See a painting develop, step by step

People are curious. And we as artists like to see how it is done. That's a long way of saying that  I have been asked to share a step by step process of one of my plein air paintings. The other day when I was out painting I finally remembered to take a couple of photos along the way. So here we go.

Watercolor wash on Pastel Mat paper. Big shapes without clear edges- that's very important. I like to choose where my edges are later on in the painting. A sharp edge  within soft edges is a focal point.

Add pastel incrementally starting with your diva point.

Almost done. When I check back to my notan I see that a grouping of value masses has been disturbed. I alter that and finish. (see top)