urban watercolor sketching: a guide to drawing, painting, and storytelling in color

Allrightsreserved.

PublishedintheUnitedStatesbyWatsonGuptillPublications,animprintoftheCrown

PublishingGroup,adivisionofRandomHouseLLC,aPenguinRandomHouseCompany,New

www.crownpublishing.com

www.watsonguptill.com

WATSONGUPTILLandtheWGandHorsedesignsareregisteredtrademarksofRandomHouse

OriginallypublishedinhardcoverinGermanyasWasserfarbefürGestalterbyVerlagHermann

SchmidtMainz,in2011.ThistranslationarrangedwithVerlagHermannSchmidtMainz.

TranslationbyFaithAnnGibson.

LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData

Scheinberger,Felix.

[WasserfarbefürGestalter.English]

UrbanWatercolorsketching:aguidetodrawing,painting,andstorytellingincolor/Felix

Scheinberger.—FirstAmericanEdition.

pagescm

Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.

1.Watercolorpainting—Technique.I.Title.

ND2420.S323132014

751.42′2—dc23

2013019316

TradePaperbackISBN:978-0-7704-3521-9

eBookISBN:978-0-77043524-0

DesignbyNicolaAehle,FelixScheinberger,andKatyBrown

CONTENTS

CoverTitlePageCopyright

Watercolors—InorOut?

APaintingfortheEmperor

GumArabic:WheretheWatercolorsGrow

Pigments:TheStuffThatDreamsAreMadeOf

YellowandOrange:OfCamelsandCrocuses

RedandPurple:OfBugsandSnails

Blue:OfLapisLazuli,Indigo,andWoad

Green:OfPlantsandPoison

IntroducingColortoSketches:We’reNotinKansasAnymore

FIRSTATTEMPTS

MultipleChoice:ToDesignIstoDecide

FromDusktillDawn:ShadowsandLight

BlackIsBack:GlazingwithIndiaInk

LayerforLayer:TheGlaze

MixingColorswithGlazes

FishSoup:PracticingtheGlaze

TheWash:ThePaintDoesasItPleases!

OntheRun:GradedWashTechniques

OnceMore,withFeeling!:Washes

It’saGiveandTake:ApplyingandRemovingPaint

Wet-on-Wet

CombiningTechniques:ALittleBitofThisandThat

EXCURSIONINCOLORTHEORY

WhereDoColorsComeFrom?:TheSimpleScience

ArrangingColors

OppositesAttract:ColorContrasts

FromSouthParktoStoplights:TypesofColor

TrueColor:TheEffectofLight

EveryColorTellsaStory:IntensifyingYourSketches

It’sAllRelative:TheEffectsofColors

ColorHarmonies:SimpleandComplex

Analogous,Monochromatic,andComplementaryHarmonies

TriadicandTetradicHarmonies

Cool-CoolandWarm-WarmHarmonies

CollectingColors

DesigningColorHarmonies:WorkingwithColorCodeStrips

GettingOutofYourColorComfortZone

TheBlueRidgeMountains:ColorandPerspective

YOUROWNSTYLE

LessIsMore

Me,Myself,andI:FindingYourOwnStyle

StyleandCreativity

ThrowingDown:LooseningUpYourPainting

SeekNotandYouShallFind:Imaginationvs.Internet

MakeItMatter

Priorities

BASICS/TOOLS

Paintboxes

WatercolorPencils

BuyingPaints

MixingPaints

ImpossibleHues:BrightColors

PimpingWatercolors:MakingColorsPop

LiquidWatercolors:BrightNow,PaleLater

IntotheWild:Brushes

EvenMoreBrushes

ThePermanentWave:StretchingPaper

TheContentsofMyBag

OUT&ABOUT

BadWeather:PaintingOutdoors

TheOtherViewpoint:ChangingPerspective

PaintingWater

Air,Fog,Smoke

SmogandAtmosphere

WhatIsBeautyAnyway?

TIPS&TRICKS

CompositionandDesign

SmudgesandSpots

PaintingWhat’sNotThere:NegativeSpace

White:ASpecialCase

Studies,Sketches,andDrafts

MergingColors:WorkingfromOneColor

WorkingwithColoredPaper

SpecialEffects

LetteringandWriting

Layouts,Scribbles,andStoryboards

WatercolorIllustrations

HowMuchIsYourPictureWorth?

EverythingEnds:WhenIsaPictureFinished?

AbouttheAuthorIndex

WATERCOLORS—INOROUT?

Whenwethinkofwatercolor,manyofusimmediatelypicturesentimentallandscapesandpaintingsofruinsandpicturesquescenes.Althougheighteenth-andnineteenth-centuryEnglishartistsestablishedwatercolorasasophisticatedpaintingmedium,itoftenyieldsstrangelynegativereactionsfromcontemporaryartists.Anentiregenerationquicklyrelegatesittoahobbyist’smedium.

Yetwatercolorisfarmorethananamateur’smedium,asitrequiresintenseconcentrationandpractice.Onceit’sputonpaper,mistakesaredifficulttoremedy,andonlywhenitisappliedwithconfidencedoesithaveatrulysuccessfuleffect.Watercolorinvolvesacertaindegreeofuncertainty,butitalsoteachesustosee.

Watercolorwasthefirsttechniquetofreetheartistfromthestudiobecauseitcouldeasilybetakenoutdoors.Itrequirednotubes,easels,canvases,orsimilarimplements,onlyaboxofpaintsandpaper.Eventoday,watercolorisatoolthatfreesusfromthestudio,ourlaptops,andcountlesschargingcables.

Watercoloris,however,notjustatechnique;itisalmostanattitude.Watercoloralwaysdoeswhatitwants.Inaway,itiswillfulandanarchical.Therefore,forme,thesecrettousingwatercolortocreatepicturesliesinstrikingabalancebetweencontrolandlettinggo.Picturesareoftenonly“reallygood”whentheysurpriseus—whentheyrevealwhatwesensedandfelt,butcouldnothaveconsciouslyexpressed.Ifwesacrificetherightamountofcontrolintheartisticprocess,watercolor’sinherentqualitiesbegintoworktoouradvantage.

Thisbookhastwogoals:toteachyouwatercolortechniquesandtotellyousomethingaboutcolor.

However,itdoesnotaimtoexplain,forexample,howyoucanpaintacertainskyinfoursteps.Iseriouslydoubtwhetherreaderslearnmorefromsuchinstructionbooksthantheydobyactuallypaintingthatsky.Whatiftheskyshouldsuddenlycloudover?Instead,thisbookwishestoshowyouthebasicprinciplesofwatercolorpaints,soyoucanflexiblyapplythemtowhateveryouwanttoachieve.

Iimagineit’salittlelikelearningchordsonaguitar.Forme,itseemsimportantthatyoulearnthefingerings,butwhatsongyouplayisuptoyou.

Anddon’tworry,everythingthatweneedtoknowaboutcolorcanbelearnedwithasimpleboxofpaints.

Whetherwatercolorpaintingissophisticatedandlegitimateornotisn’tthepoint.Watercolorcangoanywhere.Itisanautonomous,free,andcreativemedium.Itmakestheworldourstudio.

Yourstruly,

APAINTINGFORTHEEMPEROR

ThisstorywaspasseddownfromancientChina.Anemissaryoftheemperorvisitedafamouspainteroneday.

Theemperordesiredapainting,theemissarytoldhim,askinghimwhetherhecouldpaintaroosterforhismajesty.Thepainterrepliedthathecoulddoso,butitmighttakehimawhile,foragoodpictureneededtime.

Now,theemissaryknewthattheemperorwasnotblessedwithmuchpatience,sohegrantedthepaintertwoweekstopainttherooster.

Whenthetwoweekshadpassed,heappearedagain.

“Whereistherooster?”heaskedthepainter,whorepliedthathewasworkingonit,butthepicturewasnotyetfinished.Theemissarycursed,butgrantedthepainteranotherweek,sincehewasawarethatthepainterwasagreatmasterofhiscraft.Forhispart,thepaintervowedtofinishtheroosterintime.However,whentheweekwasoverandtheemissaryappearedagain,thepicturewasstillnotcompleted.Theemissaryrantedandshouted,butnothinghelped.Thepainterdemandedyetanotherweektoworkontherooster.

Now,theemperorwasnotaccustomedtowaiting,andwhentheweekhadended,hearrivedinperson,accompaniedbyhisroyalhousehold,tovisitthepainter.

Heinquiredwhethertheroosterwasnowfinished.

Thepainterliftedhisfaceandresponded:Yes,indeed,theroosterwasnowfinished.Andbeforetheeyesoftheperplexedemperor,hetookanemptysheetofpaper,pickedupabrushandpaintedaroosterfortheemperor.

Theemperorwasspeechless.Hebarkedatthepainter:Whydidheallowhisemperortowaitsolongforsomethingthathecouldpainthereandnow,atthedropofahat?Thepainterremainedverycalm.Hecrossedhisstudioandopenedadoortoarearroom.And,asallpresentlookedintotheroom,theycouldseeaspaceaslargeasthe

painter’sstudiothatwasfulltotheceilingwithweeks’worthofsketches,attempts,anddraftsfortheemperor’sswiftlypaintedrooster.

Thisstoryhasagreatdealtodowithwatercolors.Watercolorinvolvestechniquesthatrequiresometimetofine-tune.Itdoesnot,however,takemuchtimetoactuallypaintwithwatercolor;itisaveryfast,immediatemedium.Nevertheless,nomatterhowlittletimeittakestopaint,it’simportanttotakethetimetopracticeandgetthehangofthetechniques.Tobefrank,thismaynotbetheadvicepeopleexpectfromawatercolorinstructionbook,which,bynature,attemptstohelpreadersachieverapid,dramaticresults.However,theChinesemaster’swatercolortechniquehasgreatpotential.AndsinceeventhegreatestChinesemasterwasnotmadeinaday,we’lljuststartoutonourwaytogether—asswiftlyaspossible.

GUMARABICWheretheWatercolorsGrow

Itishotwherethewatercolorsgrow,andifthereisonescarcecommodity,it’swater.

Sudanisoneoftheworld’sharshestregions:asemidesertregioninnortheastAfricawithsandstormsandtemperaturesthathavereachedashighas120degreesFahrenheit.

However,thesubstancewatercolorsaremadefromcomesfromtheheartofSudan,fromKordofan,Kassala,andDarfur.

Tounderstandhowpaintswork,wemustfirstlookatwhattheyaremadeof.Watercolorsareoneoftheoldestkindsofpaints,andtheirsecretliesinanamber-likeyellowsubstancethathasmadeitswayfromthefaraway,hotdeserttoourpaintboxes.We’llgettothatinabit.

Paintbeginswithpigment,amaterialthatusuallycomesinpowderformandthatvibrantlyreflectsaparticularcolor.Thispowderistheactualdyingagent.Itcancomefromaplantormineral,ametal,oranoxide.Paintcontainshundredsoforganicorinorganicsubstancesthatalloriginateinpowderform—andthusposeaproblemfortheartist,sincepowderdoesnotreadilyadheretothesupport(thatis,thepaperorcanvas).

Tobecomewhatwerecognizeaspaint,thepigmentneedsanadhesive,a“vehicle,”toholdthepainttogetherandadhereittothepaperafterdrying.

Overthecenturies,peoplehaveconstantlybeeninventingnewwaystosolvethisproblem.IntheMiddleAges,artistsusedeggyolks,towhichtheyaddedpigmentsinordertomakeeggtempera.DuringtheRenaissance,theyusedboiledlinseedoiltocreateoilpaints.

Itisactuallythevehicle,orbinder,thatdistinguishesonetypeofpaintfromtheother.Whetherapigmentisturnedintoacrylicpaintoroilpaint,whetheritispressedintoacoloredpencilortheshapeofawaxcrayondependsonthebinder.

Watercolorsaremadeofaresin,calledgumarabic,which,aswementioned,comesfromSudan.Thesmall,thornytreesfromwhichitisharvestedarecalledAcaciaseyal(redacacia)andAcaciasenegal(gumacacia).Thebarkofthetreeiscutintoatadownwardangleandreleasesamilkyjuicethatiscollectedanddried.Thisdriedandgroundresinhasservedasabinderforpaintsfromtimeimmemorial.TheancientEgyptiansalsouseditintheirmummificationprocesses,andtheChinesemixedtheirinkinit.

Tomakewatercolors,theoddhoney-coloredresinchunksaregroundanddissolvedinwarmwater,towhichpigmentpowderisadded.Watercolorpaintisbasicallystillmanufacturedinthesamemannerasitwasathousandyearsago,becausethereisnoappropriatechemicalsubstituteforgumarabic.

Gumarabicisunique:thebinderistranslucentandreflectslight.Thisintensifiestheluminosityofthepaint.Also,gumarabicisnontoxicandcanberedissolvedinwaterafteritdries.

PIGMENTSTheStuffThatDreamsAreMadeOf

Theactualdye,orwhatgivesthepaintstheircolor,isthepigment,whichisseparatefromthebinder.

Pigmentscomeasveryfinelyground,colorfulpowders.Theyarecreatedfromgroundorganicandinorganicsubstances,whicharelatermixedwithabindertomakepaint.

There’sareasonwhy,overcenturies,pigmentswerehighlycommodifiedandconsideredawell-keptsecretofpainting.Pigmentsarecolorsthat—asstrangeasitsounds—staycolorful.

Colorsareeverywhere.Flowersrepresentanarrayofcolors,asdofruits,fields,forests,thelightofsunsets,spectacularbirds,andbutterflies.Theproblemwiththesecolors,however,isthattheydonotlast.Everytimewintercomesalong,thecolorsdisappear.Whenthesungoesdown,thereisonlynight.Ifsomethinglivingdies,itscolorsfade:flowerswither,fruitslosetheircolors,and,whenfallcomes,thegreenofspringtransformsintoearthyhues.

Theideaofmixingpigmentsandgumarabictogethertomakewatercolorpaintisveryold.But

atthebeginningofthenineteenthcenturytheEnglishchemistsW.WinsorandH.Newton

werethefirsttoaddglycerintotheblendtomakethepaintsmaintainasemi-moist

consistencywhenstoredinpaintboxes.Honeyhasalsobeenknowntoachievethiseffect.

Itcanbedifficulttomakecolorsholdpermanently.Forexample,ifwesqueezearedfruit,itsjuiceisprobablyalsoredatfirst.Butthiscolor

graduallyfadesasitdries.Andifwedeliberatelyexposethedriedjuicetolight,itsbrilliancefadesmoreandmorewithtime.Itwillprobablysoonbecomebrownorgrayandwillcertainlynotglowasitdidshortlyafterpressing.

Mostcolorsfade,whichisaproblemforartistswhowanttheirsketchesandpicturestoremainluminousandvibrant.

Toagreatextent,lightisresponsibleformostpaintslosingtheircolor.Thoughpaintsmayglowinthelight,theyarealsodestroyedbyit.Ifyouexposepaintstolightandairforalongtime,theyfadeevenmorerapidly.Theeffectislesserforinorganicpigments,oxides,orearthcolors,butmanyofthesepaints,too,fadewithtime.

However,therearealso“lightfast”paintsthatresistfadingandaremadefromspecialpigments.

Pigmentscanbemadeoforganicandinorganicsubstances—ofminerals,plants,oreveninsects—andtheycanalsobechemicallymanufactured.Watercolorpaintisusuallymadeofchemicalpigmentsthataregroundparticularlyfinetoallowforoptimalglazingcapabilities.Usuallythepaintsinourpalettestodaycontainverylargeamountsofpigment,soevenintinyamounts,theyprovideanadequatepunchofcolor.

Pigmentsarethetruesoulofthepaints.Whencombinedwithgumarabic,glycerin,andhoney,theybreathelifeintoyourpictures.

Andonemorething:

Watercolorpaintsmaychangecolorastheydry.Manyshadesalteronlyslightly,sowhilethisdoesnotmeanthataredwillsuddenlyturngreen,itcan,forinstance,lookdulleronceitdries.Theonlythingthatcanhelpyouanticipatethischangeisexperience.Intime,youwillgettoknowyourpaintsbetterandwillbeabletoworkwiththeseparticularcharacteristics.

YELLOWANDORANGEOfCamelsandCrocuses

ThereisastoryaboutIndianyellowthathasmadeitswayintoalmosteverybookaboutcolor.Asthestorygoes,Indianyellowfirstcamefromcamelsthatwerefedasteadydietofmangoleavesandwerenotgivenenoughwater.

Theurineofthepoorcreatureswasthenheatedtoproduceapigmentofintenseyellowcolor,calledpurree.Thismethodwasbannedintheearlytwentiethcenturybecauseitwasinhumane.

Forobviousreasons,therehavebeenmoreandmoredoubtsaboutthistaleinrecentyears.

Forone,inIndiathestoryisunknownorknownonlyfromEuropeansources.Andsincemangoleavesdonotreallyhavedyingcapabilities,wecanassumethattheyellowcolorprobablycamefrommineralsorcalciumphosphatetowhichurinehadbeenadded.It’spossiblethatthebitaboutthecamelwasaddedtomakethepigmentmoreinterestingandthereforemoreexpensive.

