Before I could paint the seedy underbelly of Montreal I had to find it. Out as far as st Denis street and everything was looking decidedly un-seedy... buildings were renovated, sidewalks were new, the streets were clean. A plaster-clad shopping plaza caught my eye, it had the look of something that would be replaced by condos one day so I made some paintings for posterity. The building in question is on the left. I was also practicing the 'John Little' Montreal scene, where you stand on the sidewalk and show both sides of the street with the road and cars in between. Its hard to pull off, so I held the paper up in front of me and kind of traced the basic outlines of the view with my paint brush.
Plaster plaza perspective, watercolour 6 x 7.5" cold press, November 2024
From across the busy street I got a better view of the plaster plaza, the stores had really colourful signs and facades. I painted the cars quickly so as to keep the illusion of movement. This was the last of the three paintings I did, the conditions were tough today and adjustments were needed.
Plaster plaza close crop, watercolour 6 x 7.5" cold press, November 202
The painting surface got so moist and nothing was drying, this one kept loosing its definition and I kept painting over to get the contrast back. In cool humid weather, the paper can get 'juiced' as I call it, meaning that the paint washes start to saturate the paper and the paint itself get absorbed as if by a sponge. You see in the previous painting, I made an adjustment to my technique by applying strong lines first, then filling in with smaller blocks of colour. That is my 'winter' technique, although today it was above zero. John Little used oil paints which are easier to work with in winter, although more difficult to use on location.
Plaster plaza panorama, watercolour 6 x 7.5" cold press, November 2024
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