Lovers Oak, Brunswick, Georgia. The name conjures up a wonderful story. The 900 year old live oak tree was supposedly a place for Indian Lovers to meet and kiss their true love under it's branches. It is thought to date from the 12th century. The tree trunk is 13 feet in diameter, and 3 feet from the ground and branches into multiple limbs measuring 12 to 30 inches in diameter. Once bordered on each side by a trolley line it's now surrounded by asphalt.

Painted at the request of a friend, Lovers Oak still stands as a sentinel of times past in Brunswick and has given me an opportunity to try a new technique. If you'll notice, there is almost no way with a brush to indicate the intricacies of leaves on a tree. You don't want to simply dab paint on one little leaf at a time, not only does it not look natural but watercolor doesn't lend itself to pointillism like oils. So on this painting I used one of the watercolorists favorite tools, a natural sponge. Not only can you dab pigment on the paper quickly but areas of dark and light colors tend to bleed together utilizing a slightly watery mix.

Another technique that I enjoy but rarely use is to flick color on the paper to give the foreground texture. Using a toothbrush I load it down with paint and simply run my finger across the bristles and let the paint fly. You can see the results on the light area at the bottom of the painting.

So what I have learned from this painting? Painting around the tree trunks with the blue sky allows the trunks to pop out from the background and adds to their definition. Also, notice that I didn't paint all of the trunk but let some of the white paper show. Since light often illuminates portions of a tree and there is no such thing as a 'white' watercolor pigment you have to leave that white paper to show those reflections.