Yellowisthelightestoftheprimarycolorsandthereforethemostsensitivetoblemishesandclouding.Eventhetiniestimpuritiescanmakeyellowshadesappeardirtyorweak.Forcenturies,yellowpigmentsweremadefromtoxicarsenic,cadmium,orchromium.Alternativedyes,suchassaffron(whichcomesfromthepollenofthesaffroncrocus)wereexpensive.Furthermore,onlyverywhite(andthereforeverycostly)fabricscouldbedyedyellowsincethesmallest

impuritieswouldcloudthecolor’sbrilliance.Thus,inancientChinaonlytheemperorandreligiousdignitarieswerepermittedtowearyellowrobes,whichweredyedwithsaffron.

Thenagain,inmedievalEuropethecoloryellowalsohadnegativeconnotations.Whenyellowflagswavedaboveacity,itmeanttheBlackDeathwasragingthere.

Youonlyneedtwoyellowtonesinyourpaintbox,cadmiumyelloworpureyellowandNaplesyellow.Actually,thewhitecontentofNaplesyellowmakesitbreakintoapastyhuewhenmixedwithothercolors,forming,forinstance,dramaticgraysforstormyskies.

Thestoryoforangepigmentbeginsinancienttimes,morepreciselyinthefirstcenturyADduringafireintheharborofAthens.Barrelsofwhiteleadpigmentarereportedtohaveburnedinthefire.WhentheAthensharbormastersinspectedthedamagesafterthefirewasputout,theyweresurprisedtoseethechangeinthewhitelead.Ithadturnedareddish-orangecolorandwentdowninhistoryas“redlead.”

Beautifulwomenandgladiatorsuseditasmakeup,wallswerepaintedwithit,andbookswereilluminatedwithit.Sadly,itwasdiscoveredthatredleadisextremelytoxicanditdisappearedfrompaintsetsinthetwentiethcentury.

Orangewasalsooftenmanufacturedfromsafflowersortheresinofthedragontree.Itisnotquiteclearwhetherthecolororangewasnamedafterthefruitorviceversa.ItisbelievedthatthefruitoriginatedinAsiaandwasprobablycommoninEuropeaftertheRenaissance.TheFrenchcityofthesamenamemayalsohavebeentheeponym(ithasorangesinitscoatofarms),sinceitliesclosetotheocherquarriesofRoussillon,whereorangeandredpigmentshadbeenminedforcenturies.

Foralongtime,orangewasnotconsideredacoloronitsownbutratherreddish-yellow,andwascategorizedwithoneofthesetwocolorsdependingonitssaturation.Orangedidnotdebutasanindividualcoloruntilmoderntimes,whenitwasusedextensivelyintheworksofVincentvanGoghandEdvardMunch.Orangeiseasytomix,butitisbesttohaveapremixedorangeinyoursetforfastpainting.

Tip:Yellowisverysensitivetoimpurities.Whenpainting,makesurenottodipyourbrushintoyellowifanyotherpaintisalreadyonit,anduselotsoffresh,cleanwaterwhenworkingwithyellow.

REDANDPURPLEOfBugsandSnails

Weseeredwhenlightabovethespectrumof600nanometersmeetstheconephotoreceptorcellsonourretina.

Bycontrast,thecolorred—atleastinitsmostbasicform—isfairlydown-to-earth.

RedearthcontaininganironoxidecalledhematitehasbeenusedbypeoplesincetheNeolithicera.Dependingontheshade,itcanbeeitherusedasisorburnedtomakeIndianorEnglishred.

However,brightredcannotsimplybemined.Ocherredisalwaysabitearthy,ashadebetweenrustandautumnleaves,butneverwhatwe

wouldconsiderasbrightred.Thoughitmaysoundstrange,redwasobtainedfromcochinealsformillennia—andnotfromjustafewofthesebugs,either:tomake3.5ouncesofcolor,you’dneedabout14,000cochineals,eachofwhichhadtobegatheredfromplants(usuallycertaingrassesorfromthepricklypear).Driedandpulverized,theyprovidedtherawmaterialforpurple,crimson,andscarlet.

Therubiaplantprovidedanothersourceofred.Usedsinceancienttimes,itcanstillbefoundtodayinyourwatercolorsetasalizarincrimsonorrosemadder.

Purple,whichtheRomansusedtodyetheirtogas,wasalsodifficulttoobtain.Inancienttimes,thesecretionsofasmallseasnailwereusedtocreatethepurpledyeknownasmurex.

Inthiscase,theratioofcolortoanimalwasevenlessfavorable:for3.5ouncesofdye,100,000snailshadtosacrificetheirlives.

Interestinglyenough,althoughweconsiderredawarningcolor,mostothermammalscanhardlyseeit.Humansareanexception.

Birds,however,canseeredverywell,whichcouldbewhybirdsflocktofruitthatisred.

Recommendedredsandpurplesforamedium-sizedpaintset:cadmiumred,alizarincrimson,magenta,andmanganesepurple.

BLUEOfLapisLazuli,Indigo,andWoad

Inearliertimes,bluecamefromveryfaraway.High–qualityindigocamefromIndia,and

brilliantultramarinecouldonlybeobtainedinAfghanistan.

Inthepast,blueposedaproblemforpainters,notbecauseitisamelancholycolor(there’sareasonwecallit“theblues”),butmainlybecauseoftheexpense.Nothingwasascostlyaspure,brilliantblue.Bluewasthecolorofprinces,Madonnastatuesworebluerobes,andofcoursethename“royalblue”didnotcomeoutoftheblue(pardonthepun).

Onceuponatime,purebluecouldonlybemadetwoways.Onewaywastomixtheleavesofthedyer’swoadplantwithurineandfermentthemixture.Thealternativewastoobtainthegroundpigmentofapreciousstonethatonlycamefromonesingle,inconceivablyremoteAfghanmine.Ultramarine,orlapislazuli,wasmorepreciousthangold,anditpassedthroughthehandsofmanypeoplebeforeitevenreachedpainters.

So,bluewasaproblem.Intensebluewaspracticallyunattainableanddull-blueindigoproducednauseatingsmellswhenitwasmade.StartingintheMiddleAges,indigocamefromIndia,whereavarietyofwoadwasdiscoveredthathadmuchstrongerdyingcapabilitiesthantheCentralEuropeanvariety.Thisindigoeventuallyreplacedtraditionaldyer’swoad.

Blueisirreplaceableasaprimarycolorforpainting.Inmyopinion,agoodgroupofbluestoincludeinyourpaintsetconsistsofcobaltblue,ultramarine,andindigo.Turquoiseisalsogoodtohavesinceitisadifficultcolortomixyourself.

P.S.Apersonis“blue-blooded”whentheydonothavetoworkoutdoorsinthesunandtheirveinsshinethroughtheirpaleskin.

Tip:Bluetonesareveryintenseincolorandthereforeofferyouamarvelousrangeofshades.Adarkblue(suchasindigo)canalmostlookblack,whiledelicateshadescanalmostappearwhite.Thatiswhyblueisgreatforportrayingsubtlenuancesincolor.

GREENOfPlantsandPoison

Greenisnotonlyadominantcolorinlandscapes,trees,andfields,butalsorepresentsanessentialpartofnature.

Thegreenchlorophyllcontainedinleavesproducesoxygen,makinglifeonearthasweknowitpossible.

Itishardlyanywonderthenthatgreenisconsideredasacredcolorinmanycultures.Greenisparticularlyesteemedinplaceswhereitisrareinthelandscape,suchasdesertregions.

Yet,althoughgreenisconsideredthecolorofnature,forcenturiesithasalsobeenassociatedwithsomethingdeadly.

Poisonissometimesportrayedasbeinggreen,mainlybecausegreenpigmentsusedtobemadeoftoxicmetaloxides,suchascopperoxidedissolvedinarsenic.Lickingorchewingonapaintbrushwouldhave

costpainterstheirlivesinoldendays.

TodayitisconjecturedthatNapoleon’schoiceofinteriordesignkilledhimintheend,sincethewallpaperinhishomewasgreen,treatedwithadyethatcontainedarsenic.

Usinggreenismoredifficultthanonemightimagine.Inapainting,greenthatisn’tcarefullyblendedcanquicklyappearunnatural.

Forinstance,ifyoupaintatreejustwithlightgreen,itwilllooklikeplastic.

Sotrybreakingthegreenupabit—especiallyforpaintingsofnature.Trymixingasmalldropofyelloworofgreen’scomplement,red,intothepaintandyourmeadowwillimmediatelylookmorenatural.

Tip:Adecentpaintsetrequiresatleasttwodifferentgreens.GoodonesaresapgreenandWinsorgreen.

INTRODUCINGCOLORTOSKETCHESWe’reNotinKansasAnymore

Whatisresponsibleforsuchadramaticchangewhenweswitchfromblackandwhitetocolor?Howcanweexplainthebigdifferencebetweenadrawingandpaintedpicture?

Comparedtopaintings,drawingssometimesseemoddlyaloof.Thischangesabruptlyoncecolorisadded.Colorisalive;it’semotionalandbringsustoanentirelynewplace.

TakealookatadrawingandthenatanimagewithcolorandI’msureyou’llseewhatImean.

Adrawing—andevenmoresoasketchdoneinpenorpencil—conveyssomethingthatishardtograsp,somethingthatseemsindefinite.Whencolorisadded,inamannerofspeaking,weenterthe“realworld.”

Thismaybeduetothefactthatblack-and-whitedrawingsworkona

strangelydistancedandcircumscriptivelevel.Throughlinesandoutlines,drawingdefinestheworldquitedifferentlythanpaintingdoes.Drawingremainsintherealmofplanninganddrafting.

Realityiscolorful.Withtheexceptionofhyperrealisticdrawings,thedrawingmediumservesbetterfordraftsormodelsforcoloredimages.

Paintingattemptstocreateillusion,whiledrawingmainlyexplains.

Paintingisariskymedium,butalsoawonderfulone.Colorisdemandingandenrichesourpictureswithasensualaspect.

Adrawingofacakemerelydescribesitsshape,butapaintingofacakemakesitmouthwatering.Drawingisamodel;paintingistheworld.So,let’scomeoutofhiding.

Drawingwithcoloradded.Thecookie“comesalive”inthoseplaceswherethedrawingis

emphasizedbycolors.Inadditiontocreatingasenseofspace,paintalsocreatesasensual

effect:thecookiebecomesappetizing.

FIRSTATTEMPTS

MULTIPLECHOICE

ToDesignIstoDecide

Firstandforemost,theprocessofdesigninvolvesdecisionsandunderstandinghowwemakethem.Ourresultevolvesaccordingtothepathwedecidetotake.Moreblue,moreyellow.Itisyourpictureandyoualonedecidewhatitwillcontain.

Ofcourse,that’swhatmakesdesigningapicturesodifficult.

Artistscomposeworldsandpopulatethemwithsubjects.Indoingso,theymakecountlesslittledecisions:thecolorofthesweaterorthecar,thesizesoftheindividualelements,andhowimportantsinglecolorsorshapesare.

Thus,yoursketchistheresultofaseriesofchoices.Onlyfromtheoutsideandtounknowingviewersisitaclosed,finalwork.You,however,perceiveitmoreasachainofdecisionsinthecreativeprocess.Thisistheactualdifficultyofart,becausedecisionscanbesohardtomake.

Whyisthisso?

Ourworldviewiswhatmakesdecisionssohard.Sinceancienttimes,ourwayofseeingtheworldhasbeenmarkedbypolarities.Wethinkintermsoflightanddark,goodorevil,heavenorhell.Andundertheassumptionthateverycoinhastwosides,weunknowinglydeveloptheideathatanythingbutthe“right”decisionis“wrong.”

Thereisnorightorwronginpainting.Everydesigndecisioncontainscountlesspossibilitiesandsubtleties.

Therefore,myadviceistonotthinkintermsofresults,of“finishedpictures,”butratherintermsofhundredsofminorintermediatesteps.

Onceyougetonyourway,yourpicturewillgrowonitsown.Andusuallydecisionsareonlyhardtomakeduringtheinitialstages—onceyoubegin,everythingwillseemeasierandyouwillbeamazedathoweasypaintingcanbe.Withalittlepractice,youwillcarrythiseaseinto

yournextpicture,aswell—withallitscountlessdecisions.

Jordansketchbook.

Medium:blackfine-tippenandfeltpenonpaper.Thegrayareaswereaddedquicklyand

economically.

Jerusalemsketchbook.

Inthiscase,afeltpenwasusedtofillthegrayareas(capandsweater)moreextensively.

FROMDUSKTILLDAWNShadowsandLight

It’sprettysimple:shadowsarewherenodirectlightfalls.

Thisexplainsalmosteverythingyouneedtoknowaboutpainting.

Producingasenseofspacewithwatercolormainlyinvolvespaintingtheshadows.Don’tworrysomuchaboutpaintingthelightsincethelightestcolorinawatercolorpaintingisjustthewhiteofyourpaper.Thecontoursareestablishedbyyourdrawing,andtheglazeiswhatbuildsabridgebetweenthelightandcontours.

Togetabitofpracticeandafeelforthephenomenonoftheglaze,ourfirststepisn’tjusttoswitchoffthelightwithlotsofpaint.Instead,we’llstartwithasmallshadow.

Thesimplestexerciseforthisrequiresafeltpen.

Trygivingyourexistingdrawings(inyoursketchbook,forinstance)asecondtone,amidtone,forexample.Useafeltpenoramarkerwithamedium‑grayshade(likelightgray)toaddgrayareastothesketch.Inordertoregistertheshadowsofthereal-lifesubjectyouaredrawing,trysquintingyoureyesabit.Thissimplifiesyourview,intensifiesthegrays,andmakesiteasierforyoutocopythemontothesheet.You’llsuddenlynoticehowthisenhancesyourdrawing.Theglazethengivestheseshapesasenseofspaceanddimension,andyourdrawinggainsdepth.

Tip:Onewaytodevelopagoodfeelforgrayormidtoneareasisbystudyingoldblack-and-whitephotos.

BLACKISBACKGlazingwithIndiaInk

Simplyput,Indiainkisjustlikeanoldschoolmagicmarker.

Thegrayareasamarkercanmakecanbecreatedjustaswellwithabrushanddilutedink.Notonlythat,butinkhasanadditionalunderestimatedadvantage:younolongerneedanassortmentofmarkersinvariousshades.WithIndiaink,youcansimplymixashadeyourself.Thismakesiteasytoachievevariousshadesbetweenlightanddark.Themorewateryouuse,thelightertheshade.Youcanproducecountlessgradationswithasinglepotofink.

Inthisway,Indiainkisagoodintermediatesteptowardworkingwithwatercolors,sinceitworkslikeaglazebutallowsyoutoexperimentwithshadesanddifferentvalues.

Intermsofitscomposition,Indiainkisablendofsoot,water,andabinder,suchasshellac,acrylic,orgumarabic.Toobtainblack,burntwoodorironwasused,andburntbonesandcharredivoryproducedverydeepblacktones.Forbrowns,ashfrombeechwood,calledbister,wasused.Twoother“classical”typesofinkweresepiaink—abrownmadefromcuttlefishink—andgoldinkmadefromarsenicandmercury.

Ofcourse,theserustic-soundingmaterialsarethingsofthepast.Butlittlehaschangedovergenerationsintermsofink’spracticalityandversatilityasadrawingandpaintingmaterial.

Theonlydisadvantageisthatinkstains.Maybethisiswhypaintersalwayswearblack.

LAYERFORLAYERTheGlaze

Insimplestterms,aglazecanbecomparedtoapairofsunglassesinthatitprovidesadarkerlayeroverlight.Ifyouweretoputonepairofsunglassesonoveranother,youwouldnoticethatthingsgetalittledarkerwitheachpair.Aglazebasicallyworksthesameway:weseeourdrawing(orpartsofit)throughalayerofcolor.

Thisiswhatmakeswatercolorsounique.Withanyotherpaintingmedium,thewhitespaceofthesupportissimplycoveredupbyopaquemediums.Inawatercolorpaintingorsketch,thiswhitespaceplaysanincrediblyimportant—ifnotthedecisive—roleinglazing.Thiswhitespacebecomesthelightinyourpicture,andwhatyoupaintis

theshadow.

But,let’sbackupforaminute.

Sincewatercolorsaresomewhattranslucent,wecanseenotonlythewhiteofthepaperthrougheachlayerofpaint,butalsoalloftheunderlyinglayersofcolor.Andsinceeachlayerislikeacoloredfilm,multiplelayersadduptodarkeranddarkershades.Whenwepaintthesamecolortwice,onelayeroveranother,thissamecolorbecomesdarker.Thiseffectintensifieswitheachnewlayer.

Theexamplesofthecarandthecubeillustratehowtheglazeisused.Weleavethelightest

layerwhite,paintthesecond-lightestlayer,allowittodry,andapplyanotherlayeroverthatto

createdarkerareas.

Theschoolbuswasalsopaintedusingtwolayersofyellowwatercolor.Alittlebluewasused

forthewindowpanes.

MIXINGCOLORSWITHGLAZES

Inanutshell,themaindifferencebetweeninkandpaintbecomesobviouswhenwemixcolor.

