Carol Jessen's Watercolor World

As many of you know,  I came to Apalachicola, Florida on Dec. 21.  I painted two paintings before I developed some serious health problems. ...

I'm back in my winter location, Apalachicola, Florida.  With packing, driving, unpacking, and Christmas,  I haven't had much tim...

                                      "Assisi Hillside"  I was browsing through old slides of my trips to Europe, and found t...

                                     "Woodpile" Lately I've returned to a favorite subject of mine:  trees.  I found an o...

A friend in Maine takes a daily walk and posts photos of her surroundings.  In her photo of a marsh, there were only two lone pine trees...

In composing this painting, I looked through my photos of Florida for more material to continue my tree series.  I found a photo of a ba...

Most painters of watercolors adhere to the notion of painting from light values to darker values.  There is a special concentration on s...

As I've said many times, I look for ways to frame my focal point.  Foreground shadows are often the answer.   In my previous post,...

On a trip to Selby Gardens in Sarasota, Florida with my friend and playwright Connie Schindewolf, I fell in love with this gumbo limbo t...

                                   "Wharfside #3" After a month of not painting and re-adjusting to life in St. Louis, I final...

                                                            "Grimes Cove" I'm back in St. Louis after a long drive home.  ...

Motif #1 @ Pratt's Island This is another iconic subject that artists on the Boothbay peninsula often paint-- so often that we...

                              Driftwood at Hendrick's Head Light Hendrick's Head Lighthouse is often a subject of my paintings....

Day 4 of my watercolor workshop in Boothbay Harbor.  The class went to Newagen's Town Landing.  It was overcast, and halfway through...

After demonstrating my fairly conventional style to my class, I felt the need to break out of that approach and paint a subject from mem...

                                                                                    Hendrick's Head Beach There are several ways th...

White is an eye-grabber.  Planning where and why to leave the white of the paper is essential in directing the viewer to the importan...

I'm happy and flattered when someone requests that I paint a certain scene.  They've seen my paintings and like my style, but the...

The Cuckold's Light Well, sort of.  But when I do, there's always an intermediate step: the value sketch. That's...

I used to be able to paint two paintings in one day easily, but, alas, I'm slowing down these days. However, not wanting to w...

"The Weathervane" I've already discussed looking down for subject matter this summer.  Now I want to talk about look...

Each year I paint daisies in June, Queen Anne's Lace in August and Rugosa Roses and Rose Hips in September.  Things are a bit e...

Water Lilies at Lobster Cove Sometimes a painter will "own" a subject.  Every time I paint a sailboat, I am coming ...

M y choice of blues has altered slightly this summer.  I'm leaning towards the cooler blues: thalo, manganese, blue turquoise.  But w...

It's blueberry picking time in Maine!  I think the smaller, thinner-skinned blueberries here in Maine are juicier and tastier tha...

This old anchor is featured near the entrance to my favorite outdoor restaurant on Southport Island.  Once again, I listened to my heart...

When faced with a complicated subject like this, the first obstacle is not yielding to the temptation to quit before even attempting to ...

When it's too hot to stand outside and paint, I take out the photos and sketch.  Seasonal sketches, such as The Peach Picker, are go...

                                 Mallards at Oak Point Farm I've never been much of an animal painter.   But about a week ago I saw...

There were times long ago when I was very irritated with people who came by to watch me paint.  I was self conscious enough painting on ...

                                     Knickercane This very popular painting location features a lobster pound building.  I've painte...

                                        Summer Pond Of all the colors in your repertoire, green is the one most likely to trip you up. ...