Colors, Pencils, and Feelings: The Journal Behind the Spring Bouquet
Every spring, I remember how I always contemplated the colors that appeared along my path. Almost all of them went to my gallery, but none to paper. Last year, for the first time, I created a composition based on the trees that enchanted me the most: the “Sertão Spring Bouquet”. For this composition, I drew and painted in watercolor a bouquet featuring the flowers of the caraibeira, the purple ipê, and the pink ipê.
I remember that watercoloring all these colors energized my whole being. It was impressive how each color brought a different sensation. And I confess: I really like yellow. I feel that this color illuminates my production in a very special way whenever I work with it.
Besides illuminating the moment, every brushstroke made me more attentive. According to Perryman (2025, p. 107), author of the book The Colour Bible, "[...] studies show that yellow can leave us more alert and energized, improve our memory, and encourage communication."
Considering this citation, I can understand a little of what I felt when watercoloring with this color. However, the “Sertão Spring Bouquet” was not just about yellow. Pink and purple appear in the upper part of the bouquet and can refer to love, femininity, affection, spirituality, power, and creativity. Meanwhile, in the lower part, green anchors the composition; it is directly linked to nature, but it also carries its own meanings.
All these colors have their own meanings, which further enriches the artwork, not only visually, but also through the sensations and meanings they can transmit to anyone in the space. I like working with colors, mixing them, and creating from the colors present in my palette those found in the observed species. Besides colors, I discovered not long ago that I also like how different pencil grades behave, and I believe this also has a meaning. It is not only about color or the lack of it, but about how I feel working with the material at that moment—it is also a response of my gaze, of my observation of each species, which I can often define how I will represent the moment I am in the field, and this feeling guides me until the very last stroke or brushstroke.
I like working with colors, mixing them, and creating, from the colors present in my palette, the ones I find in the observed species. Besides colors, I discovered recently that I also like noticing how different pencil grades behave. I believe this also has a meaning, not only regarding the presence or absence of color, but the way I feel working with the material at that moment. This is also a response of my gaze, of my observation of each species. Often, still in the field, I can already define how I will represent it. This feeling guides me until the last stroke or brushstroke.
Perhaps, when reading this post, you too can begin to perceive colors in a different way. Have you ever stopped to think about how they influence our daily lives, our sensations, and even the way we perceive a place? And, if you are also an artist, you may have already noticed that some colors simply guide us. There are those we choose consciously and others that seem to find us first.
I find it interesting and important to observe and reflect on small sensations that can bring great meanings.
Reference
PERRYMAN, Laura. The Colour Bible: The definitive guide to colour in design and art. Translated by Joaquim Oliveira. São Paulo: Editora Senac São Paulo, 2025.
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