Whenweputanumberoflayersofpaintoveroneanother,thecolorintensifieswitheachadditionallayer.Thisisalsothecaseforink.

Yetpaintdoesfarmore:itblendswithothercolors.Whenwelayerwiththesamecolor,ofcoursethatcolorwillintensifywitheachnewlayer.Butwhenyouglazeusinganumberofdifferentcolors,theyinfluenceoneanotherandvisiblyblendtocreatenewhues.Inkdoesnotblendlikethisanddoesnotproduceassuccessfulresultswhenusedthisway.

GlazingistheequivalentofPhotoshop’smultiplymode.

Justimagineifyouwereworkingwithcoloredglassorcoloredtransparencies.Ifyoulaidmultiplecoloredtransparenciesontopofoneanother,theshadeswouldnotonlygetdarker,astheydowithink.Theircolorswouldblend.Abluelayerandayellowlayerlaidontopofeachotherbehavethesameasifyoumixedthepaintsonthepalette.Theymakegreen.

Thismakesworkingwithwatercolorsalittletrickyatfirst.Youneedtothinknotonlyintermsofvaluesbutalsohues,takingintoaccountthatglazesblendonpaperandcreatenewcolors.Itisthereforewisetostartwithjustafewrelatedcolors.

Withalittlepractice,you’llquicklygetthehangofitandwillbeabletoconjureupnewmixturesrelativelyquicklyandeasily.

Tip:Whentwopaintareasoverlapintheglaze,thisinfluencestheir

saturationandtheircolor,aswell.Paintsblendonpaperjustastheydoonapalette.Thatiswhyblueandyellowinthiscasemakegreen.

FISHSOUPPracticingtheGlaze

Onegoodglazingexerciseistopaintyourfavoritefood.Therearefoodsinalmosteverycolor.Thegreatthingaboutthemisthattheircolorspectrumlooksnaturaland(hopefully)notlikeplastic.Thatmakespaintingyourfavoritedishtheidealexercise.

So,whynotpaintarecipebeforecookingit?Painttheingredients,paintthekitchenutensils,andpaintthefinisheddish!Applylayerafterlayertoyourdrawings,whichwillcausethemtodevelopfurtherwitheachbrushstroke.

Youwillbeamazedathowmanycolorsfishscalesortheskinofanonion,forexample,contain.

Andwhenyoupaintyourfavoritedish,it’snotjustgoodforexerciseinpainting.Itoffersyouavisualandaculinarypleasure.

Tip:Inmostcases,twotothreelayersaresufficienttoachievecoloranddepthwithaglaze.Remembertoleteachlayerdrythoroughlybeforeaddinganother.

THEWASHThePaintDoesasItPleases!

Splish-splash.Onceyoustartusingmoreandmorewater,thingsgetreallyexciting.However,thedifficultywithturningonthetapswillbecomeobviousafteryourfirstfewstrokes:you’llfindthatthepaintdoesasitpleases.Thereisnowaytocontrolit,butitwillopenupawholenewworldofpossibilitiestoyou,ifyoujustletthepaintpaint.

Therearetwobasicwatercolortechniques:theglazeandthewash.Allotherstechniquesarebasicallycombinationsofthesetwo.

Glazing,orapplyingthepaintinlayers,involvespaintingwithcontrol.

Washingworksdifferently.Heavilydilutedpaintsimplyrefusestobehavelikeamarker.Itreliesoncoincidence.Ononepartofthepictureitdriesmorequickly;anotherformspuddles.Justasthepaintdriesirregularly,sowillirregularthingshappeninyoursketch.However,whatlookslikeanunsightlyblotchofpaintatfirstglanceactuallyrepresentsabeautifulcharacteristicofwatercolor.Whenlotsofwatercollectsinoneareaandlotsofpaintinanother,itcreatesadelicate,cloudytransitionincolorthatyoucanusetoyouradvantage.

Inreality,thisisclosertohowweperceivelight.Itisnotjustthere(ornotthere)likebulbsinourlivingroomslamps;lightofferssubtleintermediates.Applyingawashkeepsyoufromportrayingwhatyouseeinstark,choppygradationsandallowsyoutolenditdepththroughintermingling.

So,don’tbeafraidofalittlewater.

Tip:Screw-topjarsorcupsarepracticalwhenyou’reonthego,likeusedjamjarsorplasticvialsfromthepharmacy.

ONTHERUNGradedWashTechniques

Wetpaintbehavesstrangely.Itdoesn’tjustdrypredictablylikeamarkerdoes;itchanges.Sometimesitcontracts;sometimesitsimplywandersoffinitsowndirection.Anditbehavespeculiarlyindeedwhenitmeetsmorewetpaint.Paintedareasmayflowintooneanotherwhentheymeet.Thecolorsblendandformintermediateshades,createtransitionalzonesandboundaries.Inthissense,yourcolorscanmixwithoutapalette.

Thesetendenciesarepreciselywhatwerelyontocreateagradedwashinapicture.

Lightcreatesdepthbecauseitdoesnotreachallthepartsofaroomevenly.Itilluminatestheareasithits,andtheareasitdoesn’treachremaindark.Betweenblackandwhiteitformsgradationsofgraysandcolors.Wetrytomimicthisinourpaintings.Wepositioncertaincolorsnearoneanothertocreatedarkerareasand—particularlywithwatercolors—allowthewhiteofthepapertotakeontheroleoflighterareas.

Wesawinthepreviouschapterthatwecanuseglazestocreatenuancesandtransitions.Now,wewillcreateintermediatehuesbylettingareasofpaintruntogether.Itdoesn’tmatterwhetherwemixthepaintsorjustlightenonearea,perhapswithwater.Ineithercase,werelyonpaint’stendencytoactuallymovearoundthepapertocreatethetransitions.

Inpractice,thismeanslettingthepaintedareasruntogethercarefullywhereverwedesirecolorstoblend(forexample,tocreatedepthwithtwoshades).Conversely,inplaceswheretransitionswouldnotbeappropriate(likebetweenthedancer’sdressandherskin),weleavealittlebitofwhiteasaborder.

Washtechniquesinthesketchbook.

Above:DomeoftheRock,Jerusalem.

Below:ZecheZollverein,Essen.

ONCEMORE,WITHFEELING!Washes

Whenyouletthepaintsintermingle,thedifficultyliesinachievingthecorrectratioofwatertopaint.

“Easiersaidthandone,”you’llthink.

IwishIcouldjustgiveyouarecipefortheperfectmixtureofpaintandwater.Somethinglike“take2tablespoonsofwaterand4tablespoonsofpaintandwhisktogetheronhighspeedfor15minutes.”Sadly,thereisnosuchrecipe.

Again,controlisessential.Toomuchwaterisjustasuselessastoolittle.It’salsonohelpifonecolorjustwashesawaytheotherorswallowsit.

Youhavetodevelopafeelforit.It’sacombinationoflettinggoandmaintainingcontrol.Theeasiestwaytolearnitissimplytotryitagainandagain.

Youcanuseawatercolorbrushbothtoapplypaintandtoremoveit.Iusuallyhavemybrushinmyrighthandandaclothortissueinmylefthand.WheneverIwanttoaddpaint,Imixitwithwaterfirst.WhenI’veusedtoomuchpaint,Iwipemybrushdryontheclothandthenusethebrushtowicktheexcesspaintfromthepaper.Thisworkssurprisinglywell.

Tip:Watercolorpaintneedstobecarefullydiluted.Itcan’tbetoodry,butifit’stoowetitishardtocontrol.Intimeyouwilldevelopafeelfortherightamounts.

IT’SAGIVEANDTAKEApplyingandRemovingPaint

First,tryintensifyingasingleareaofpaint.Dabalittlewetpaintonjustonepartofabrushstroke.You’llsee:thecolorintensifies.Ifyouthinkthere’stoomuchwetpaintinonearea,useyourdrybrushtoremovealittlebit.Observewhatthepaintdoeswhenyouinterferewithitthisway,andletitsurpriseyou.Witheveryattempt,youlearnalittlemore.Onceyoufeelcomfortableapplyingandcarefullytakingawaypaintwithadrybrush,it’satremendouslyfastandusefultechniquetohaveinyourarsenal.Justafewstrokesandyoucanachievewonderfuleffectsofcolor,texture,anddepth.

Tip:Youcanalsodistributewetpaintbycarefullyholdingthepaperataslant.

Bycautiouslytiltingyourpainting,youcanjustletthepaintedareasflowintooneanother.

WET-ON-WET

Takingthegradedwashtechniquetotheextremeiswhatwecallwet-on-wet.

Themethodbasicallyworksexactlythewayitsounds:wetpaintisapplieddirectlytoawetsupport.Thistechniqueistypicallyusedforsubjectsthathaveblurry,fluidedgessuchassky,clouds,air,andwater.Tobehonest,wet-on-wetcanquicklylookprettykitschy.Butthereisalsosomebeautyinthevaguenessofawet-on-wetpicture,asatmosphere,color,andmoodcannotbeconveyedaswellwithanyothertechnique.

Forwet-on-wet,wecompletelywetourpaperwithwater(youcantintthewaterwithabitofcolorforabasetone,ifyoulike)andthenapplythepaintdirectlytothewetsurface.Thiscreatescloudyareasthatrequiresomepracticetocontrolandmaster.Thepaintspreadssoftly,andallofthetransitionsappearsurprisinglynatural.Themaindifficultyofwet-on-wetisclarifyingalloftheshapes’contoursandmakingthewishy-washinesssolidagain.

Howdowedothis,then?

Onewayistowaitforthemomentwhenthepictureisjustalmostdrytosolidifytheshapesusingyourbrush.

Anothertried-and-truemethodistoleavelittlewhitepathwaysbetweenareasofpainttokeepthemfromconverging.Butthesimplestwayistoemploywet-on-wetduringyourpicture’sprimarystages.Youcreateacloudy,vagueatmospherefirstwiththistechnique,andthenafteritdries,youcontinuewiththemorespecificaspectsofyourpainting.Wet-on-wetwillbecomeavaluedfriendinyourquestforbetterpaintings.

Tip:Withthewet-on-wettechniqueinparticular,you’llnoticethat,whenwet,thewatercolorpaintappearstoglowfarmore.Thisistypicalforwatercolorpaint.However,itwilllosesomeofitsintensitywhenit’sdry.It’sbesttorecognizethisrightawayandusealittlemorepaintfromthestart.

Cloudswet-on-wet.Colorsused:ultramarineandindigoforthesky,verydilutedblendof

umberandultramarinefortheshadowsoftheclouds.

FishmarketinKorea.

Forthispicture,Ifirstwettheentiresurfaceandusedawet-on-wettechniquetoletthecolors

runontoit.Ileftdetailslikethewoman’sfaceortheletteringwhiteatfirstandcoloredthemin

later.

COMBININGTECHNIQUESALittleBitofThisandThat

Ifyouonlyrelyonthesetwomaindirectionsofwatercolorpainting,you’llsoonrealizethatonetrumpetedtechniqueonitsownwon’tsuffice.Bynow,youcanprobablyascertainthatboththeglazeandthewashhavetheiradvantages,buttheydonotofferthebestsolutionforeverypainterlyproblem.

Washingisafantasticmeansofcreatingtransitionsandforcingcolorstomingle.Butglazingisfarmoresuitedformarkingoffandtreatingspecificareasorportrayingtextures.

What’stobedone?

Mysolutionistothrowtheideaof“onetechniqueonly”overboard.You’llreachyourgoalmuchsoonerbycombiningthetwo.So,myadviceistoforgetpuretechniqueandtryalittlebitofthisandthat!

Afteritdries,awashcanusuallystandupverywelltoanotherglazedlayer.Addingaglazeelaboratesandaccentuatesasubject.Italsodoesyourpicturesomegoodtoallowthepreciseboundariesoftheglazedlayertorunintosomeneighboring,wet,washyareaseverynowandthen.

Itmayseemunorthodoxatfirstglance,butalternatingbetweenthetwomaintechniquesiswhatbringswatercolorstolife.

Tip:Combinethewashandglazetechniques.

Intheexampleshownpreviously,awashwasappliedandlateraccentuatedwithglazedelements.

EXCURSIONINCOLORTHEORY

WHEREDOCOLORSCOMEFROM?

TheSimpleScience

Colorscancaressusorassaultus.Theycanpileuptocreatesunsetsorevenjackupthepriceofacar.Colorsarenothinglessthanwonderful,andyetthequestionofwhatcolorsactuallyareoftenremainsunanswered.

Whatmakesupthestuffthatbringsourworldtolife?

It’sscience.Sunlight,theby-productofahydrogenfusionthatoccursattensofmillionsofdegreesFahrenheit,containsamixtureofelectromagneticwaves.Sunlightfirstarriveshere,justlikeheatorultravioletrays,aspartofawaveofenergy.Thecolorsweseecomefromtheseelectromagneticwaves.Theyareminusculeelementsthatdashthroughspaceasbitsofalargerwaveandthat,uponmeetingoureyes,triggerelectricalsignalsinouropticnerves.Butwhatdetermineseachcolor?Whyisanapplered?Whyistheseablue?

Afteritsjourneythroughspace,thelightarriveshereasanenergywavewithavisibleandaninvisiblespectrum.Theentirevisiblepartofthiswaveappearswhiteatfirst.Colorsenterthisspectrumwhenitmeetsasurface.Itmaymeetawatermoleculeorapieceofcarbon,orperhapsthatapple.Thelightraythatwasoriginallywhiteisnoweitherabsorbedorreflected.Sometimesonlypartsofthelightrayarethrownback.Andthosearethecolorswesee.Whentherayoflightisswallowedupentirely,thesurfaceslookblacktous;whenitisthrownbackcompletely,thesurfacesappearwhite.Butwhenpartsoftherayoflightarereflected,weseeaparticularcolor.Everyrayoflightconsistsofallcolors,which,alltogether,lookwhite.Whenasurfaceswallowsupallofthepartsofanarrivingrayandthrowsback,forinstance,justtheblueparts,weseeblue.Weonlyseetheelementsofthelightraythatarenotabsorbed.

Therefore,colorsdependonsurfacestructuresthatabsorblightraysdifferently.Itmaybehardtoimagine,buteverythingaroundusislitupbybillionsoftinyelementsthathurtlethroughspaceandilluminateourworld—or,toputitmorepoetically,that,dependingonwhatthey

reach,burstintored,blue,oryellow.

Itmaysoundlikeaplatitude,butforacoupleofreasons,thereisabigdifferencebetweenthecolorsweseeandthecolorsweusetopaint.Thisisanotherbitofphysics:luminouscolorandnonluminouscolor,orsurfacecolor.

Wecanseethatwhitelightcontainseverycolorwhen,onitswaythroughtheclouds,itbreakstoformarainbow.Throughthisrefraction,ittransformsintoeverypossiblecolor.

Butthereflectionandabsorptionoflightwavesdonotexplaineverything.Intermsofphysics,coloredlightandthecolorsweuseforpaintingareverydifferentthings.

Mixingdifferentcolorsofpaintexplainsthedifference.Whenyoumixpaintswithoneanother,youwillnoticethateverytimeyouaddadifferenthue,themixturegetsdarker.Themorecolorsyouuse,themoreyourresultwilllooklikeadarkgrayish-browngravy(inreality,ifyoumixedallthepaintsinyourbox,you’dendupwithalmostblack).

Strangelyenough,coloredlightbehavesexactlytheotherwayaround.

Ifyouweretomixcoloredlight,allthecolorsofthespectrumwouldultimatelyunitetocreatewhitelight.

Thismaysoundodd,butitexplainsagreatdealaboutthestructureofcolors.Lightisenergy.Whenyoukeepaddingadifferentcoloroflight,justasanilluminatedroombecomesbrighter,thecolorspectrumbecomesmorecomplete,producingbrightwhite.

Asmentioned,it’sthecompleteoppositeforcolorsthatconsistofasubstance—likeanappleorthepaintsinourset.Theircolorisdeterminedbythespecificpartsoftheoriginallightwavethatarereflected.Remember,coloriswhat’sleftoverwhenpartoftheoriginalrayisabsorbed.Whenwemixpaint,weareaddingtothesubstancethatabsorbsthespectrum.This,ofcourse,leadstoevenmoreofthespectrumbeingabsorbed,whichmakesthecolorsdarker.

Enoughtheory.

I’llletyouinonasecret.Thesecrettounderstandingcolorsisnotsomuchknowingabouttheirstructureorthewaytheycomeintothisworld.Thesecrettousingcoloristounderstandthewayweperceive

themandwhattheymeantous.Theoryremainstheoretical,butpracticeiscolorful.

Tip:Thedifferencebetweenluminousandnonluminouscolorsisillustratedbyprinting.Theblendedcolorsonourscreensareadditive,orablendofluminouscolors.Colorsprintedorpaintedonpaperaresubtractive,orablendofnonluminouscolors.

ARRANGINGCOLORS

ThefirstprintedcolorwheeloriginatedinEnglandinthelateMiddleAges.ItwasactuallypublishedinamedicaltextbookbyRobertFludd,whorecommendedusingthecolorwheeltoobserveabnormalitiesinpatients’urine.

