Hey everyone, meet Rudy. Rudy is the best kind of frog, wary at first but very generous once he takes you in. He is protective of his friends and takes his job very seriously but also knows how to have fun. He doesn’t remember every single thing but he is there when you really need him.
I paint Rudy in three washes— a very light one, a dark one and a very dark one, waiting patiently for each wash to dry before applying the next. I leave some parts of the paper unpainted for highlights. Which is good trick for when you want something to look shiny or wet.
Rudy’s skin is a mixture of green apatite and hematite (Daniel Smith brand watercolor). The hematite watercolor granulates on the paper in a way that elicits a really satisfying feeling like making mudpies as a kid. Finding colors that do this, like hematite and using them for your characters, makes the painting process so easy to get lost in.
Watercolor and frogs makes for a good summer.
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