to realize this!

If White Were a Person …

I am pretty sure that if White were a person she would say: “I have much more potential than you think. Stop seeing me as a blank background or a quick fix to a piece that lacks contrasts!”

Paivi Eerola and her paintings.

What’s your relationship with White?

Painting Moss and Coloring Green

This week is dedicated to moss and all the shades of green!

The Echo of Moss - Sammaleen kaiku. An oil painting by Paivi Eerola, Finland.
The Echo of Moss – Sammaleen kaiku, 60 x 80 cm, oil on canvas

Inspired by Moss

For some gardens, moss is a bad thing, but my husband and I always get delighted when we see moss appearing. It’s like velvet, an ancient treasure, woven hundreds of years ago and still vivid and strong.

Last month, I read Elizabeth Gilbert’s book called The Signature of All Things. The protagonist Alma was a moss researcher and the space where she worked and stored her samples felt inspiring because it seemed to be a world of its own. The Finnish title for the book is Tämä kokonainen maailmani – “this whole world of mine,” and I think it describes both the book and moss brilliantly.

Making of The Echo of Moss

In this painting “The Echo of Moss,” I have wanted to express the two sides of moss – how it enables life but also gently connects us with death. Watch the video to see how it progressed step by step!

I painted this piece in oils in two separate sessions. There was a week of drying time between them. I am not always that quick, but this time I was in the flow state before making the first stroke. Probably because the subject felt both inspiring and familiar, and I love the color green.

Painting and Coloring Moss

Moss is not difficult to paint or draw. You only need softly colored variegated green in the background and then randomly placed dots or short lines on the top. Here’s an example in watercolor.

Painting moss in watercolor.

This piece is a sample from my watercolor class Magical Forest which has a lesson on painting moss.

When working with colored pencils, color a variety of greens in different directions so that single strokes are not visible. You can use browns, blacks, yellows, and blues in layers to get a wide range of warm green shades. No outlines are needed.

Drawing moss in colored pencils.

To get natural-looking spotting, close your eyes and tap your pencil randomly on the paper.

Green Green Green!

Green is my favorite color nowadays. “Every painting can’t be green, Paivi, we want variety,” I said to myself before I started painting this one. I was just like my mother who used to give permission and then remind me that it can’t be expected to happen regularly. “Yes, mother, but I want to be a goddess of green!”

Paivi Eerola and her oil painting "The Echo of Moss"

“Everything is green,” said my husband when I asked him to take this photo.

Paivi Eerola and her painting The Echo of Moss in the garden.

“It’s intentional!” I said to him.
I hope that this post inspires you to explore moss and different shades of green!

P.S. Speaking of color, one of my classes, Planet Color, is retiring on Sept 30.

Planet Color, a painting class for beginners.

If you are a beginner in painting and want to use acrylic paints more, for example, in your art journals, check this class! Planet Color is now more than 50% OFF before it goes away! >> Buy here!

Colored Pencil Blogger – A Video Blog Post!

This week, I have a video blog for you. It’s full of art inspiration, especially if you want to fall in love with colored pencils.

Colored pencil journal spread by Paivi Eerola, a colored pencil blogger. Watch her video to get more colored pencil inspiration.
This is one of the projects that I show in the video.

Stories and Inspiration – Watch the Video!

I decided that I have blogged about colored pencils so much that I can call myself a colored pencil blogger!

The video is longer than what I usually record. Is a 30-minute video too much? Tell me what you think!

Links to the Related Blog Posts

Posts about the colored pencil projects shown in the video:

Posts about the paintings shown in the video:

Pink Inspiration

This week is full of pink art inspiration. I hope that this post will get you to find your pinks and start creating sweetness!

Dreamy Pinks in Colored Pencils

First, one of the journal spreads that we will create at Fun Botanicum, the newest class.

Pink art journal spread. Colored pencil art by Paivi Eerola.

The softness that you can create with colored pencils is divine and you can highlight that with sharp strokes. The versatility of colored pencils always amazes me. With one pencil you can create the whole value range from light to dark so a few pencils go a long way. I like those shelves of individual pencils in art supply stores because it’s like picking candies!

Pink Handdrawn Playing Cards

These cards are from the class Magical Inkdom. They are drawn with a black pen and then colored with watercolors.

Pink handdrawn playing cards. By Paivi Eerola of Peony and Parakeet. From her class Magical Inkdom.

My husband asked when he saw me drawing these:
– “Playing cards? What’s the game?”
– Well, these are like collector’s items! And you can invent the game yourself!

Because if you make more than one, isn’t that like a little oracle deck? You can ask yourself how you feel by picking a card that reflects your mood.

Lots of Pink Petals

I am already waiting for summer and see my pink peonies bloom in June. If I was a small fairy, I could live in those petals!

Pink peonies as pink inspiration.

Petals, petals, more pink petals – that’s how the flowers are constructed! These are from the class Decodashery.

Pink gouache flowers from the class Decodashery by Peony and Parakeet.

Pick a small brush, some pink gouache paints or watercolors, and paint small spots in layers!

Red and Green are Pink’s Best Pals

Here’s more pink gouache art – a small journal cover that also has reds and greens.

Journal cover in pink, red, and green. By Paivi Eerola of Peony and Parakeet.

I love this color combination. Each color makes the other shine brighter. I can almost taste the colors when I look at them.

Pink Glow in the Dark

Pink is also a wonderful color with darks. You can paint a pink glow that makes the image look romantic.

Restless Heart. Pink glow in an oil painting. By Paivi Eerola, Finland.
Restless Heart, oil on canvas, 60 x 73 cm

Here’s a blog post where you can see process pictures of this painting.

Powder Pink Inspiration

One night my husband showed me new Swatch watches. I wasn’t so interested at first, but when I saw the photos and got the concept, I got so inspired that I am using that inspiration for the new series of oil paintings!

Here’s the new pink Swatch called Mission to Venus. I am definitely going to somehow incorporate all this into a painting! Not literally, but conceptually.

Bioceramic Swatch in Pink. Mission to Venus.

The powder pink with decorative details speaks of a beautiful adventure to me.

This watercolor painting has powder pinks too.

Floral watercolor painting by Paivi Eerola of Peony and Parakeet.

I painted this one a few years ago when my mission was to find the best way to paint flowers freely in watercolors without using a reference. I have a class about it too Floral Fantasies – Watercolor Edition!

Pinks and Other Pastels

What about selecting some acrylic paints and going wild on an art journal?

Art journal spread in acrylics. Pink and turquoise on dark background. Pink inspiration from Peony and Parakeet.

Add darks on the bottom and let dry. Then mix white to the colors and have fun with pastels. Use different brushes to have some variety in strokes as well.

You can be rough like above, or go in a more delicate direction with thinner brushes.

Lovestory, an oil painting on canvas by Paivi Eerola, Finland.
Lovestory, oil on canvas, 40 x 50 cm

Black with pink is also a great color combination!

Pink Inspiration – How to Go Deeper

If you are a color-oriented artist as I am, pink is never just one pink. Challenge yourself to make all kinds of pinks from light to dark, from warm to cool, and use them all in one painting. Nature doesn’t select just one pink, so why would you?

Pink tulip photo.

The same goes for shapes, lines, and ideas. The more you embrace the variety, the more exciting the art-making becomes, and the more you create. Restrict supplies and increase imagination!

Paivi Eerola and a spread in her colored pencil journal.

I hope you have an adventurous Pink Inspiration Day!

P.S. You can still sign up for Fun Botanicum and make wonderful colorings of plants!

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