WehavethestudiesofIsaacNewtontothankforatrueunderstandingofcolors.Newtonwasthefirsttoattributecolortolight,andhiscolorwheelfromOptickswaspublishedin1704(seefollowingpage).Hearrangedtheprimarycolorsinacircle,placingthecomplementarycolorsbetweeneachprimary,therebyinventingaverymodern-lookingcolorwheel—butitcontainedanasymmetricalsevencolors.

Largedetail:ColorwheelaccordingtoGoethe,1809.

Inset:Newton’scolorwheelfrom1704.

Bycomparison,theoften-citedsymmetricalcolorwheelbyGoetherepresentedsixcolors.Allhislife,Goethe,who,bytheway,consideredhisworkinnaturalsciences—nothispoetry—hismagnumopus,vehementlyopposedNewton’steachings.Hecontestedthatcolorsareassociatedwithemotionalstates(“Reasonandgoodnessareyellow”),which,althoughaninterestingbodyofthought,hasn’tgainedwide

respect,sinceweperceivecolorssosubjectively.Newtonwascertainlyontherighttrackwithhispurelyscientificassessmentofcolors.Termslikebeautyandaestheticshavealottodowiththeculturewelivein.Forexample,ourcolorofmourningisblack,whereasinJapan,whiteisworntosymbolizeloss.

So,whydoweneedasystemfororganizingcoloratall?

Alookatyourpaintsetwillanswerthatquestion.Systemsfacilitatethework.Thecolorwheelisagreataid.Itoffersasimple,easy-to-graspsystemfromwhichwecanaccuratelyderivecolorcontrastsandcolorharmonies.Forinstance,complementarycolorsarealwaysoppositeeachotheronacolorwheel.

Inaddition,mostcolorharmonysystemsarealsobasedonthecolorwheel.

Thecolorwheelnotonlyorganizes,italsomapsourhumanperceptionofcolors.

ThemostusefulcolorwheelforourpurposeswasinfluencedbytheBauhausteacherJohannesItten(seeabove).Hismodelconsistsofthethreeprimarycolorsofred,yellow,andblue,andtheircombinations(secondarycolors)oforange,green,andpurple.Theouterringalsocontainsthecombinationofprimaryandsecondaryhues,calledtertiarycolors.Forourwork,however,thesimplifiedmodelontheleftherewithsixcolorswilldojustfine.

Wewillcomebacktothatlater.

Above,left:Simplifiedcolorwheelmadeofprimaryandsecondarycolors.

Above,right:Itten’sColorwheel.Theprimarycolorsareinthemiddleandnexttothemarethe

secondarycolorssurroundedbyacircleofprimary,secondary,andtertiarycolors.

OPPOSITESATTRACTColorContrasts

Contrastscreatedifferencesthatarehighlynoticeable—largeandsmall,coolandwarm,blackandwhite.

So,whatdocontrastshavetodowithpainting?Firstofall,wecanusethemtocreateemphasisinoursketches.Thinkaboutit;agiantdoesn’tlook“reallybig”untilweplacehimnexttoachild.Wecanonlyproduceareallydarknightifit’spairedwithastarrysky.Inotherwords,wemakeuseofopposingelementstomakethemintensifyeachother.Forpaintsthatarenotverystronglypigmented,likewatercolorpaint,thisisagoodtrick.

Complementarycolorsintensifyeachother.So,ifwewanttopaintastrongorange-coloredsunset,wesimplyneedtoaddsomecomplementaryblueintheforegroundshadows,andtheorangebeginstoglow.Redstrawberrieslookmuchfresherwithgreenstemsandleaves.Andatinyspotofpurpleconsiderablyenhancesasketchdominatedbyyellowsandoranges.Whenweputcomplementarycolorsnexttoeachother,therefore,theyintensifyeachother’shue

andbrilliance.Thus,contrastsservenotonlytodifferentiate,butalsotoinfluencecolors’effectsinasketch.

Havingsaidthis,directlymixingcomplementarycolorstogetherdetractsfromthisilluminatingeffect.Ifwemixredandgreen,theyturnintoadarkbrown;purpleandyelloworblueandorangealsoresultingrayish-browntones.It’sasiftheintenseeffectofcomplementarycolorsiscompletelyreversedoncethehuesaremixed;asneighbors,complementarycolorsintensifyeachother.Whenmixed,theyeliminateeachother.

Incolortheory,thereareseventypesofcontrasts,“themagnificentseven,”whichyoucanusetoenhanceandilluminateyoursketches:

1.Light-darkcontrastistheeffectofcontrastingbrightnesses,especiallyforblack,white,andgrays.

2.Cool-warmcontrastistheeffectofcontrastingwarmandcoolcolorsinthesamecomposition.

3.Purecolorcontrastisthecontrastingeffectbetweenpurecolorsthathavenotbeenmixedwithothers.

4.Qualitycontrastistheeffectcreatedbysurfacesthataretreateddifferently,forexampleluminousandclouded,saturatedandunsaturated,definedandblurred,etc.

5.Quantitycontrastistheoppositionbetweencoloredsurfacesofdifferentsizes.

6.Simultaneouscontrastisthereciprocaleffectthatadjacentcolorshaveoneachother.

7.Complementarycontrastistheintensifyingeffectofcomplementarycolorsplacednexttoeachother.

Tip:Complementarycolorsarethosethatweperceiveasthemostdissimilar,whichiswhytheysitoppositeoneanotherinthecolorwheel.

FROMSOUTHPARKTOSTOPLIGHTSTypesofColor

Whenwetalkaboutcolors,it’sworthwhiletofirstexaminethewayswecanusethem.Basically,wedifferentiatebetweenthreebasictypesofcolor:localcolor,iconographiccolor,andtruecolor.

Firstthingsfirst.Localcolorprovidesyouwiththesimplestwaytowork.Localcolorcreatesasimple,graphicpictureandisnotgradated

withanyshadowsthatmightcreatedepth.Lightandshadowareignored.Thegrassisgreenandtheskyisblue.Comicstypicallymakegreatuseoflocalcolor.ScroogeMcDuck’sredjacketisjustaflatred.Itisnotsubjecttolightorshadowandisnotmodifiedinvariousdifferentshades.Similarly,therocketonHergé’scoverortheclothingontheSouthParkkidsdoesnotappearindifferentshades.Thecoloroftheobjectissimplytransferredtwo-dimensionallytothepicture,unchanged.

Usinglocalcolorisagoodwaytoworkwhenwewanttokeepthingssimplebutstillcreateadramaticeffect,orwhenwejustdon’thavethetimetomixpaints.

Intermsofeffort,localcolorgivesyouthemostbangforyourbuck;itissimplebutstillconveysahighdegreeofaccurateinformationaboutyoursubject’ssurface.

Thesecondtypeofcolor,iconographiccolor,headsentirelyintheotherdirection,unconcernedwithacolor’soutwardappearance.Instead,iconographiccolortapsintoahue’ssocialsignificance(theGreekwordeikonmeanspicture,thewordgrapheinmeanstowrite).

Iconographiccolorisanolderprinciplethatinterestinglyseemsbotharchaicandmodernfromtoday’sperspective.

Thiskindofcolorismoreaboutthemeaningofcolorsthantheactualappearanceofasubject.Iconographiccolorconnectshuestocontentormeaning.

Forexample,inmedievaltimes,bluewasthemostvaluablepaint.Bluewasmorethanprecious;itcamefromthefarawaylapislazuliminesofAfghanistan,whichiswhythispigmentwasasexpensiveasgoldintheMiddleAges.Italsoimpliedquality.Kingsworeblue(whichiswherethetermroyalblueoriginates).Inimagesfromthistime,theVirginMaryalwayswearsabluerobe.Goldwasalsousedinmedievalpaintingsandwasnotsimplygoldcolored—artistspaintedwithgolddust.Therefore,inpaintingsfromthisperiod,weassociateblueand

goldwithrichopulenceandlight.Bylinkingthecolortoameaning,weopenanotherlevelofinterpretationtotheviewer.

Thisprinciplestillexiststoday.Considerpoliticalcolors,colorsofmourning,orthingslikered-lightdistrictsandgreentrafficlights.They

areallexamplesoficonographiccolor.

TRUECOLORTheEffectofLight

Thingsgetmorecomplicatedwithtruecolor.Weusetruecolorwhenwepaint“properly,”orattempttoportrayrealityasitappears.Colorsherearenotmerelyflatareas;theyaresubjecttotheinfluenceofthelight.Basically,allpaintingsincetheRenaissancehasaimedtocapturetheillusionoflightandspace,makinguseoftruecolor.

ThepaintingGirlwithaPearlEarring,below,isaclassicexampleofthis.Itdemonstratestheinfluenceoflightoncolor,andtheartist’sthetrueimpressionofeach.

Deceptivelyrealisticportraitsaregenerallycreatedfromstudiesofrealmodelsandnotthe

imagination.Adheringtothispracticeteachesustoobserveandsee.

Truecolorsoundssimpleatfirst,butitcanbesubjective,sinceweallhaveaveryclearideaofhowthingsshouldlook.

Andasoddasitsounds,howwethinkthingsshouldlookoftenhasverylittletodowithreality.

Itiscleartousthatatomatoisredandthatithasagreenstem,andweactuallyriskpaintingitjustthatway.Ifwedoso,itwillenduplookinglikeplastic.Alltoooftenwepaintthingsonlyasweimaginethemtobeandnotasweexperiencethemfromobservation.Learningtoseeasapainterisaterrificstart.Truecolorforcesustolook.Inreality,colorsarenotflat,delineatedfieldsastheyarewhenweuselocalcolor.Ifyoulookcarefully,youwillascertainthatthewayacolorlooksreallydependsontheinterplayoflightandshadow.Theredofthetomatoisnotjustred.Perhapstheskinofthetomatotendsalittletowardpurpleintheshadowarea,andperhapsthegreenofthestemisnotjustgrassgreenbutratherreflectstheothercolorsaroundit.Colorcontrastsinparticulardon’tlooklikecutoutsfromdisparatesources.Inreality,theyworktogether.Ifyouaddtheseobservationsofrealitytoyourpictures,theywillbegintohavealifeoftheirownandseembelievableandharmonious.Ofcourse,paintingsarenotphotographs…

Exampleoftruecolor.

Thecolorsareapproachedastheyareseen.

EVERYCOLORTELLSASTORYIntensifyingYourSketches

Let’sfaceit.Noonecanforceyoutoapplycolorstoasketchexactlythewayyouseethem.

Thisisoneoftheadvantagesofpaintingoverphotography.Ofcourse,you’llwanttotogivetheformalelementsofyourpicturealittleboost.Butthenagain,everythingthatyouportrayismorethanitsoutwardform,itssurface.Everychaircantellastory,everylandscapecanconveyamood.So,itmakessensetointensifynarrativecomponentsofapicture,andcolorisagreatplacetostart.

Allowthecolorstotellussomething.Inreality,thewomanintheexampleontheleftprobablydidnothavesuchblazingredhair,andthemandrinkinginthesketchbookontherightprobablydidnothavesucharedmouth.Butinartthatisnottheissue.Evenifthecolorinasubjectisnotreallyasbrightredasitseems,exaggeratingyourperceptionmayhelptoconveyit.It’smerelyaquestionofwhatitmeanstoyou.Perhapsintensifyingacolormakessenseinyoursketchandtellsavisualtruththataphotographwouldn’thavebeenabletoconvey.

Yoursketchismadesolelyfromfragmentsthatremainfromyourimpressions.

Exact,verifiable“reality”doesnotexistforevenonebatofaneye.

Whenyouheadhome,thebirdwillhaveflownaway,thelightwillhavechanged,andnoonewillreappeartocheckhowredtheredreallywas.Whatmattersishowyouperceiveit.Ifyouwanttomeasure,weigh,orcount,thenartisnottherightmediumforyouanyway.

Sograspthemomentbeforeitfliesaway,takingallitscolorswithit.

Apagefrommysketchbookdrawnintheweehoursatawinebar.Evenifthemandidnot

havesucharedcomplexioninreality,itmakesnarrativesensetodescribeitthiswayinthe

picture.

IT’SALLRELATIVETheEffectsofColors

IfIweretoaskyoutopaintpassion,emotion,andwarmth,youwouldprobablycreateapicturedominatedbyred.Redstandsforfeelingandwarmth.Redisthecoloroflove.Strangelyenough,though,youwouldprobablybelievemeifIalsotoldyouthatredcansymbolizehate,violence,andaggression.

Acontradiction?

Thesamegoesforgreen.Ofcourse,greenstandsforhope,harmony,andreliance.Greenisgenerallyconsideredthecolorofspringandrejuvenation.Ontheotherhand,poisonisusuallydepictedasgreen,asareinexperienceornaïveté.Let’stakeblue:clarity,loyalty,butalsodepression?

Uponcloseinspection,allthatwethoughtwehadlearnedaboutcolorbecomesparadoxical.Whycancertaincolorssimultaneouslyevokestarklyoppositefeelings?

Theansweractuallyliesintheothercolorsinacomposition.Whetherredisaggressiveorgreenishopefulisnotaquestionofthosehuesalone.Colorsmayhaveeffectsontheirown,buttheirsurroundingcolorsstronglyinfluencehowweperceivethem,too.So,whetherredisaggressiveornotdependschieflyonwhataccompaniesit.Nexttopink,forinstance,redsmilesatusinafriendlyway.Butnexttoblackithitsushard.

Ourevolutionaryhistorymayofferonepossibleexplanationforthis.Bynature,wearenotreallyprogrammedtoperceivecolorsinisolationbecausetheypracticallyneveroccurinnatureontheirown.Theyarealmostalwaysincorporatedincomplexrelationships.Thered,forexample,ofacherryonacherrytreeisconnectedtothegreenofthe

leavesorthebrownofthetreetrunk.Whetherredappearsasbloodinawoundorastheredofaflameinthefire,acolor’senvironmentisalwaysdifferent.Hence,dependingoncontext,ahuecansignalpositiveornegativeassociations.Thisisalsowhatalwaysmakeslookingatindividualcolorsstrangelyabstract.Whencolorsaredetachedandremovedfromothers,theybecomeablankcanvasforourthoughtsandcaninvokeanykindoffeelinginus.Bycontrast,ifcolorsareinterwovenwithhuesorimages,theyconnoteassociations.Colorrelationshipssubstantiatethingsinapicture.

Thisexplainswhyredcanmeanloveaswellashate—enoughreasonforustotakeacloserlookatcolorcontexts.

Noone,notevencolor,isanisland.

Tip:Theperceptionofbeauty—andofbeautifulcolorcontexts—isalsolinkedtoculture.InAsiaorIndia,verydifferentcolorcompositionsareconsideredbeautifulthan,say,inScandinavia.Coloralwaysdependsontheindividualwithinagreaterculturalcontext.

COLORHARMONIESSimpleandComplex

So,whatcolorsgotogether?Asitdoesforalloflife’sburningquestions,theInternethasanastonishinglysimpleanswer:colorgenerators.Onsomesites,youcanentercertaincolorsandaprogramgeneratesthecolorstogowiththem.Looksgoodandworksfine.

Basically,Icanquitwriting.

Ifweareonlyworkingwithcoloronacomputermonitor,thesegeneratorsreallydowork,asdomixingtablesorusingcolorwheels.

Inreallife,though,forrealpictures,theseonlyaidus.Paintingsarenotamatterofjustcomposingafew,calculatedcolorareas;rather,theyinvolvecomplexcolorsystems.

You’llnoticethisrightawaywhilesketching.Yourpicturechangeswitheverybrushstroke.Forinstance,whenyouapplyasecondcolornexttoonethat’salreadythere,theeffectofthefirstchangesimmediately.Relatedcolorscalmoneanother;complementarycolorsintensifyeachother.

Thingssuchascolorintensityandthesizeofacolorareaplayamajorroleinpainting.

Inanutshell,whenpainting,you’lldealwithcomplexcolorsystemstowhichdigitaltoolscanonlybrieflyintroduceus.

Colorwheel.

Diskmadeofcardboardformixingcolors.Witha“harmonygenerator”ontheotherside

(triadic,tetradic,andsplit-complementary).

Inspiteofallthistheory,Iliketothinkofcolorasafeeling.Theworldisnotmadeupofflatsurfaces,blueprints,andcalculatedmechanicalsketches;itismadeupofodors,sounds,textures,andflavors.

Theworldismadeupoflightandofcolor.

Therefore,let’sfirsttakealookatcolorharmonies,startingwiththosemostfrequentlyencounteredinpainting.

Internetcolorgenerator(monochromatic).

ANALOGOUS,MONOCHROMATIC,ANDCOMPLEMENTARYHARMONIES

Theeasiestwaytocreateharmoniouscolorsinacompositionissimpleandingenious:useasfewcolorsaspossible.Youcan’tmakemistakeswithjustonecolor.Forexample,youcancombinealighterordarkerhuewithyourmaincolor.

Thiscreatesmonochromaticharmony.

