Saundra Lane Galloway posted a
photo she took on her blog and said, "The picture I am offering you today is for those abstract lovers out there. It is a pic I took at the local
aquarium one day. If it appeals to you, have fun with it."
I have been experimenting with Yupo as a medium for abstract watercolors. I thought the colors in Saundra's photograph would possibly make an interesting abstract - so I did what she suggested and gave it a shot. Yupo is interesting to paint on - especially with fluid watercolors. The paint flows on this very smooth plastic surface and can be manipulated in a controlled way. A mistake can be wiped off and fixed, unlike regular watercolor paper.
Yupo is made from polypropylene by the Yupo company who say they use 100% recyclable materials. One has to be careful handling it. The natural oils from one's hands creates an impenetrable surface. I had to use plastic gloves when handling the material. After taping it down to my table I was able to remove the gloves and was careful not to touch the surface while painting on it. I used an acrylic fixative to seal the watercolor once it was dry.
I have to get this abstract thing out of my system - or maybe not. This watercolor was painted on Arches hot pressed paper. I wanted to see if I could get similar results to what I got from painting on Yupo. Hot pressed watercolor paper is so different from cold pressed. It's easy to get blooms if you use watered down colors. I found the best results came with a slightly thicker mixture of watercolor paints. I was trying different techniques of applying the watercolors and was quite pleased with this result. Would love to hear your comments.
