Tulip Series, Two Tulips

Tulip Series - Two Tulips                              

Transparent watercolor  w collage     8x11 on wc paper

I chose transparent watercolor in an effort to capture the beauty of the pale pink tulip over the white tulip.   However, after the colorful paintings I did earlier, this seemed boring.   I left it laying on the table for awhile and then added strings pulled from gauze, being careful not to get the gloss medium on the transparent watercolor.   I still was not satisfied.   Earlier I had tried an experiment putting rice paper on several rusty items hoping the rust would peel off onto the rice paper.   Again being careful not to get the glossy adhesive onto the transparent watercolor, I added the rusty tissue over the leaves.  The glossy leaves filled with rust, against the transparency of the watercolor gave the painting the added zing I was looking for.
                               

note:  If you want to try the rusty paper technique, place one or more rusty items on a tray and then cover them with tissue paper or rice paper.  Pour a little white vinegar over, let dry and peel the paper off.   The paper will pull the rust off of the iron.    If you want the paper just tinted, you can layer the paper; however, I wanted the rust on the paper so I just used a single layer.   Use some tissue paper and some heaver rice paper for different effects.