Traditional Chinese Peony Painting Guide - From Outline to Color

Step 1:

For the flower petals, use light ink to outline them. Pay attention to using a mix of rounded and angled strokes for the shape. The brushwork should be flexible and varied, and you can incorporate a "flowing cloud and water" technique where appropriate. When outlining the structural lines, be mindful of whether you're drawing from the outside in or from the inside out. The turning points of the lines must be smooth and rounded.

For the front-facing leaves, use thick ink to outline. For the back-facing leaves, use medium ink. The old branch should also be outlined with medium ink using a thick brush, but with less water content; a slightly dry brush effect is best. The calyx and middle leaves should be drawn with a lighter touch, and their tips should be sharp and upright. The main veins should be exaggerated in thickness.

For the distant willow branches and leaves, use very light and clear ink to outline. The color should definitely not be strong, and the lines should be very thin, ideally resembling "spider silk" strokes.

Step 2:

Background: Apply a large area of light green (thin Three Greens pigment) from top to bottom on the upper part of the painting. The color should be concentrated around the willow leaves. For the lower half of the painting, apply a large area of light old green (grass green mixed with a little indigo) from bottom to top. When applying the color to the upper part, include the willow leaves. When applying to the lower part, leave the objects uncolored. When applying color, ensure the edges around the flower petals are clean and neat.

Flower Petals: For the white parts of the petals, apply a thin base layer of white pigment. For the darker parts of the petals, apply a medium concentration of cinnabar red (vermilion mixed with crimson) about three times. The cinnabar red applied to the upper bud should be slightly lighter.

Leaves: Apply grass green (gamboge mixed with indigo) to the front-facing leaves. Apply sap green (phthalo blue mixed with gamboge and a little vermilion) to the back-facing leaves, sepals, branches, and stems. The sap green applied to the calyx should be a bit more yellow. Apply sepia ink to the old branch. Apply blue-green (grass green mixed with emerald green) to the distant willow leaves.

Step 3:

Background: Continue to apply a large area of light green (thin Three Greens pigment) to the upper willow leaves and their surrounding background once more. For the narrow gaps between objects in the lower part of the painting, use light indigo for a small area of wash.

Front-facing Leaves: Apply indigo from the base towards the tip about three times, paying attention to the layered relationship of the leaves (upper, middle, lower). For the leaves behind the flower petals, also consider the changes in perspective (distant and close, blurry and clear).

Back-facing Leaves, Right Middle Leaves, Stems, Sepals, Calyx, etc.: Use grass green (gamboge mixed with indigo) for the wash. The area for coloring the calyx and middle leaves should be smaller. For the old branch, use light ink and dry brush strokes to create a textured effect, showing brush marks.

Flower Petals: For the light-colored parts, use very light crimson, applying a large wash from the base of the petals towards the edge about three times. The area of each application should gradually decrease, and the color can remain the same. For the white space left on the edges, it should be thin on both sides and thicker in the middle, with the widest part of the white space being about 1.2 cm. The method for painting the dark-colored petals is the same as the light ones, but the color is changed to dark blue-green (indigo mixed with ink).

Willow Leaves: Use light blue-green (grass green mixed with a little emerald green) to wash the shaded areas according to the overlapping relationships. Do not paint the outermost layer.

Step 4:

Background: Continue to apply a large area of light green (thin Three Greens pigment) to the upper willow leaves and background. The edges of the petals must still be neat. The lower background should also continue to be washed from bottom to top with light old green (grass green mixed with a little indigo). The background around the flower petals can be washed outwards from the petals.

Leaves: For the front-facing leaves, use indigo to apply layers of color, defining the light and dark areas of the leaves based on the undulations around the veins. Carefully consider which side of the vein the main line should be on. The leaves at the bottom layer can be colored more times, while the upper leaves usually only need two to three times. For the back-facing leaves, stems, sepals, etc., use light old green for layered application. For the few middle leaves in the right half, use light emerald green (phthalo blue mixed with gamboge and a little emerald green) to apply layers to the shaded areas. For the calyx, strap-like sepals, and the tips of the buds, apply an orange-yellow wash (gamboge mixed with vermilion).

