Ayame's secret

"Iris's Secret" Watercolor * Acrylic on White Ibis Paper

The motive for drawing this picture is、What kind of white should I use for the purple iris?、A test called。If we focus on “white”、Transparent watercolors, ink paintings, etc.、A technique for drawing based on the assumption that the original paper background color is white.。Don't call it an "assumption"、What is actually used as white is "non-transparent" watercolor (gouache) or tempera.、acrylic、Opaque techniques such as water-based paints such as Japanese paintings and oil paintings。

Based on transparent watercolor、If you only use white in some areas, you can expand your range of expression.、The content of the test is that it seems easy to draw.。Anyone can think of something like this、I know you're already doing it、I wanted to dig a little deeper.。

Before this study、I was experimenting with a few things using the "watercolor + tempera" method.。The rationality of the combination is high.、The effect can be expected, but it is difficult to put it into practice.。Watercolors dry much faster than oil paintings.、Intuitive production、A sense of speed is life、There is a point that。At first glance, tempera seems to dry as quickly as watercolor.、It is said that complete drying is slower than oil painting.。It is extremely difficult to overcome that gap with quick work.。I think it's suitable for the type of person who takes time to draw.。
That's why、Researching materials other than tempera。Here I simply used Chinese white (zinc white).。in the most common way、I'm sure it's the easiest way after all。This is fine for small parts。The surrounding white is a mixture of acrylic modeling paste light and titanium white.。The rough feel depends on the underlying paper.。

By the way, what is a "secret"?。Everyone can clearly see it, but I don't notice it.、that's a hint。I'm not talking about Ayame's "Aya".。

How to give a title

"Hydrangea" watercolor Langton paper

It's hydrangea season。When I go out for a while, I see not only my garden but also、Hydrangeas from every garden turn their heads to say “hello”.。

Looking at this picture、Leonardo da Vinci visible in the background、What does “St. Jerome in the Wilderness” have to do with “hydrangea”?、You wonder about it before you think about hydrangeas.。
“St. Jerome” is、to gain enlightenment、Donate everything to the church and go out to practice in the wilderness.。There, the lion was suffering from a thorn stuck in its leg, and I pulled out the thorn.。That's the scene in the background picture.。

In short, the theme of the painting is "(free!) love" (though there seem to be various ideas about "free" in the Christian church at the time).。Rain is inevitable for hydrangeas.。If you add the title ``Jiu'' to it,、The previously disparate motifs come together as one piece.、That's what I thought、Maybe I'm trying to reason too much。

I happened to be looking for a photo of hydrangeas.、A page of "St. Jerome..." happened to be reflected in part of the background.。I thought it would be interesting to combine these two very different motifs.、I tried to reason。I am also conscious of the large contrast between left and right.。

Anemone、rose、dahlia

“Study of a Rose” Watercolor on Watson paper

People who consider roses to be the "queen of flowers"、It seems to be more common among European and American people (peony in Japan? I feel like cherry blossoms have a slightly different meaning)。Is that why?、Anyway, the speed of development of new varieties is fast.、Colors and shapes keep changing。At the same time, the image of roses for those who admire them also changes.。

I don't know what types of roses will be popular this year (2026).、This is a relatively recent、A type of rose similar to ranunculus。Ranunculus is a species related to anemone.、At first I thought it was a commercial variety of anemone.。

Anemone is my favorite flower.、I drew it every spring.、Ranunculus has an extremely large number of petals.、It was a flower that felt quite burdensome to draw.。That's why、This type of rose was also a hassle.。

But、As you can see, it has a soft (fluffy) gradation.、With a gentle shape without edges、This is the type of flower that seems to appeal to modern people's sensibilities.。actual、It was explosively popular for a while.。It seems like the stream has cooled down a bit.、As I have been drawing roses for the past few days,、Shall I try drawing it?、I felt like。If you draw a few、I felt like there were some tips on how to draw.。If you can draw this, you will be able to draw ``Dahlia'' as well.、Maybe。