Hues of Hope: The 4th National Watercolor Convention and Juried Members Exhibition

I joined the Philippine Guild of Watercolorists this year.

I was a member of the Facebook group even before I officially joined the organization so I had a feel of what the organization is like. There were many demos and paint along activities all geared towards the improvement of one’s skill. I like that.

When they had call for submission of artwork for a juried exhibit, I wanted to join. The deadline seemed achievable for me so I started planning my piece. The theme was “Hues of Hope” and it is open for artist interpretation.

We all need a tiny speck of hope in this pandemic. I am partial to botanical subjects so I tried to recall what sparked hope for me. I remember my cousin, Azenith, who is still actively working in the frontline in fight against COVID-19. At the beginning of the pandemic, she was stationed at the city’s command center. It was a bare hall since it was setup just for what seemed like a temporary space for emergencies. The mood was somber with looming uncertainty in the atmosphere. She started to bring flower arrangements from our garden to brighten the space. I asked her to send me as many photos as she can for future reference photos. This was in 2020. Little did I know that I would use her photos as inspiration for the exhibit.

These are some of the photos she sent me.

So I created my artwork based of her photos.

I am a tight painter and I do not like spaces. Ha! So the 15″X22″ were filled with pigments.

This is the piece I submitted.

It was a juried exhibit and there were only 55 paintings chosen for the physical exhibit. I am happy that my painting was chosen!

I was thrilled.

The exhibit opened on September 2, 2021 at LRI Design Plaza in Makati City. The opening program was done online due to quarantine restrictions.

This is my first physical exhibit and I won’t be able to visit. I requested my friend to visit the physical exhibit and he sent me these photos.

Hues of Hope is not just a juried exhibit. It is also a watercolor convention. The organizers had lined up a month-long activities-filled calendar. I registered as a participant to get access to the valuable content that would improve my watercolor skills.

I purposely availed of the access that expires by the end of September to force myself to be present in every activity.

No regrets. All the the activities are worth more than the convention fee I paid. I learned a lot and I am excited to apply them to my future art pieces.

Here are the things I learned:

1. I paint with too many strokes. As a tight painter, I am fond using size 2 brushes even with a full sheet watercolor paper. I would take me a week to finish a piece. Imagine my relief to finish a still life painting in 3 hours. This was my output for an on-the-spot still life painting activity. I should try harder to showcase the transparency of watercolor.

2. I can let loose. This is my first paint-along output with Mr Gejo Jimenez doing the demo.

3. I need angle brushes. Ha! It is amazing how Mr Emmanuel Silva did his brush strokes effortlessly and the result was realistic florals. He was using angle brushes. I was following his strokes and mine did not turn out as good. As a botanical painter, I always use small round brushes to get it right. I should practice more.

4. It feels good to be around likeminded individuals who share your interests. Whenever I could, I would join the group zoom activity. These were the on-the-spot painting contests. Even if I did not have a chance winning against these people, it was the fun atmosphere of painting with others that drew me to the activity.

5. I should not be afraid of painting figures. I always choose botanicals for subjects because figures scare me. The demo from Mr Art Cunanan helped me ease through subjects that I avoided. As long as an activity does not affect personal safety and health, it is always good to try something new.

6. I should not be afraid to commit mistakes. In the demo by Sir Uhky-Uhky Estremos, he talked about telling your story, knowing your intentions, not to fear mistakes, to feel good and be happy.

7. I can paint with my left hand. In one fun on-the-spot painting contest, we were all required to paint with our non-dominant hand. The organizers made sure that the non-dominant hand was used by checking them beforehand. We were made to write with our left and right hands and masking tape was placed on our non-dominant hand so that it can easily be identified in the video that we are using it all the time. I even signed with my left hand. Thus, the wobbly signature.

8. I can try to be spontaneous. It is amazing to see how fast Ms Yuko Nagayama worked on her piece! She said that arranging the composition took 60% of her time since she paints using real objects in front of her as reference.

I can relate with Ms Yuko when it comes to not cleaning the palette.  This is my palette.  Much of the green was from the large piece I did last month.

9. Familiarize the subject I am painting. Mr Jayson Yeoh said that the shortcut to being good at what you do is practice, practice, practice. Practice does not really end. His strokes were quick and I saw the abstraction but his whole piece magically transformed before my eyes. Honestly, I thought I wasted my paper trying to follow his style but I am glad I did not give up so easily. I am happy with my output.

10. I must try painting portraits again and again. I watched Mr Dino Pajao and Mr Gilbert Miraflor’s demo but I always avoid painting people. Finally, I tried Mr Dan Macapugay’s demo.  I hope I remember  tips on color combinations for skin tone and leaving whites. I need to practice, practice, practice the drawing part. This output does not look like the reference photo. Ha!

There were a lot more demo artists and talks other than those I mentioned above. I love how the artists talked about their art process as well as the life lessons on being happy, sharing your talent, continuously learning, telling stories, knowing your intentions, being spontaneous, knowing yourself and a lot more. I love how humble they all are. They do not rest on their laurels. They do not shove their achievements to your face. Instead, they let their works speak for them. It is truly inspiring to hear them speak and observe them work. I hope to apply everything I learned to my work and in my life.

I am truly grateful for this convention. The convention activities came at the perfect time. I had something to keep me at home and keep my mind off the rising COVID statistics in my city. Hospitals were full. Oxygen supply was scarce and I was waiting for the 2nd dose of my Sputnik vaccine to arrive. (I got fully vaccinated on September 27!) The convention was my saving grace- Hues of Hope, indeed! Thank you to all those who worked hard to make this convention a success. I felt like I found my kind of people. Thank you for the new Facebook friends, art inspirations and life lessons! My heart is full!

The convention ended today, September 30, but the physical exhibit is still ongoing until October 31, 2021!

And in case you want to join us in PGW,  this is the link: https://phguildofwatercolorists.com/register/membership/