Wide Open Cutthroat

Here is the painting as promised from yesterday. I even remembered to do a progressive photo log of this painting as I did it. "Wide Open Cutthroat" is a 8x11 watercolor done on my new favorite type of paper. 100% cotton, 140lb, Aqvarelle Arches watercolor paper. I have been working with this type of paper now for a few months and love it. The colors and water flow nice and are much easier to work with.

This work is up for grabs for $90 plus s&h and both 5x7 and 8x10 prints will be available soon.

Unlike a lot of my previous trout, I went with a full body painting for this fish. I also added my favorite and most rewarding fly: The Elk Hair Caddis. If I have a go-to dry fly, this is it. It has always yielded me the best looking trout when ever it hooks up, it is easy to tie, comes in an array of variations, easy to float in rough water, and fairly simple to fish.
I remember fishing these big trout when I was a kid traveling through Yellowstone with my family. We were using spinners at the time and I remember hauling these bad boys in one after another. Memories sometimes are better than reality but as a boy of 12 or 13, these were the best looking and biggest trout I had ever seen. I hope someday to take my kids to that same spot and this time hook them on a fly and see if reality reflects my memories.
Of course I began this work like all my works, with a detailed drawing of the subject.

Then I mix the base colors, working fast with the colors to blend them just right before the paper dries.

Add in some details and work up the layers.

The signature blood red cut under the chin

And then Finish with the dark spots and a few outlines to make the light colors shine.
I also thought I'd add a few words about how to care for an original watercolor painting to give it as long a life as it deserves.
Light is one of the biggest enemies of watercolor pigments. Try and avoid hanging a watercolor where it will receive any direct sunlight. It is advisable to hang a watercolor in a room with diffused incandescent or halogen light. Fluorescent lighting is as damaging as sunlight, producing ultraviolet light in high concentrations. If lighting is applied directly to the painting, be sure the light fixture is at least 8 -10 feet away (a ceiling spotlight with a low emission is best). To further shield the watercolor from damaging light exposure, use protective glazing such as UV3-coated Plexiglas in the framing.