Now it’s time for the most challenging part of the painting… the bubble glass. All the abstract shapes and colors made for a very confusing puzzle. As before, I started with a pale wash to sort out some of the abstract shapes. I also used some resist to preserve a few of the bright white areas.

I painted one small areas at a time. The bubble glass is actually made of golden, orangish colored glass, but because it is somewhat transparent, the green of the Peonies shows through in distorted shapes.

The glass bowl is now taking shape and looking more three-dimensional.

The body of the bubble glass has rivers of color and tiny air bubbles in the water, shining through the glass. At this point I’m just trying to figure the shapes, but later will go back in and add more bubbles.

Saving the most confusing part for last, I started painting the lip of the bowl.

The lip of the bowl is now somewhat complete. I removed the resist from the highlighted areas and went over the entire bowl tightening the shapes and deepening the color.

One great way to check on your shadows and highlights is to snap a photo with your phone. Change the setting to black and white. Any areas too light, or dark, will be obvious and you can adjust as needed. I love the way the black and white version turned out!

To be continued…