Icanguaranteeyouthatthisalmostalwaysproducesharmoniouscolors.Icanalsoguaranteethatthisalmostalwayslooksveryunspectacular.Monochromaticpicturesusuallylookliketheywerepaintedinthefog.

Itwillcertainlymakeitmoreinterestingifyoucombineyouronemaincolorwithtwoorthreeneighboringcolorsthatarenexttoone

anotheronthecolorwheel.Thesearecalledanalogousharmonies.Whenoneofthesehuesdominatesslightlyovertheothers,thiscombinationverysoonappearsharmonious.

Butyouneedn’tonlypositionrelativesforalovelyfamilyportrait.Oppositescanalsolookgood.Ifyouusecomplementarycolorsindifferentproportions(likeasmallredladybugonabiggreenleaf),theeffectcanappearharmonious.Transitioningbetweencomplementaryhuesalsoproducesharmonies(seenintheexampleatleft,thedarknessseparatesthecomplementarycolorsblueandorange).

Itmaybeabittrickytowrapyourheadaroundcomplementaryharmonies,buttheireffectissurprisingandenchanting.

Tip:Onevariationoncomplementaryharmonyissplit-complementaryharmony.Insteadofrelyingonacolor’scomplement,split-complementarysystemsusethecolorstotherightandleftofthecomplementarycolor(astheyappearonacolorwheel).Forexample,asplit-complementtriadcouldbegreenwithred-orangeandred-purple.

ThecolorationoftheMayastatueincludesjustonehue.Thatiswhywecallita

monochromaticharmony.

TRIADICANDTETRADICHARMONIES

ThesetermssoundlikesomethingoutofStarWars.Butnoneedtopanic!

Theominous-soundingwordstriadicandtetradiconlymeanthatthecolorsinvolvedareatevenintervalsfromoneanotheronthecolorwheel.Triadicharmoniesinvolvethreecolors,andtetradicharmoniesinvolvefour.

Justimagineatriangleorasquareinthemiddleofthetwelve-colorwheel(whichincludestheprimary,secondary,andtertiarycolors).Eachcornerorpointwouldlieoncolorsthatareharmoniouswithoneanother.

Inpractice,thissimplymeansthatcolorsthatareallspacedthesamedistancefromoneanotheronthetwelve-colorwheelresultinmoreharmoniouscolorspectrumsthanthosearrangedatdifferentdistancesfromoneanother.

Onemorething:

Inspiteofallofthiscolortheory,therearealwaysthingsthateasilyfitintoanyscheme.Evengarishcolorscanlookgorgeousintriadic,tetradic,andanalogousharmonies.

Inmyopinion,alotofthisissimplyamatteroftasteanddependsonwhatandhowwepaint.Perhapsagaudilycoloredpageofbutterfliesisbeautifulandharmonioussimplybecausebutterflieshappentobebeautifulandharmonioussubjects,nomatterwhatcolorwepaintthem.

Sodon’talwaysplaybytherules.Ifyouheadoutontheroadequippedonlywithcolortoolsandmixingwheels,youmightmisssomereallybeautifulsights.

Tip:Oneruleofthumbisthatiftwocolorsproduceadullbrownorgraycolorwhenmixed,it’sactuallylikelythattheyharmonizequitewellwhenseparate.

COOL-COOLANDWARM-WARMHARMONIES

Thetermscoolcolorsandwarmcolorsaresomewhatmisleading.Ofcourse,suchcolorsarenotactuallycoolorwarmtothetouch;theyjustseemthatwaytous.However,studieshaveshownthatroomspaintedwithredororangehuesactuallyfeelafewdegreeswarmertopeoplethanwhiteroomsdo.Likewise,inblueorgreensurroundingswetendtofeelcolderregardlessoftheactualroomtemperature.

Thisreactionis,again,probablyaresultofourevolutionaryprocess,passeddowntousbyourancestorssittingbythefire:Colorsthatremindusofsourcesofheatsimplyseemwarmertous.Colorsthatremindusofsnow,water,orrainseemcool.Thisappliesprimarilytothecolorsthemselves:red,orange,andyellowhaveawarmereffectonusperse.Therearealsocolorswithineachfamilythathaveeitheracoolerorwarmereffect.Therearebluesthatappearwarmer(forexample,red-tingedultramarine)andbluesthatappearcooler(forexample,blueshadesthatshimmerturquoise).

Whenyoubuyasetofwatercolorstheyarealreadyarrangedincoolandwarmhues.Thereisusuallyacoolandawarmrepresentativeofeachcolor.

Weoftentakeadvantageofthewarmandthecooleffectsofcolorswhenwewanttocreateaspecificmoodinourpictures.Obviously,wetendtochoosewarmcolorstocreateafriendly,cozyatmosphere.Or,forinstance,ifweneedacrisporsubduedmood,wemightusecoolercolors.

Keepthissimpleruleinmind:Coolcolorsalwayslookharmoniouswhencombinedwithothercools.Warmcolorsareharmoniouswithotherwarms.

COLLECTINGCOLORS

Colorharmoniescannotonlybestudiedasanaspectofcolortheory,butcanalsobefoundbythewayside.It’salittlelikethewayJackaccidentallydiscoversagiant’shouseinthesky(nottomentionhisriches)inJackandtheBeanstalk.

Watercolorscaneasilybeusedtosketchcolorharmonies,andyouwilldiscovercombinationsalmosteverywherethatareworthsaving.Justlikethesketchesinyoursketchbooks,thesecanlaterbedevelopedfurtherinotherworks.Keepastockofpotentialcolorcombinationsthatyoulikeinyoursketchbook,andtryrecyclingsomeinnewpicturesandsketches.

Ithinkofitlikerememberingthemelody(orachord)fromacertainsongandplayingitlaterwithnewlyrics(there’sareasontheyarecalledcolor“harmonies”).

So,goget’em.Findingbeautiful,excitingcombinationsisfreeofcharge.Yousimplyhavetoopenyoureyes.

Tip:Ofcourse,youcanalsocollectcolorharmoniesfrommagazines,photographs,orpaintings.Whentheyaretakenoutofcontext,somethingcompletelynewwillbecomeofthem!

DESIGNINGCOLORHARMONIESWorkingwithColorCodeStrips

Ofcourse,youcanalsoinventyourowncolorharmonies.Colorcodesgiveyouasnapshotofacolorschemeforquickreference.Theseareextremelyusefulandareoftenusedinfilmproduction(forinstance,totesttheeffectofaset’scolorschemeinadvance).Colorcodesarecolumnsofadjacentbrushstrokes,eachrepresentingadifferentcolorinyouroverallscheme.

Especiallywhenyouareplanningapainting,adesign,oranillustration,itishelpfultohavetakennotesofcolorssothatyoudon’thavetodesignthecolorschemesdirectlyonthepreparatorydrawing.Instead,try“rehearsing”yourpicturefirst.

Beginwithafewstripsofthecolorsthatyoudefinitelyplantouse,andthengraduallyaddothercolorsthatyouthinkareharmonious.It’sbesttousetwosheetsofpaper:onesheetofscratchpaperformixingcolorsandtryingthingsout,andoneforyourcolorcodes.Theharmonyproducedcanthenserveasthemodelforyouractualpicture.

Tip:Theadvantageofcolorcodes,or“colorbarcodes,”isthatyoucansee,inadvance,whichcolorsharmonizenexttooneanotherandwhicharedissonant.

Thecolor–code–striptechniquenotonlyallowsyoutotestthecolorcombinationsinadvance,butitalsoletsyoudeterminehowmuchofeachcolorwillappearinapicture.Afewmorestripsofthesamecolorinyourcolorcodesimplyimplieslargercolorareasinyourlaterpicture.

You’llrealizejusthowpreciousscrappaperiswhenyoustartcreatingcolorcodes.

Tip:Havescratchpaperonhandforthis.Settingupcolorharmoniesinadvancemakesyourworkaloteasier.

GETTINGOUTOFYOURCOLORCOMFORTZONE

Justlikehavingfavoritemusicorafavoritefood,weallalsohavefavoritecolorsthatweliketouseagainandagain.I,forexample,loveindigo;IlikeNaplesyellow,red,mountainblue,andturquoise.

Havingfavoritecolorsandcolorharmoniesisnatural;allartistshavetheirownpersonalpalettes.Justtakealookinyourbox:Whichpaintsdoyoualwayshavetoreplaceandwhichoneslastforever?Favoritecolorsaretheoneswhosetraysortubesarealwaysempty.

Ononehand,colorpreferenceisamatteroftaste,butitalsohassomethingtodowithcomfort:wefeelateasewithfamiliarcolors.And,thethingaboutcomfortzonesisthatwedon’tliketoleavethem.Becauseofthis,“elsewhere”remainsunexploredtous,andwedon’ttrytovisititmorefrequently.

Comfortzonesareunderstandablebutdangeroustoartists.Ifwetakealookaround,ofcoursewerealizethatother,unfamiliarcombinationsofcolorsalsolookmagnificent.

Myadviceisforyoutodeliberatelytakeadetournowandthenfromthehighroadofyourfavoritecolorsandtrythebackroads.Allowfashion,films,ormagazinestolendyounewideas;takealookatthecolorharmoniesofotherartistsorborrowsomefromnature.

You’llseethatunfamiliarcolorharmoniescanbeinspiringandopenupnewvistastoyou.

Ifyougetreallystuck,simplyswappingpaintsetswithsomeonecanbeagreatexperience!

Ipaintedthisbeachscenewithanotherartist’swatercolorsand,therefore,hercolorpalette.

THEBLUERIDGEMOUNTAINSColorandPerspective

Howdoyouportraysomethingfaraway?Howaboutsomethingupclose?

Forgetlinearperspective;coloralsooffersusanopportunitytoconveydistance.

TaketheexampleoftheBlueRidgeMountainsintheAppalachiansortheBlueMountainsofNewSouthWales,oranynumberofrangesaroundtheworldthatarecalled“blue”mountains.Technicallyspeaking,theyshouldbecalledthePaleBlueMountains.You’veprobablyseenpicturesofthem:amountainchaininthebackground,faraway,blurred,blue,andsoftlyoffsettingtheclearcontoursintheforeground.Whydotheylooklikethat?Aren’ttheslopesthemselvesbrownandgreen?

SketchbookfromFrance,Côted’Azur.Themountainsofthecoastlineappearpalebluefroma

distance.

Physicsofferstheexplanation.Aswediscussedearlier,lightisablendofelectromagneticwavesthatrangefromlong-wavedredtotheshorterwavesofblueandpurple.Inotherwords,colorsthatlookwarmertoushavelongerwaves,andcoolercolorshaveshorterrays.Airandtheparticlesinairscattershorterwavelengthsbetterthanlongerwavelengths.So,whenarayoflightmeetsoureyesfromafar—forexample,fromamountainrangeinthedistance—theshorterwavelengthsarewhatreachus.Asaresult,themountainslookbluefromadistance.Atthesametime,theintensityofthelightraysdecreaseswithdistance.Onitswaytous,thelightpassesthroughever-thickerlayersofair,whichreducetherays’intensity.Thiscausesthecolorstolookpale.Wecanmakewonderfuluseofthiseffecttoportraydistances:Thefarthersomethingisfromus,thesmaller,paler,andbluerweshouldpaintit.Warmcolorscometotheforeground,andcoolcolorsrecedeintothebackground.

Additionally,layersofaircausemoredistantobjectstoblur.Subjectsthatarefarawayloseboththeirdistinctcontoursandtheircontrast.Whileclosethingscontainaspectrumofcontrastsrangingfromverybrighttoverydarkandeverythinginbetween,thingsthatarefarawayareleftwithonlythein-between.Themidtone.Therefore,objectsintheforegroundarefocusedandsharp,andobjectsinthebackgroundaremoreblurred.

Thisisparticularlybeneficialtowatercolorpainting,becauseitisquiteeasyforustoportraypalenessandblurrinessifweuselotsofwater.Todepictthedistanceofamountainchain,weonlyhavetoapplyashadeofbluetothepaperusingthewet-on-wettechnique.Theblurrinessofthewet-on-wetandthespecificshadeoftheblueproduceafantasticillusionofdepth.

Themountainsshouldactuallybecalledthe“small,blurry,low-

contrast,cool,palebluemountains.”Butthat’seasiertopaintthantofitonamap.

Themountainsonthehorizonappearblueinthedistance,althoughinreality,theirdominant

colorsaregreenorbrown.

YOUROWNSTYLE

Theroofofthefarmhousedoesnotneedtobeincolor,sinceoureyescompletethepicture.

LESSISMORE

Beeconomicalwithcolors.Youwilloftenachieveafargreatereffectwithwatercolorsifyoudonotpainteveryemptyspaceinyourpicture.Trytoreduceyourpaintedareasandleavesomepartsuntouched.

Makeuseofthewhiteofthepaperasanelement.Ifyoudaretoleavetheareasontowhichthelightfallswhiteandinsteadonlyusecolorintheshadows,youreyeswillautomaticallyunderstandthepicture.Keepthisadviceinmind—thewhiteareasofthepaintingwillbecomelight-suffused,reflectiveareasthataccentuateyourcoloredshadowsallthemore.

You’llsee:Lessismore!

Humanfiguresthathaveparticularlyprofitedfromeconomicalcoloration.

ME,MYSELF,ANDIFindingYourOwnStyle

Oneofthemostcommonconsiderationsforartistsisdevelopinganunmistakablestyle.Yetthewords,“Thatsomehowremindsmeofso-and-so…”canbeanartisticdeathsentence.

Weallhavetheneedtobeuniqueanddistinctive.

What’sallthisaboutanyway?Tobesomethingnew,tobenoticed,toriseabovethecrowd?Isitaboutamarketniche?Isitaboutimmortality?

Itisratherstrangethatweallhavethefeelingthatassoonasanewmovementoranewwavecomesalong,everythingthatcamebeforeitisobsoleteorthateveryartisticnoveltyautomaticallysupplantseverythingpriortoit.

Forexample,whentheCDwasdeveloped,therewasimmediatelyadebateaboutwhetheritwastimetodisposeofrecordplayers.Whene-bookscameout,everyoneworriedthatprintbookswoulddisappear.

Focusonsubstance!Whateverisnewandmodernnowwillstillage.Substanceneverfades.

Oursocietyvaluesprogressveryhighly,andpeoplehavesetthebarveryhighthroughouthistory;theprintingpressandpenicillinwereinventedinEurope,andtheartificialheartandtheairplanewere

inventedinAmerica.Inadditiontothis,wethinkintermsofindividualsuccess.Wetraceeverysingledevelopmentbacktoanoriginator.ColumbusdiscoveredAmerica,andNewtondiscoveredgravity.It’sjustaneasierwayofthinking.

Artinparticularisusuallymorecomplicatedthanthat.Movementsareoftendevelopedbyanumberofartistsworkingtogether.Culturalaccomplishmentsbuildupononeanother.Newpathwayscanevenbeopenedupthroughapparentsetbacksorintermediatesteps.

So,don’tmakesuchabigdealofitall.Ultimately,youjustwanttopaint,notinventsteamengines.Letyourselfbeinspiredbyothers(whichisnotthesameascopying)andevolvefurtherfromthere.Alwaysattempttobroadenyourownhorizons.Talkwithotherpainters,learnaboutmovements,andvisitartanddesignexhibitions.Allofthiswillinfluenceyourownstyle.

Andonemoresecret:Youwillprobablybethelasttorecognizeyourown“unmistakablestyle,”simplybecauseitissodifficultforustodistanceourselvesfromourwork.Butultimatelyyou’llfindthatyourstyleisjustasunmistakableasyouare.

STYLEANDCREATIVITY

Anotherremarkonthesubject:yourpersonalstylegrowsonitsown;itshouldnotbecomeastraitjacket.

Asstrangeasitsounds,“yourownstyle”and“creativity”areoftenopposingprinciples.

Anartistisexpectedtobecreative,tocomeupwithnewideasandtakenewpathways.Strangelyenough,wealsoexpectartiststoberecognizable.Theyshouldbebothinnovativeandhaveauniquestyle.Thisfacilitatesclassificationofartthroughouthistoryandrepresentshowtheartmarketworks.

Inshort,artistAisexpectedtobeinstantlydistinguishablefromartistB.PeopleexpectPicassotopaintsomethingthatlookslike“aPicasso.”Andthiscreatesatrap:innovatingwhilecomplyingwitheveryone’saestheticexpectationshasverylittletodowithcreativeprocesses.

Creativityisunpredictable—afterall,we’remakingsomethingnew.

Hence,theambitiontoalwayscreatesomethingnew,whileatthesametimechangingnothingwhatsoeverissimplynonsense.Nicheslikethismaybenefitartcritics,buttheyinhibitcreativity.

Thepointofinnovationandinspirationistonotknowbeforehandwhattheresultwillbe(someDylanfansstillresenttodaythathedidn’tstoptryingnewthingsin1967).

Youshouldpaintpicturesbecauseyouwanttopaintthem,notbecauseeveryonewantsyoutopaintthem.

THROWINGDOWNLooseningUpYourPainting

“Ah,loosenup!”isanincrediblystupidcommand.Aconsciousefforttoberelaxedandnaturalusuallyleadstotheexactopposite.Expectationsmakeustenseup.Youcan’tbecasualatwill.Theideaoffulfillingsomeoneelse’sdesireorademandwemakeofourselveskillseventheslightestsparkofcreativity.

