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Tulum and Chichen Itza, Mexico- watercolor paintings

Fine art watercolor paintings of Mayan ruins at Tulum and Chichen Itza. Watercolor paintings on YUPO synthetic (fancy name for plastic). Mayan inspired stamps created and added to texture of ruins and skies. All paintings sealed with UV Archival Finish. Unframed.

Step by step process of painting on YUPO. Watercolor original painting of Mayan ruins at Tulum created onYUPO Synthetic.

Painting watercolor on YUPO is a challenge. The “paper” can take hours to dry (depending on humidity levels) and you have ONE chance to layer on top of previous layers. If you go over a previously painted layer twice, all the color comes off and mixes with the layer you are creating.

Mayan ruins at beach of Tulum in Mexico. Watercolor painting of Mayan ruins in Tulum in Yucatan Peninsula- Mexico

However, since this is plastic, and all the color can be removed (even most staining colors) I created a series of Mayan inspired stamps and selectively removed shapes in the sky and temples. Once the details were created, the paintings were sealed with a UV Archival finish.

Chichen Itza artwork. Watercolor painting Chichen Itza Mayan ruins in Mexico

This is the first time I have ever used watercolor ground. Once the paintings were sealed I used a substance called watercolor ground on top of the paintings. This allowed me to go back into the painting and layer and darken areas without the fear of removing the previous layers. For example, I usually darken all the corners of my paintings to help draw the eye to the focal point.

All three paintings are available for purchase. Fine art prints are also available on my Shop.

Interested in seeing one of these paintings in person? My studio is open by appointment only- please contact before they have found new homes!

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