Today's challenge is: dark. I took advantage of the fact that I had a day off from work, with all the snow still blowing through, and finished my challenge early before there was any chance of a power outage so I wouldn't have to do it in the dark! Today I chose to try something different and did a painting of a little dark brown teapot using a Sumi-e set I had received years ago.
What is Sumi-e you might ask? It's a type of ink wash painting that was developed in China, although the term Sumi-e is Japanese for 'black ink painting.' So yes, you guessed it - the only color used in Sumi-e is black. I did several washes to build up the contrast until the end when I made sure to have more of the pigment on my brush than water so I could add the last touches of dark spots to really make it pop.
To finish it off I used the carved stone and red ink included in the kit to add a little symbol in the corner just like traditional Sumi-e paintings have. (And no, it doesn't mean anything... at least not that I know of...) If you would like to learn more about Sumi-e painting check out the Sumi-e Society here: http://www.sumiesociety.org/whatissumie.php