Advisingpainterstojustthrowdownsomepaint,todevelopalooseline,demonstratesacolossallackofunderstandingofhumannature.Weonlyloosenupwhenweknowsomethingisn’timportant.Assoonaswewanttoliveuptoexpectations,thingsbecomeimportant.

Ofcourse,itstillmakessensetousewatercolorswitheaseandspontaneity.Agoodpartofthisisduetothenatureofthemediumitself.Watercolorpaintappearsatitsmostluminousifwedon’tspendalotoftimepaintingbutjustquicklythrowitonthepaper.Everytimewepaintanewlayerorre-wetitabitmore,thepicturebecomesalittlelessvibrant.

Yet,knowingthis,ofcourse,doesnotmakethingseasier.Itmakeseverystrokecarryincrediblepressure:Nomistakesnow,concentrate,concentrate,Igotta,Igotta,Igotta…It’satruedilemma.

So,trytoputalittledistancebetweenyourselfandyourexpectations.Outwityourself.Thisiswhyyoushouldattempttopaintyourpictures

insketchbooksoronplainpaperratherthanongiantsix-footpanels.BattlingwithmaterialslikeSiberiansable-hairbrushesthatcostasmuchasanewcarwillnoteasethetension.

Inspiteofgoodmaterials’allegedimportance,theystillintimidateus.

It’sevenworseifweareawareofhowourpaintingswillbeusedlater.

Ifyoualreadyknowwhomighthangyourpictureontheirwallwhenit’sfinished,orwhichcriticswillreviewit,you’llfaceahugementalroadblock.Youriskpaintinginanticipatoryobediencetolatercritics.It’sobviousthatthiswon’tmakeyourprocessanymorespontaneousorrelaxed.

Freeyourselffromthis.Thinkofyourpictureasastudyoradraftwhenyoubegin.Alwaystakeintoaccountthatyoupaintforyourself,asanexercise,andnoonebutyourselfeverhastoseeit.(Forexample,IpretendthatmypictureisjustthesketchandthatIwillpaintthe“realpicture”asasecondattempt.)

Paintyourpicturesasiftheyarejustinprocess.Afterall,youdon’t

accompanyeachmorning’sruninthewoodswithastopwatch,spectators,andalivebroadcast.Trytokeepitfun.Thisisfarmoreimportantthanmakingitlook,toviewers,likeyouwerehavingfun.Andasaresult,youwillrealizewhatbeautiful,carefreepicturesyoucanpaintwhenyou’renottryingreallyhardtopaintbeautiful,carefreepictures.

Tip:Ifyounoticethatyouonlypaintunderpressure,busyyourselfwithsomethingelseforawhile.Goforarun.Afterward,you’llbeabletoapplyyourselftopaintingmuchbetter.

SEEKNOTANDYOUSHALLFINDImaginationvs.Internet

Anotherremarkoncreativity:naturally,weallworkwithpictures.Andnaturally,insteadofjustgettingtowork,itistemptingtofirstGooglesomereferenceimages.

Nonetheless,weshouldnotforgetthatanInternetsearchcannotreplacethecreativeprocess.

WhenyouGooglepictures,allyoufindiswhatalreadyexists,whatsomeoneelsesawbeforeyouandputonline.Googleisasearchengine;itjustsortswhat’salreadyoutthere.Therefore,youcan’tfindanythingnewonasearchengine,justotherpeople’spictures.Thismakesmattersworse,sinceyou’rewalkingthebeatenpath.

Essentially,theInternetisalibrarywherethebooksborrowedmostoftenarefoundrightattheentrance.Thiscausesustoborrowthesebooksmoreandmore.Sincethestructureofthesearchenginesoftenfavorswhatissoughtthemost,thereisahighprobabilitythatweareallwanderingthroughtheWebonthesameroutes.Asaresult,weallabsorbsimilarinformationandhaveseenthesamething.

ThismakesstrongcreativeprocessesindispensableespeciallyintheageoftheInternet.

Whenyoudrawandconceiveofsomethinginpaint,youarecreatingsomethingnew,somethingthatuntilnowwasonlyeverinsideyourownhead.

Makeanefforttocreatesomethingnewinsteadofreproducingwhat’salreadythere.Creatingsomethingunexpectedandnewlieswithintheartisticprocessitself.Itisnotgoal-oriented,anditisnothelpfultoaiminacertaindirectionfromtheverybeginning.Ifyoualreadyknowwhattheendresultofyourpicturewillbe,usuallythereisnoendresultatall.Quitetheopposite:seeknotandyoushallfind.

Tip:Oneofthebesttimesforcreativethinkingiswhenyou’restillhalf-asleepinthemorning.Ifyou’renotquite“there”yet,you’reless

likelytogetinthewayofyourcreativity.So,keeppencilsandpapernexttoyourbed!

MAKEITMATTER

Whatyoufeelwhileyoupaintapictureisfarmoreimportantthaniscommonlythought.

Copyingaphotographofastranger,forinstance,producesacompletelydifferentpicturethanpaintingyourownmother.Thepictureofyourbelovedcatwilllookdifferentfromastudyofarandomturtleinapetstore.Yourrelationshiptoyoursubjectreallymakesadifference.

Therefore,whetherapictureisgoodorpoorisnotmerelyatechnicalquestion.Composition,color,andproportioncanultimatelyrevealhowmuchthesubjectmatterstoyou.Whatdecideswhetherapictureisgoodorpoorismainlyhowyoufeelaboutit.

So,ifyouwantyourpicturetobemeaningful,itssubjectshouldhavemeaningforyou.Ifyouhaveapersonaloremotionalrelationshipwithyoursubject,thismeaningwillcreepintoyourpicturealmostmagicallyandwillalsoreachitsviewers.

Makeitmatter.Thenthematterwillstopbeingjustmatterandwillgainasoul.

Howyouseewhatyouseeinfluencesyourpicture.Youwillonlypaintreallyinteresting

picturesifthesubjectactuallymatterstoyou.

PRIORITIES

However,thesubject’ssignificancetousisnottheonlythingthatdeterminesapicture’squality.Itisalsoexcitingtobeabletolookbackatasketchorpictureandseewhatwasimportanttouswhilewewerepaintingit.Everypicturehasvariouselements.

AstreetinRomania.Especiallywhenthereis“alotgoingon”inpictures,itseemsdifficulttoset

priorities.

Pictureshavemainfocusesandsupportingcharacters;theyhaveinsignificantthingsandsurroundings;theyhaveforegrounds,middlegrounds,andbackgrounds.Andasfunnyasitmaysound,ifwetreatallofthisequallyandwiththesameattention,itmakesourpicturesoddlymeaningless.Blanketphotorealismistoughonoureyes.Myadviceistoprioritizewithinyourpainting.Picturesbecomemuchmoreinterestingifsomethingispackedintothem—ifyoucanseewhichpartsofthepicturewereimportanttothepainter.Thiscanbedone

withcolororcompositionalchoices,orsimplyamoreintense,morepreciseexecutionofindividualelements.Youmayalsochoosetotonedowncertainelementsinordertoemphasizeothers.Forexample,itmaybenefitthemainsubjectifthebackgroundrecedes.Allofthisfocusesandguidestheeyesoftheviewer.Sodon’ttreatyourpictureequallyinallplaces—showwhereyourprioritieslie.

BASICS/TOOLS

PAINTBOXES

Watercolorboxesareniftylittlethings:black,pristine,andshiny.They’remadeofsturdyblacksheetmetalwithdepressedmixingareasandlittlepansthatholdourpaints.They’reidealgifts,tobestoredawayandallowedtoagewithdignity.

Butseriously.

Awatercolorboxenablesyoutoworkquickly—aswatercolorsdemand—becausethepaintsaresoreadilyavailable.Noscrewlids,nosqueezingorstirring;justeasypainting.

Forthisreasonawatercolorboxisagoodinvestment.However,there

isawidevarietyofboxes,allofvaryingquality.Themostwell-known(andthebest)manufacturerisWinsor&NewtoninEngland,butDanielSmith,inSeattle,isalsoagreatchoice.Bothofferexcellentpaintsandboxesthatareusuallyequippedwithanassortmentofreadilymixedcolors.Inmostcases,thisassortmentconsistsofbasiccolorswithonewarmandonecoolalternativeofeach.

Ofcourse,therearewatercolorboxesinallsizes—fromsixtoforty-eightpans—andatallprices.Whichoneyouchoosedependsonyourtasteandbudget.Thestandardtwelve-panboxesareplentysufficient.Asyouknow,youcantheoreticallymixeveryothercolorfromthethreeprimarycolors.Ultimately,it’samatterofyourskillsandrequirements—notsomuchofwinningaprizeforbestmaterials(“Myhouse,myyacht,mywatercolorbox…”).

Remember,greatmaterialsalonedonotmakeagoodpainting.

Tip:Beforebeginning,moistenallofthepaintsinyourboxwithafewdropsofclearwater(eventheonesyoumightnotneed—youneverknow).Thiswilldilutethepaintsaheadoftime;incaseyouneedonewhilepainting,yourworkflowwillnotbeinterrupted.

TubesversusPans

Watercolorpaintisalsoavailableintubes.Thereisnodifferencebetweenthetwo,atleastinhigherqualitypaints.Pansessentiallycontainthesamepaintastubes,exceptit’sdried.Youcanalsorefillthepansfromyourtubepaints,ifyouwish—butthenyouneedtoallowlotsofdryingtime.

Still,watercolorpaintinpansismuchfasterandeasiertohandle.Youcaneasilyswitchbetweentheindividualpaintsanduseyourpaintstraightfromthebox.Tubesprovidealargeamountofpaintandarethereforeidealifyouwanttopaintverylargeorvividlycoloredareas.Usingpanstopaintonasurfacethatislargerthanabout11×16incheswillbeprettylaborious.Tubes,therefore,arestudioequipment.Forpleinairandsmall,rapidsketching,pansarebettersuited.

Tip:Anoldartists’fallacymaintains“Youdon’tneedtocleanyourpaintbox.”

Justlikeyourworkplace,yourpaintboxshouldnotbeallowedtogetfilthy.Alittlecleaningnowandthenwillmaketheyellowglowagainlikenew.

WATERCOLORPENCILS

“Giveyourwatercolorpencilstoyourlittlesister,”isawidespread,butunkindopinionamongartistsandillustrators.Aspopularasthesepencilsmaybeamonghobbyists,theycanbeamaterialofcontention.

Thisismainlybecausewatercolorpencilsareneitherfishnorfowl.It’snotsimplyamatterofchoosingbetweenpencilsandpaint(thatchoiceshouldbeeasy!).Whenwelookatthemclosely,theymightseem

inferiortobothcoloredpencilsandwatercoloratfirst.Theyneitherrivaltheluminosityofcoloredpencils,norprovidethecoverageofwatercolors,especiallyonlargesurfaces.

Firstwemustnotethatthetermwatercolorpencilissomewhatmisleading.Watercolorpencilsdonotcontainanywatercolorpaint.Theyarenotmadeofgumarabicandpigmentsbutarewaxpencilswithawater-solublebinder.So,itislesssurprisingthattheyalsobehavelikewaxcrayons.Thecolorsdonotdissolveastransparently,andtheydryfarmoreopaquely.Theircoveringpowerisquitedifferentthanthatofpaint.Theyareacompromise,butonethatdoesofferotherstrengths.

Iwouldthereforeliketotakeupthebatononbehalfofwatercolorpencils,becausetheydooffergreatpossibilitieswhenusedcorrectly.

Simplybeingabletocombinecolorsandlinesisagreatoptiontohave.Watercolorpencilsenableyoutousealittlewatertosoftenlinesyou’vedrawnandtransformthemintocoloredareas.Thisisvaluableasanaddedeffectandasacorrectivemethod.

Butwatercolorpencilsareevenmoreinterestingifweusethemdirectlyinmoistareas.Thelinebreaksupandsoftens,butunlikebrushstrokesonwetareas,itstillretainsitssolidity.Brushstrokesdissolvewhenappliedwet-on-wet;watercolorpencilsusedforthesameapplicationretainfarmoreshape.Thismakesthemagreattechniqueforaccents.Itreallygetsinterestingwhenwecombinewatercolorpencilswithwatercolorpaint.Forexample,whenyouwantsomethingwithinapaintedareatobeabitmoresolidortointensifypartofacolor,nothingbeatsawatercolorpencil.

Inplaceswherepaintmightsimplyflowaway,linesmadewithwatercolorpencilsnotonlystaywheretheyarebutretaintheirluminosity,too.Becausetheysoftenalittle,though,theydon’tclashwhencombinedwithwatercolor.Onthecontrary,theyaccommodateyourpicturejustenoughtoappearorganicandhelpyouoverafewhurdleswhenworkingwithwatercolors.

Shouldtheopportunityarise,Isuggestthatyouactuallydoborrowyourlittlesister’swatercolorpencilsandusethemnowandthen.

Tip:It’salsoreallynicetosimplydrawwithwatercolorpencilsinamoistarea.Ifyoumoistenyourpaper,forexamplewithaspraybottleforplants,itcreatesagreatpaintingsurface!

BUYINGPAINTS

Thepaintsyouputinyourpaintboxareprimarilyamatteroftaste.

Thereare,however,oneortwothingsthatIthinkyoushouldconsiderwhenchoosingyourassortmentofpaints.

Thefirstboxyoubuywillprobablyalreadycontainpaints.However,theassortmentprovidedisnaturallyacompromisebetweenyourcolorpreferencesandthoseofthemanufacturer.Tostart,thepaintsinabeginner’ssetaremostlikelystudent-gradepaints,whichmeansthattheyarenotthebestquality.Thisisnoproblemforabeginner’sfirstattempts,butyouwillnoticethedifferenceif,whenreplacingcertainpaints,youswitchtoprofessional-gradepaints.Thepigmentdensityishigher,andtheluminosityofthecolorswillbemuchbetter.

Themixedcolorsinpaintsetsareusuallycoordinatedtobethemostcompatiblewithoneanother.

Normally,you’llreceiveanassortmentofbasiccolors,withwarmandcoolversionsofeach.Thesemaysufficeforawhile,butyou’llsoonrequiresupplementarycolors.

Thesesetsmayalsocontainallsortsofnonsense.AsfarasI’m

concerned,youcanbanishblackandwhitefromyourpaintset.Whitecomesfromthewhiteofthepaper,andyoucanmixamuchbetterblackfromblueandbrownhues(suchassepiaandindigo).

Ofcourse,thecolorsyouchoosetoincludealsodependonthesizeofyourbox.

Biggerisnotalwaysbetter,asyouwilldiscoverwhenyouhavetolugyourboxaround.Ipersonallytendtoprefersmallerboxesforthatreason.Ifyouhavetoleavesomecolorsoutinordertofitthingsintoasmallerbox,youcanstillmixtheseyourselfinnotimeusingcolorsthatyoudoinclude.

However,italsodoesn’tmakemuchsensetoonlycarryaroundtheprimarycolors.Paintboxesaremadeforspur-of-the-momentwork.Besidesspendingallyourtimemixing,youmightalsowanttopaintoccasionally.

Asyoupaintmoreandmore,you’llgraduallychangewhatyouincludeinyourboxaccordingtoyourneeds.Useanassortmentofbasiccolorsandsupplementitwithamixofyourfavoritecolorsbasedonthesizeofyourbox.

Oneadditionalaspectthatisreallyimportanttomeisbuyingcolorsthataredifficulttomix.Therearecolorsthatyoucaneasilymixfromexistinghues,butthereareothersthatarealmostimpossibletomixyourself.Olivegreen,forexample,canbemixedinnotimefrombrownandgrassgreen.Ontheotherhand,astrongturquoiseormagentacannotbereproduced,oronlywithgreatdifficulty.Iwouldthereforeadviseyou—inadditiontotheprimarycolors—topurchasecolorssuchasthese,whicharenotsoeasytomixfromexistinghues.

Tip:Inmyopinion,youcantossblackandwhitefromyourboxandyou’llnevermissthem.

Thesymbolsonyourpaintsmean:

Square:transparency

Emptysquare:transparentHalf‑filledsquare:semi‑transparentFilled-insquare:opaque

Star:lightfastness

Howresistanttodaylightisyourpaint?(Uptofivestars)

Triangle:reusabilityofthehue

Emptytriangle:fullyreusableHalf‑filledtriangle:somewhatreusable

Fulltriangle:difficulttoreuse

From:Schminckeassortment

Thenumberinthecircle:pricecategory(ascending)

MIXINGPAINTS

Youalreadyknowthatyoucanmixanycolorfromthethreeprimarycolors.Watercolorpaintinparticularisexcellentlysuitedforthis,becausewithtransparentcolorsyoucantheoreticallyproduceanendlessnumberofshades.Nonethelessthereareafewthingstonotewhenmixing:

Asmentionedbefore,noteverycolorcanbereproducedsuccessfully.Colorslikegoldandsilveraredifficultbecausetheireffectisnotprimarilyderivedfromcolorbutfrommetallicparticles.

