Goldfish in overlay

[chinapete]

This (unfinished) drawing highlights some features of the overlay blend mode on the iPad ... Four layers: a base with textured and toned paper, a drawing layer, and two color layers, one is a kind of payne's grey and the other a chinese orange (the palette is borrowed from Marie's Chinese watercolors) ...

The base with the toned paper is set to normal blend mode ... All other layers are in overlay: line drawing is set to 40% opacity, then there is a pure grey layer at 100% opacity, and then a grey-orange mix at 50% opacity (these opacities of course are variable) ...

Since my goal is to find a means of imitating the body and transparency of chinese inks within a single application of line or color, I am trying to use the overlay blend mode with different layers set at different opacities to take advantage of emerging transparencies and optical mixes, for example in the way the dark inks fade in some areas of the fins and the head ... Another goal is to do this with the least number of settings and steps, though I'm sure someone will tell me it can be done more easily some other way :)...

[jibes]

I really like the effect of these modes. Have you achieved your goal with this technique?

[Alexandra]

So beautiful Pete, it reminds me of a beautiful rice paper painting. Love it.

[Marilyn Anne]

I find the textures and transparancies in the colors very interesting.

[justjean]

Looks great and one thinks you have achieved your goal , Pete

[copespeak]

Simple, rich and beautiful! :cool:

[pai]

Very beautiful chinese painting again, Pete. Remind me again that most asian countries love this golden fish, almost every house hold in old days have them as they said it's good luck or safety for home? can't really know. i think you know more than me. Really like how you carefully created the tone and texture. :)

[Caesar]

I like very much Your sophisticated experiments and this outcome is such a precious tribute to the Chinese fine art particular sensibility ... It recalls the quest for some spiritual or ideal essence that probably moved the first cave paintings too.

[chinapete]

Thanks everyone for the generous comments ... Caesar, I think primitive scribbling is done on Facebook walls these days :) ... pai, in china where I lived there was a meditation pond with brilliantly colored koi, little children would come and talk to the fish ... jibes, thanks for asking ... I'm getting closer ... yesterday it looked all right, but today the line work is too stylized and the body seems a little heavy to my eye, the paper ground is too thick and chalky, and the texture doesn't show through uniformly, the final coloring could be done with lighter effects, and the blends aren't saturated enough, and so on ... yesterday I took out the crosshatching on the body, but today I may restore it ... that is the advantage and also the joy of digital, the search for something better is friction free, and that encourages freedom ...

[kenmo]

Very nice....

[Caesar]

Look at these paleolythic paintings, in particular the first two from Lascaux, incredibly old masterpieces. Aren't they fantastic?

[chinapete]

Caesar, that horse is really something! :):) I'm encouraged to put up the other view of my goldfish, illuminated differently :) ...

[scotchy21]

Very nice! I love the color. Thanks for sharing!

[Tana123]

I love the texture of the canvas (and the goldfishes as well of course)!