Old Values, New brushes

I used to paint using traditional watercolours using brushes on paper, but now use a pressure sensitive pen on a pressure sensitive tablet, linked to a computer. The computer uses a programme caller Corel Painter to imitate the type of media I decide to use; like oils, watercolours, pastels or chalks. I use the same skills as before – you can’t immediately paint using the tablet and pen if you can’t paint the traditional way, though of course you can learn to use them as you can real brushes and paper.

Using the computer I can of course use some extra things it offers, such as playing around with the final colour and value after I have finished painting. I do not use the ‘turn a photo into a painting with one click’ features that some software programmes have, for they rarely priduce a pleasing effect, and quickly bore the eye.

The one difference is in my abstract work, where I do not paint but compose a picture from several abstract images produced by fractal image programmes, and sometimes I manipulate images in Photoshop, combining images and adding effects. These images are very different from my paintings.