Thesameappliesforluminescentandneonpaints,whichusuallycontainchemicalreflectorsasadditives.Sincetheseadditivesare,ofcourse,notavailableformixingwiththeprimarycolors,itisdifficulttoimitatethesecolors.(Incidentally,thesecolorsalsodon’tmixwellwithothers.)

However,mixingcolorsisanextremelyworthwhileandimportantpractice,sincewedon’talwayshave(orevenwanttohave)everycolorathand.Butpayattentiontothefollowing:

Asabasicrule,itisbestnottomixmorethantwocolorstogetheratatime.Ofcourse,inlaterstages(whereyoumightactuallycombinecolormixtures)anythinggoes,butifyoustirtogethermorethantwocolorsatatime,thingsgetconfusinganddifficulttocontrol.

Itisalsoimportanttoaddthedarkerhuetothelighterhuewhenmixing,andnotviceversa.Thisisbecauseadarkerhuecanquicklyswallowupalighterhuewithoutchangingmuch,whileyouonlyneedasmallamountofthedarkercolortoalteralightercolor.Becausethelightercolorismoresensitivetochange,useitasthebasecolorwhenmixing.

Trypracticingafewmixturestogetafeelfortheprocess.Startwitha

lightercolor,andcarefullyaddmoreandmoreofadarkcoloruntilyouachievethehueyouwant.

You’llseethattheoldtechniqueofmixing—somewhatforgottenduetotheoverabundanceofhuesinoursets—isaverydecisivestepindevelopingagoodfeelingforcolor.

Tip:Makesamplesofyourmixedcolorsonscrappaper.Thiswillspareyoufromencounteringunpleasantsurprisesinyourfinishedpicture.

Brushwork

Howyouworkwiththebrushinfluenceshowyouapplyyourpaint.Pressingharderonthebrushheadresultsinadifferentstrokethanifyoujustgrazethepaperwiththetip.

Inaddition,theanatomyofourarmsmakesiteasiertogestureoutwardawayfromthecenterofthebodythantomoveintowardthebody.Itisthereforebesttopaintthisway.Don’tclenchyourmuscles.Usethebrushasifitwereanaturalextensionofyourhand.

Also,don’thesitatetoturnthepaperaround.Itisfarbettertopaintwiththesubjectupsidedownthantoturnyourselfupsidedownwithfrustration.

Bytheway,youcanreuseanypaintsyouhavemixedaftertheydrybyrewettingthem—evenmonthslater.

Tip:Youcanmixcolorsinthepaletteofyourpaintbox,butifyouwanttoachieveverypurehueswithoutanyimpurities,itisbettertousesmall,cleanpansorglassplates.Althoughtheextrapalettesinstoreslookreallynice,alargedishworksjustaswell.

IMPOSSIBLEHUESBrightColors

Let’snotkidourselves:Watercolorpaintisweakifwe’reafterbrightcolors.Itcan’tmatchtheluminouscolorsofacomputerscreen—andalsolagsbehinditsbrother,oilpaint,itssister,acrylicpaint,anditscousin,ink.Ifwewantbright,saturated,flashycolorsinoursketches,we’vegotthewrongmedium.Watercolorpaintsareknownforcreatingdelicate,pastelhues.Areaspaintedwithwatercolorsimplyaren’taspigmentedasthosepaintedwithnontransparentmediums.Ifneedbe,oilpaintcanbeappliedlikeapasteinlayersthatarehalfaninchthick.Bycontrast,watercolorpaintisadelicatekindofpaintthatcreatesadelicateeffect.

Becausemostwatercolorpaintscontainnaturalpigments,youwillnotdiscovermanyartificialorgaudycolorsinyourset.

Furthermore,whilepainting,colorsoverlapandinfluenceoneanotherbecausewatercoloristransparent.Whenyouapplyalayerofpaintoveranother,itvisuallyblendswiththecolorbeneathit,creatinganewhue.Forexample,ifyouapplyalayerofredontopofalayerofgreen,you’llgetbrown.Thisisn’tthecaseforthick,opaquepaintssuchasacrylics,anditmayseemlikeadisadvantageofwatercolor.

Yet,oncloserlook,amediumthatreadilyblendslikethishasitsbenefits.Ifyoulookaroundatyourenvironment,youwillnoticethattherearenotmanyintenselybrightcolorsinoursurroundings.Justtakealookoutthewindow.Ifyoudon’tliveinTimesSquareoraren’tstandinginthemiddleofapoppyfieldinmidsummeryouprobablyrecognizethatthedominantcolorsinourenvironmentsarenotgarishhues.

PIMPINGWATERCOLORSMakingColorsPop

Generally,whenlighthitsasurface,itisreflected,dissipatesintheair,andblendswithothersurroundingcolors.Thecolorsjibewithoneanotherbecausetheybelongtothesameenvironmentandtherebyworktogethertocreateageneralmoodoratmosphere.

Mostofthebrightcolorsthatweencounterinrealitydonotcomefromreflectedlightbutareemittedbyartificiallightsources.Wefindtheminlamps,monitors,LEDs,neonlights,etc.Thisemphasizestheadvantageofwatercolorpaint:duetotranslucency,interweaving,andoverlapping,thecolorinawatercolorpaintingactuallymimicsthereflectionof“real”light.Thatiswhywecanusewatercolorstoportraylightsowell.Byinterminglingdifferentcolors,wesimulatethewaythatlightnaturallybehaves.Thisisoneofthemuch-trumpeted“naturalqualities”ofthewatercolorpalette.

However,itgetsdifficultwhenyoutrytodepictveryintenselycoloredsubjects,asyoumightifyoutireofautumnlandscapes.Paintingastreetfullofneonlightswithwatercolorpaintswillatfirstseemlikefittingasquarepegintoaroundhole.Thereareafewtricks,though,andthenextchapterwilldiscusssometechniquesyoucanusetospiceupyourcolors.

Thefirstthingyoucandotomakeyourpaintsglowistousethemefficiently.Idon’tmeanthatyoushouldworkfasterbutthatyoushouldnotkeeppaintinglayeroverlayer.Whenyoure-wetwatercolors,theylosetheirluminosity.Watercolorsareattheirmostvibrantwhentheyarelefttodrywithoutlotsofmanipulation.

Anotheroptionformakingyourwatercolorspopistomixyourpaintwithothermoreluminouscolors.Thereareanumberofdifferentpaints,inks,andcoloredpencilsavailableinbrighthues.Manyofthesemediumsmoveintothebackgroundofthefinishedpicture,sotheywillnotdominateyourwatercolorbutallinallwillgreatlyemphasizethe

colorsinyourpaintings.

Let’sstartwithsomethingsimple.

Coloredpencilsarethebestwaytointensifyareaspaintedwithwatercolor,especiallysmallareas.Inaddition,wecanusethemtoaddexcitinggraphicelements.

Unlikeregularpencils,whichcontaingraphite,coloredpencilsaremadeofcompressedpigmentsandofoil-orwax-basedbinders.Sincetheycomeinanarrayofhuesandproducelinesofvaryingthickness,dependingontheamountofpressureapplied,theyareanidealsupplementtowatercolorpaints.Goodones,forexample,arePolychromosbytheGermanmanufacturerFaber‑CastellorPrismacolorbytheAmericanbrandSanford.

Usingcoloredpencilsenablesyoutointensifysmallelementsofapictureeffectively.

LIQUIDWATERCOLORSBrightNow,PaleLater

Anothergoodwaytogiveyourpaintsaboostistomixthemwithotherwatercolors.Liquidwatercolorsareparticularlysuitedforthis.Theyarenotpurchasedinpans,butinliquidform.Theyareusuallyartificialpigmentsusedasisormixedwithwater.TheDutchcompanyRoyalTalens,forexample,offersawholepaletteofcolorsunderthetradenameEcoline.Thedistinctadvantageofthesecolorsistheirluminosity.

Acrossmadeoftraditionalwatercolorpaint(horizontalbrushstroke)andliquidEcolinepaint

(verticalbrushstroke).Thedifferenceinthecolors’intensitiesisobvious.

Butbeware,thereisacatchtotheartificialpigmentsthatliquidwatercolorpaintscontain;theyareoftenanythingbutlightfast.Theyreactsensitivelytosunlightinparticular.Therefore,picturesthathavebeen“pimpedout”withEcolinearemorepracticalforreproduction(printingmultiplecopies)thantheyareforthewall.Ifyouarepaintingasketchtouseforapresentationorforprinting,thisisnotaproblem,of

course.Butifyouplantohangitonawall,thelightwillverysoonrobitofitsbrightcolors.Therefore,ifyouseekvibrant,colorfulpaints,thismaynotbethewaytogo.Liquidwatercolorpaintisabitlikeaflame:thebrighteritshines,thesooneritgoesout.

However,weshouldnotethatliquidwatercolorpaints(nottomentioninks,retouchingdyes,airbrushpaints,andsimilarproducts)arenotaseasytoworkwithastraditionalpaintfrompans.Ecoline,forinstance,redissolvesveryeasily,whichisadisadvantagewhenworkingwithglazedlayers.Thisalsocausesittobleedveryeasilyintoneighboringareasifyouaccidentallytouchthemwithyourbrushwhenapplyingthepaint.Nevertheless,youcanstillachieveveryniceeffectsinapicture,especiallywithEcoline.Yousimplyhavetomakesurethatyouuseitlastifyou’reglazingandthatyoudonotrepaintareaswithit.

INTOTHEWILDBrushes

Humanshavebeenusingbrusheseversincetheystartedtopaint,andhumanshavebeenpaintingforaverylongtime.

EvenStoneAgepaintersusedprimitivebrushestopaintbison,deer,andhorseswithpigmentsmadefromredhematiteandocheronthewallsoftheircaves.Brushesfashionedfromhollowbones,feathers,andhairshavebeenfound,forexample,inthecavesofAltamirainSpain.

Brushesdependonthespacesbetweenthedenselybundledhairstobothabsorbanddispenseliquids.Althoughthisprinciplehasbeenknownforalongtime,ittookawhileforbrushestoachievethequalityweneedforpaintingwithwatercolor.

TheancientEgyptiansusedroughed-uprushesandtheearhairofcattletocolortheirhieroglyphsandtombpaintings,andtheRomansusedfeathersandgoathairstopaintthefrescoesonthewallsoftheirhouses.

ThefirstwrittendescriptionofsomethingclosetoprofessionalbrushescomesfromIllibrodell’arte(TheCraftsman’sHandbook),inwhichthefifteenth-centuryItalianpainterCenninoCenniniexplainedtheirprecisemanufacture.Infact,untiltheendofthenineteenthcentury,paintersnotonlymadetheirownpaints,butalsotheirownbrushes.

Tip:There’sanunconventionaltrickforgettingyourbrushpointyagainafterpaintingandwashingit:putyourbrushinyourmouthandsharpenitbytwirlingitwithyourtongue.Justmakesurethatyouonlydothiswithbrushesthathavebeencompletelycleanedofallpaint.Don’tforgetthatevenwatercolorpaintcancontaintoxicpigments!

Todaytherearecountlesstypesofbrushesaround,andartsupplystorescarryahugeamountofmerchandise.So,thequestionisobvious:Whichbrushesdowereallyneed?IsapreciousKolinskysablebrushnecessaryorwillasyntheticbrushforthepriceofacupofcoffeedo?

Tip:Agoodbrushnotonlyreleasespaintbutalsoabsorbsitagain.Whenyoupatyourbrushdryonatissue,youcanuseitto“wickup”pigmentagain.

EVENMOREBRUSHES

Maybeweshouldbeginsystematically.

Allbrushescanberoughlycategorizedintotwobasicshapes:roundsandflats.Themaindifferenceistheshapeoftheferrule,whichdetermineswhetherthetufthasaroundorflatform.Theroundbrushisveryusefulsimplybecauseithasapointedtip.Flatsmaybeverysuitableforlargeareas,andtheycanbereplacedbythickroundsbutnotviceversa.Let’stalkabouttheroundsfirst.

Roundsareavailableinallsortsofmaterialsandsizes.Whenyouholdthebrushinyourhand,thefirstthingyou’llnoticeisthenumberonthehandle,whichdelineatesitssize.Thereareanumberofincrements,beginningwith0andusuallyendingat24.Thedifferencesaresofinethattheseincrementsaren’tveryimportant.Youwilllearn,however,thatmostpaintersdohaveapreciseideaofwhatsizestheyliketousewhenpainting.

Ifyouwantmyadvice,youonlyneedtwobrusheswhenyou’rejuststartingout—abigoneandasmallone.

Whatpreciselyismeantbybigandsmall(andwhatmaterialthebrushismadeof)shouldbedecidedbyyourbudget.Eveninvestinginthelargest,mostexpensiveKolinskybrush(madefromthefuroftheSiberianweasel)alonewillnotgiveyoutheskilltosolveeverypainterlyproblem.Togiveyousomenumbers,Iwouldrecommendtwobrushes,sizes6and10,tostartwith.

Agoodwatercolorbrushshouldbepliableandsoft.Itshouldpickupthepaintwellandhaveaverypointytip.Thehandleshouldnotbetoolongandtheferruleshouldbepreciselyshapedwithoutanysinglehairssplittingout.Anatural–hairbrushisthebest,butsincetheseareexpensive,syntheticwillalsodoforastart(especiallyforlargerand

thusmoreexpensivebrushes).Youcanalsofindbrushesthatmixsyntheticwithnaturalhairs.Otheralternativesaresquirreloroxhair,whicharerelativelymoderatelypriced.Whenyouarejuststartingout,youdon’tneedavastassortmentofbrushes.Later,youcangraduallysupplementyourcollection.

Thisalsoappliestoinvestinginflatsforevenglazingandtopetit-grisbrushesforapplyinglargeshapesorwashes.Thesebrushesareuseful,butsincetheirspecificcharacteristicscanalsobereplacedbylargerounds,theyshouldnotbeatopprioritytopurchase(thisappliesallthemoretospecializedtypes,likefanbrushesorriggers).

ThebestbrushesareKolinskysables.Thesebrushesareveryexpensive.However,theyalsolastalongtimeifcaredfor.Ifyoualwayswashyourbrusheswithsoapafteruse,youwillbeabletoenjoythemforalongtime.

Donot,however,letyourselfbefooledintothinkingyoucan’tpaintwithlessexpensivebrushes.Sometimespeoplebuysable-hairbrushes,sayingtothemselves“Well,ifit’ssable…”onlytofindthatthebrushstilldoesn’tfixalltheproblemstheythoughtitwould.Agoodsyntheticbrushmaybebetter,andwilldefinitelybemoreaffordable.But,it’salittlelikeagoodwine:youneedagreatdealofexperiencetoeventastethedifference.Ithereforeadviseyoutostartoutwithsynthetic

brushes.

Atanyrate,theimportantthingiswhatyoudowithyourbrushes.Brushesarereallyjustanextensionofyourhand,andit’syourhandthatisultimatelyresponsibleforyourpainting!

Tip:Portablebrusheswithacapthatalsoservesasthehandlearegreatfortraveling!

PaperwasinventedbytheEgyptians.ThewordcomesfromEgyptianpapyrus,afibrouswaterplantfromtheNiledeltathatwasdriedandthatthepharaohsusedtowriteon.However,theMayansdevelopedasimilarpaper,amate,whichwasmadeofpressedplantfibersfromawildfigthatweredriedinlayerstomakelargersheets.Bothessentiallylookalittlelikewovenbark.

Butthefirstpaperthatreallylookedliketoday’spaperwasdevelopedbytheChinesealmosttwothousandyearsago.

Paperismadefromcellulose(foundinfibersandwood),whichiscleaned,boiled,mixedwithglue,anddriedinlayers.Inrecordsthatdateasfarbackasthefirstcentury,theChineseministerCaiLundescribesthemanufacturingprocessduringtheHanDynastyindetail(therewerealreadytissuesandtoiletpaperinfifth-centuryChina).Thecellulosepulpmadeofsilkresiduesandbast,whichisafibercollectedfromtheinnerstemofplants,wascookedanddriedonscreens.

InthelateMiddleAges,theChinesemethodofpapermakingreachedEuropeviatheSilkRouteandtheArabicworld.Untilthen,parchmentordriedanimalhidessmoothedwithpumicestonehadbeenusedforwritingintheWest.

Theadvantagesofpaperwereobvious;itwascheaperthanparchmentandwasavailableinlargeamountsandconsistentquality.

TheEuropeansusedthisnewknowledgeandsoondevelopedthepropertechnologyforpaperproduction.Newtypesofscreensandwater-poweredpapermillssoonfacilitatedmassproduction.

Evenifittookanotherfivehundredyearstodeveloptoday’spapermachines,whichcanchurnoutover6,500feetofpaperperminute,watercolorpaperisstillverysimilartothepapermadeinthebeginning

inChina.

Watercolorpapercontainspracticallynowoodandismadeprimarilyoflinenorcotton.Thismakesitmoretear-resistantandenablesittoabsorbpaintbetter.Itisusuallyhandmade(recognizablebytheirregular,ordeckle,edgesofthesheets)andsoldasindividualsheetsoringluedblocks.