Willow Leaves: Use extremely light blue-green (grass green mixed with emerald green) to apply layers along the main veins from inside out. The color should be very light, and the water line near the main vein should be neat, while the outer water line can be drawn more loosely.

Flower Petals: For all light-colored petals, begin applying layers with light crimson, especially focusing on the varying heights of the structural lines in the middle of the petals and the relatively clear subtle variations at the petal edges. Carefully refine the coloring process. These two types of structural layering must avoid being monotonous. For the dark-colored petals, apply multiple layers with light blue-green (indigo mixed with ink), and the final layers in the shaded areas can be slightly darker. In general, the large flower petal in the lower left should be rendered more solidly, while the small petals in the upper right should be treated with a more ethereal feel.

Step 5:

Background: Continue to apply a large area of light green (thin Three Greens pigment) for the wash. This step requires careful attention, and the brushwork at the junctions with the petal and leaf edges must be meticulous and clean. The lower part of the background should be washed with a lighter old green (grass green mixed with a little carmine). The overall color transition of the background should cover a large area, and the light and dark variations should transition smoothly and evenly, without visible brush marks. For the most distant willow leaves and branches, use light emerald green (phthalo blue mixed with gamboge and a little emerald green) to outline their surroundings.

Flower Petals: For the pink petals, lightly apply a cool red (crimson mixed with carmine) at the base of the petals in a small area. For the petal tips, apply thick white powder. For the deep red petals, also apply thick blue-black (indigo mixed with ink) at the base in a small area. For the petal tips, apply a covering vermilion (vermilion mixed with crimson).

Leaves: For the bottom front-facing leaves and their bases, apply medium density blue-black (indigo mixed with ink). Then, based on the varying distances, apply different shades of blue-green (grass green mixed with a little emerald green). For the back-facing leaves, sepals, stems, etc., apply Four Greens (Three Greens mixed with white) to the bright parts. For the tips of the middle leaves, apply a slightly thicker yellow-green (gamboge mixed with Three Greens). For the calyx and the tips of the stem buds, apply carmine.

Old Branch: Use thick ink to partially re-outline blurry ink lines and lightly add crackle textures.

Finally, after all the colors are dry, brush the paper with clear water, and while wet, use a wash brush to gently rinse off all the floating colors from the painting. And appropriately adjust the color intensity of the distant scenery.

Step 6:

Background: For the lower background, leaving out the objects, apply a large area of light grass green wash to make the background colors appear more moist. For the upper background to the right of the willow leaves, continue to lightly outline with a small brush using light emerald green mixed with a little gamboge.

Flower Petals: For the dark-colored petals, after applying thick blue-black (indigo mixed with ink) at the base, apply a thin layer of crimson overall to make the colors harmonious. For the light-colored petals, apply a large wash of thin carmine to the darkest areas, making the base appear less fragmented and the overall color more vibrant. If the white powder has been weakened after washing, but the object itself is at the forefront, the edges of those petals need to be re-highlighted with a small brush dipped in thick white powder. Use thick yellow powder (gamboge mixed with white) to dot the stamens, light vermilion to outline the stamen lines, and thick white powder to outline the filaments. The pistil should also be highlighted with very thick white powder.

Leaves: For the front-facing leaves, carefully highlight the darkest areas with blue-black mixed with ink. Then, use thick ink to partially re-outline the blurry ink lines of the leaves. Finally, re-outline the main veins in the middle with varying shades of crimson. The fine leaf veins should be outlined with medium to light blue-black. For the back-facing leaves, stems, branches, calyx, etc., use light carmine ink (carmine mixed with a lot of water) to re-outline the contours and use a fine brush to outline the fine leaf veins. The carmine used for the calyx should be a bit stronger.

Old Branch: Use strong ink to partially re-outline blurry ink lines, and add a little strong ink to the shaded areas for texture. Dot moss with thick ink, and after it dries, re-dot with thick Four Greens.