Pop Up- Hands Study with Emma Petitt

Painting hands with Emma Petitt

Hi Everyone.

When I occasionally ask people what they would like to see more of, to learn more of? Two things always pop up!
Painting Hands
And how to loosen up their Style.


So in this little pop up session I will share with you one of my morning hand studies.

I use these as a way to warm up and loosen up before a full day in the studio.

This is an exercise with no clear plan or end result expected. I work intuitively , sometimes with a reference, other times without. The idea is to keep the style loose and not turn it into an Anatomical Study. This way of working is way more about gesture than knuckles. We all know its all about Practice but I personally find those ‘How to Draw a Hand’ tutorials and images all rather dull. So this is my way, the Emma way to Practice hands, a little bit of anatomy, some tonal values and alot of colour!

Hands appear in all of my work and in all of my Workshops somewhere along the way. So I hope this little session will inspire you to try including more hands in your work. They are so important to visual story telling and emotional creative expression.

Things I used:
A3 sheet of water colour paper
High Flow acrylics (you could use inks)
A squeegee
Water spray
Hairdryer
Papertowels
A black Sharpie China Graph pencil
Titanium white,
Raw sienna and Pyrole red for skin tones
Turquoise green for background
Black stabilo mark all for definition.

I hope you can join me for my Brand New workshop, "Taking Up Space" and my other workshops “Hands”, “Boldness” and “Soul Sisters”.

Emma Xx

Galia Alena

I’m a visual poet working in just about any medium I can lay my hands on although I am a professionally trained photographer and a so called “self-taught” artist (of course there have been many teachers on that path). I’m in love with the creative process. I’m a beauty unveiler, light huntress, moment caresser and visionary poetess. Ultimately, all of my work is about helping people peel back the layers to experience the intense beauty of each moment allowing access to both their intuitive wisdom and a deeper connection to spirit and self. (Because the beauty of this life cracks our hearts open and it is through the cracks that light can flow both in and out and connect us back to our divine selves) That is what I do and I do it through photography, art, journaling and teaching. I live in the insanely beautiful Blue Mountains, just shy of Sydney, with my family, our cat and all the winged ones who frequent our garden. Each day here is a wondrous delight of tiny miracles through either the glorious light or magical mists. I would love to work with you, have a look around and see where you are called... "Where I create, there I am true." Rilke

To the top arrow