Watercolor Therapy

I haven't felt myself lately.

Not to knock all graphic design-centered classes, but they just aren't my cup of tea. I've been taking a web design class this semester, and while I have been learning a lot, it's been monotonous, headache-inducing work. Sometimes, after that, all I want to do is paint.

So occasionally I go visit my friend in watercolor class (4th session-after my classes are over) and paint with them for a while. It's fun, stress free, relaxing. Watercolor for me is fun. I enjoy it, I do it as both a project and a hobby. It's therapeutic to just mix a bunch of watery colors in a palette and splash them all over a sheet of hot press. I just love it.

So yesterday, I sat in on their class (which is a Watercolor Figure Painting class) while they painted a reclining nude. It was a gorgeous pose and a great opportunity for me to work with skin tones, which I haven't done much. I worked on my small Hot Press block and this was the result:

I tried to make it more of an illustration piece with the addition of ink and again keeping with this new-found splashiness. I really like how it turned out. For a 2 1/2 hour painting, I think it came out well.

Let me know what you all think. Should I sit in on this class more often? It doesn't hurt to get some extra practice, especially if you enjoy doing it.