66 Watercolor artist | FEBRUARY 2019
“THE SPECIFIC LOCATIONS OFTEN AREN’T AS
IMPORTANT TO ME AS A MORE UNIVERSAL LOOK
A VIEW OF ‘ANYWHERE, USA.’”
h en the challenge lies in i nding a balance between the loose
l uid washes that create gradations and subtle value changes, and
the tight rendering of the detailed areas that i nish the painting.
“For my painting to be a success,” he says, “neither of these can
overwhelm the other, but instead need to work together.”
Bayalis, who studied oil painting at the University of Delaware
before trying watercolor, isn’t a rigid proponent of a limited
palette, but he does avoid complicating the process with too
many colors, and he isn’t timid when it comes to application.
“I work with the knowledge that I can always tone down an area
that’s too bright, but I can never brighten what’s too dull.”An Invitation to Participate
One subject you won’t see much of in Bayalis’ artwork is people.
“I’ve used people in some of my street scenes, but I think, in
general, viewers connect to the scene by placing themselves into
it when there aren’t any people present,” he says. “I believe that it
enhances the reality of the experience. When we look at paintings,
we’re total spectators unless such a connection is made.”Stefanie Laufersweiler is a freelance writer and editor living
in Cincinnati.RIGHT
Summer Rain (watercolor on
paper, 16x30) is the fi rst painting for
which Bayalis used a smartphone
photo as reference; it was taken at
a stoplight. “I realized that an inter-
esting composition was right in
front of me, and took photos as
I waited for the light to change,” he
says. He was captivated by the
lighted signage, the positions of the
stopped vehicles and the abstract
patterns on the wet pavement. “It
was essential to keep the road
refl ections on the right side of the
painting both fl uid and soft to
make the scene work.”BELOW
“Maintaining the desired level of
brightness and color without
making it too garish is a challenge,”
Bayalis says of Afternoon Showers
(watercolor on paper, 18x30),
featuring tropical greens against
volatile gray-purple skies. “Green is
a particularly diffi cult color to work
with. Balance is very important.”