Watercolorpaperalsocomesindifferentfinishes:coarse,medium,orsmooth.Smoothpaperisdriedwithhotcylinderpresses(henceitsnamehot-pressedpaper)andisprimarilysuitableforillustrations.Rougherfinishes,orcold-pressedpapers,havetheadvantagethatthepaintadheresbetter,andtheyslowthepaint’sdryingtime.However,itishardertoeraseonthesecoarserpapers.

Choosingatexturemerelycomesdowntopreference,sincepaintsbehavedifferentlyoneachkind.Manypapersalsohaveacoarseandasmoothside,bothofwhichyoucanuseforpainting.

However,itisnotamatterofpreference,butanimportantcriterion,thatyourwatercolorpapersareacid-free.Acids,usedtobleachmass-producedpaper,destroythepaperovertimeandalsoconsiderablyinfluencethepaint’sappearanceonthepaper.

You’llnoticethattherearemanydifferentweightsofpaperthatyoucanbuy.Theheavierthepaper,themorewaterandreworkingitcantolerate.Themostcommonlyusedweightis140pounds.

Regularofficepaper,forexample,weighs80gramspersquaremeter(gsm).Watercolorpaperismuchthicker;itusuallyweighs200to300gsm.Ofcourse,youcanpurchasemuchthickerpaper,butatahigherprice.

Ultramarineblueon“upscale”paper(Arches650gsm)andtotherightofiton“regular”paper

(Hahnemühle200gsm).

Thesekindsofinvestmentsdon’texactlyhelpbanishanyfearofthatemptysheetofpaper.Frommypointofview,theaffordablesolutionsaregoodenough.Ioftenuseoff-the-shelfmatte-coated185-grampaper(HahnemühleorArches)thatIstretchmyself.

I’llshowyouhowtodothisonthispage.

WhetheritwastheChinese,Egyptians,orMayanswhoinventedpaperisinconsequential.Wereallyhavenaturetothankforpaper.Waspsandhornetshavealwaysbuilttheirnestsofmasticatedplantfibers,apulpofcelluloseandstarch,whichdriesinthesuntomakedelicatepaperstructures.

Tips:Sheetsorblocks?Theanswerisnoteither/or,butboth.Bothhavetheiradvantages.Forastart,blocksarethesimplest.Inaddition,thepre-gluedblocks,gluedonallfoursides,aregoodfortravelingandspontaneouswork.If,however,youwanttoworkwithlargerformatsandsimplyprefertousemoreinexpensivepaper,Iwouldadviseyoutouseloosesheets.Ifthecockling,orbuckling,ofthewetpaperbothersyou,youcaneasilystretchthepaperwithmountingtape,asdescribedonthispage.

Watermarksarethinnerlayersinthepaperthatarereservedorembossedduringthe

manufacturingprocesstoguaranteeauthenticity.Herearesomewatermarksoffamous

manufacturers.

THEPERMANENTWAVEStretchingPaper

It’sexasperating;yougetthepaperwet(paintonitwithtoomuchwater),anditstartstowarp(aprocessknownas“cockling”).Innexttonotimethesmooth,whitesurfacetransformsintoamarshylandscape.Ifthatweren’tbadenough,thematerialthatwaseasytohandleamomentagobecomesuncooperative.Thepaintgathersinpuddlesinthenewlyformedvalleysandleavesuglyblotcheswhenitdries.Themoreyoupaintoverit,theworseitgets,becausenomatterwhatyoudo,youcan’teliminatethesevalleyswithabrush.

Peopleareconstantlycomingupwithnewideastosolvethisproblem.Cocklingismorecommonwhenworkingwiththinpapers.Youcantryathickerpaper,butthisstillwon’tcompletelypreventthepagefromwarping.Pre-gluedpaperwatercolorblocksaren’tagreatalternative,either.Forthepriceofthesewatercolorblocks,theyaren’tagreatsolutiontowarping.Althoughthepaperdoeswarpless,theblockscanbecumbersome.It’sdifficulttoplaceawatercolorblockonadraftingtable,forexample,totraceapreparatorydrawing.Asgoodasblocksmaybeforwhenyou’reonthego,theyaren’talwayssuitableformoredevelopedworks.

Inordertounderstandhowtopreventcockling,oneneedstoknowexactlywhatcausesitfirst:Paperconsistsoffiber.Itisusuallymadefromcellulose,woodfiber,recycledpaper,orcloth,whichisgroundtoapulpinpapermillsandthendriedinlayers.Thesefibersformthebaseofthepaper,heldtogetherbyglueandpressedinlayers.

Ifwemoistenthepaperagain,thefibersbegintoswell,andeachfiberpushesthefibernexttoitalittletotheside.Thefibernexttothatone—alsobusyspreadingitselfout—nudgesitsneighboringfiber.Sinceallofthefibersaredoingthisatonce,waves,valleys,andhillsarecreated.Furthermore,watergathersinthevalleys,resultinginthefibersthatare

locatedthereswellingevenmore,whichinturnenlargesthevalleys.Achainreactionbegins,andthemoreunevenlythewaterisdistributed,thegreatertheeffectwillbe.

Itsoundsdisastrous,buttherereallyisasolution:stretchingthepaper.Usingthismethodyoucanevenuselighter(andthereforelessexpensive)papersforwatercolorpainting.Thisishowitworks:Sinceeveryfiberexpandswhenitismoistenedandcontractsagainwhiledrying,weensurethatallofthefibersinthepaperareevenlywetted.Todoso,wefirstimmerseitincoldwaterforafewminutes.Alarge,flatplasticbasinfromaphotographystoreisbestsuitedforthis,butabathtubwilldo,too.Thismakesallofthefibersabsorbwaterandexpandevenly.

Oncethepaperhassoakedforaboutaminute,layitonawoodenboardandattachitwithgummedtapeorartist’stapeatitsedges.

Now,whenthepaperdriesandcontractsagain,thefiberswillbeheldtautbythetape,justliketheskinonadrum.Whenitismoistenedagainduringpainting,itnolongerhasthecapacitytoexpandandproducecockles.Professionalsalwaysstretchtheirpapers.Allthatyouneedareaboardmadeofplywood(suchasbirchplywoodfromahardwarestore),aclothorpapertowels,gummedtapeorartist’stape,afewtacks,andsinglesheetsofpaperinanyweight.

Tip:Ialwaysstretchafewsheetsofpaperinadvanceonboardsandletthemdryovernight.Then,Ihavemypaperreadywhenit’sneeded.

Here’showtostretchpaper:

1.Immerseyourpapercompletelyincoldwaterforapproximatelyoneminute.

2.Now,removeitquicklyandletitdripbriefly(donottaketoomuchtime;it’sallamatterof

speed).

3.Laythepaperonawoodenboardandstretchitsmoothwithbothhands.Dabatitbriefly

withaclothorapapertowel.

4.Affixthepapertotheboardalongallfoursideswithmoistenedgummedtapeandattachthe

cornerswiththetacks.

THECONTENTSOFMYBAG

Artsupplystorescanbequiteawe-inspiring.Materialstoweronyardsandyardsofshelves,andsuggestthatyouneedahugeamountofbasicequipment.Butwhatisreallynecessary?Whatpaintingutensilsarewespendingmoneyonneedlessly?Ibroughtsomethingsalongtohelpyoudecidewhatyouneed.

Tip:Afoldingchairmaybequitecomfortabletositin,butyoustillhavetolugitaroundwithyou.Asmallmatiseasiertocarry.

Sincewatercoloristheclassicpleinairtechnique,inmyopinion,allweneedforpaintingiswhatwecarryinourbagswhiletraveling.Whenwetravel,wetakenecessities—andnothingmore.Afterall,wedon’twanttheweightofourbagtodictatehowmuchtimewecanspendseekingoutasubject.Ideally,yourbagcontainsonlywhat’sabsolutelynecessaryforpainting.

Applythisideatoyourstudio,andyou’llseethatyouusuallydonotneedmuchmoretopaint.Perhapsathomeyou’lladdapencilorbrush,maybeahairdryer,orthingslikeadhesivetapeorfrisket,andmaybeathomeyou’llhaveafewmorepaintsorpapersathand.Althoughitis,ofcourse,amatteroftaste,basicallythecontentsofourbagsshowwhatisreallyneededandmostusefulinpractice.

So,let’stakealookinsidemyshoulderbag.

Tip:Nottransferabletothestudio,butalsousefulintransit:sunscreen,

asmallfoldableumbrella,andbugspray.

OUT&ABOUT

BADWEATHER

PaintingOutdoors

Sometimespeoplesay,“There’snosuchthingasbadweather,justbadclothing,”whentheyactuallymeanyoushouldstopwhiningandthatit’syourownfaultfornotwearingasnowsuitfortheSundaystrollinthepark.

Sketchfromskiingvacationpaintedusinggentianschnapps.

Nonsense!IfyoulookoutthewindowonanaverageNovemberday,youwillprobablyfeelasthoughtheweatheris,indeed,bad—sometimesevenverybad.Sincewatercolorisexcellentlysuitedforoutdoorpainting,itisexpedienttosayafewwordsaboutpaintinginbadweatherhere.

Thesayingaboverightlypointsoutthatyoucanprotectyourselfwithsuitableapparel.Itgoeswithoutsayingthatraingearandwarmclothingarehelpful.Inthewinteryouneedgloves(withthefingertipscutoff)andahattomakeworkingoutdoorsbearable.Itisjustasimportant,ofcourse,toprotectyourmaterialsandpicture.Onlyyourtechniqueshouldinvolvewetness.Nothingismoreuselessthanpaperthathasbeenrainedon(althoughraindoescreatealovelyatmosphereasasubject).Itisthereforeessentialtoalwaystakeanumbrellaalong.

Butthingsreallygetproblematicwhenitistrulycold.

Snowylandscapesarefantasticsubjects,butwaterfreezesat32degreesFahrenheit.Fromonemomenttothenext,thethinlayersoftheglazeinparticularfreezeintosheetsoficethatglobupthe

paper.Inaddition,yourpaintclumpsrightonthebrush,renderingituseless.

Inshort:Thereissuchathingasbadweather,especiallywhenitcomestowatercolors,becauseyoucannotworkoutdoorswhenthetemperaturedropsbelowfreezing.

Thesolutiontothissoundsabitoff-the-wallbutisquitesimple:replacethewaterwithalcohol.

Alcoholhasalowerfreezingtemperaturethanwater.Clear,transparenthardliquors(suchasvodka,fruitschnapps,orgrainalcohol)onlybegintofreezewhenthetemperaturereacheswellbelowzeroandworkperfectlyforpainting.Youwouldusethesebasicallythesamewayyouusewater,butbesuretoonlyuseclearalcohol(notJägermeisterorsomethingsimilar,ofcourse)andwashoutyourbrushesthoroughlywithwaterwhenyougethome.Aslongasyoudon’ttaketoomanysipsofyour“water,”thismethodcanassureyouasuccessfulwinterpainting.Forthereisonethingwecansayaboutbadweatherwithcertainty:itmaynotfeelverypleasant,butitsurelooksgreat.

THEOTHERVIEWPOINTChangingPerspective

“DoyouseethemoonoverSoho?”“Iseeit,darling.”—MacheathandPollyinThreepennyOpera

Weneverallseethesamething.Wealwaysperceivetheworldfromourownperspective.Twopeoplewalkingdownthesamestreetseeentirelydifferentthings.Whenwetalkaboutamutualexperience,weusuallystressverydifferentaspects.MacheathandPollyarenotseeingthesamemoon.Eachofthemisseeingadifferentone.

Atfirst,thissoundsalienating,butitisalsosomewhatreassuring.Sincetheworldiscolorfulanddiverse,ourpersonalperspectiveisasjustifiedasthatofthosearoundus.Itisthereforecompletenonsensetoaskourselveswhetherourpicturesrepresentasubjectrealisticallyornot.Thereisnoobjectiveviewpointinpainting;picturescandonomorethanportrayone’sownwayofseeing.

So,don’tdriveyourselfcrazy.It’syourpicture,andallthatisimportantisdevelopingyourownvision.Itonlyneedstopleaseyou;pleasingeveryoneisn’tpossible,anyway.

PAINTINGWATER

Theinterestingthingaboutwateristhatitunitesbothshadowsandlight.

Typically,surfacesaredominatedeitherbylightorshadow.Theonemaydissolveintotheother,butinthecaseofwater,wehavebothphenomenaatthesametime.Lightandshadowsreflectsimultaneouslyrightnexttoeachotheronitssurface.Thismakeswateranexceedinglyattractive,butdifficult,subject.Waterisarestivemirrorthatoureyesaresometimesabletopierce.Itgushes,flows,trickles,drips,sloshes,runs,andbreaksonshores.

Therefore,watercolorisperfectforportrayingwater.Itsspontaneityinparticularcaneasilyrenderthefluidityandconstantmotionofwater.

Themostnoticeablethingaboutwaterisitsreflectivenature.Itisthereforerelativelysimpletoportraywaterbynotpaintingthewateritself,buttheelementsweseeinit.Waterisespeciallyconvincingifthesereflectionsarenotdirectcopiesoftheobjectsthemselves.

Forexample,paintastickstraightuntilitmeetsthewater,andthenbreakitsreflectionintocurvesthatfollowthemotionofthewater.Thefurtheritsreflectionglidesacrossthewater,themoreitiscontortedbythemotionofthewaves.Ifyoudepictreflectionsinwaterwell,you’realreadyhalfwaytodrawingwateritselfwell.

Theeasiestwaytopaintwateristopaintwhatisreflectedinit.

Anothernoticeablethingisthatwateressentiallyhasnocolor.Thinkofaglassofwater.Itsonlycolorcomesfromimpurities.

Youmightassertthatwaterisblue,butthatisnotalwaystrue.Freshwaterinparticular—riversandlakes,ponds,etc.—isoftendominatedbybrownandgreentones.Thebluethatwesee,intheoceanfor

example,isusuallyjusttheskybeingreflectedonthewater’ssurface.

Therefore,wecanalmostalwayschooseasimilarcolorfortheskyasforthewater.Ifyoucontinuepaintingyourskyfartherdownonthepage,andpaintinlittlereflectionsoftrees,clouds,orwhateveryoulike,you’llhavecreatedthewater.Ifyoureservespotsofthewhitepaperassmallwavesorreflections,theeffectisquiteconvincing.

Makesurethatthebrightreflectionsonthewater’ssurfacecorrespondtothebrightestpartsofthesky.

Imagineacubemadeofmirrorsinthesun.Onesurfaceisturnedtowardthesunandoneisturnedaway.Thesidethatfacesthesunisverylight,andthesidethatfacesawayisdark.Thisisalittlebithowthewavesinwaterappear.It’seasytopaintthisifyoustartwithamediumhue.Asalwayswithwatercolors,donotpaintthelightestareasatall;simplyletthewhiteofthepapertakecareofawave’screst.

Thesecondstepistopaintthevalleys.Essentially,everymountainhasavalley,andthat’sexactlyhowyoupaintthesmallwavesinwater.Thewhitecombsarefollowedbydarkervalleys.

Ifyouincludethereflectionsofriverbankslopes,trees,buildings,orsimilar,you’llgetaprettydecentdepictionofwater.

Lookatitthisway:Thenicethingaboutwatercolorpaintisthatitsstructureissimilartowater’s.Theglazedlayersmakeitastransparentastheactualelement.Skillfullypositioningwashedareasandglazeddepthsallowsyoutorenderwaterinnexttonotime.Ifallelsefails,youcanalwaysincludesomethingswimminginthewater.Addaduckoraboatandyourwaterwillberecognizablenomatterwhat.

Tip:Skyandwateroftenarealmostthesamecolor,becausetheformerisreflectedinthelatter.

AIR,FOG,SMOKE

Asstrangeasitmaysound,oneofthemostmarvelouspaintingsubjectsisinvisible.

Eventhoughweusuallycannotseeitinreallife,airsimplylooksgreatinapicture.Everythingthatmakeslandscapesandspacesmagical,thefogthatlaysitselfovertheland,aveilofclouds,awispofsmoke,ahaze,everythingwedescribeasatmosphere,isair.Airismatter.Whenitisfilledwithclouds,smoke,ormist,itisjusthighlyvisibleair.

Inthesixteenthcentury,itissaid,theEnglishseafarerSirWalterRaleighwageredwithQueenElizabethIthathecouldweighthesmokeofacigar.Ofcourse,thebetswerelaidhigh.Weighthesmokeofacigar?Impossible!Raleighsmiled,twirledthecigarbetweenhisfingersandlaiditonthescale.Hewrotedowntheweightinhisnotebookandlitthecigar.Whenhefinishedsmokingit,heweighedtheashesandcalculatedthedifference.Thedifference,hedeclared,wastheweightofthesmoke.Hewasnotincorrect.

Ifwewereabletoputairaloneonascale,wewouldascertainthat61,024cubicinchesofairweighsabout2.8pounds.Inpictures,thedepictionofair—layersofairandhaze—isinvaluable,sincewhatwecallatmospherecreatesatmosphere.Airtransportsmoods.Fog,smoke,haze,orblurshavenarrativeforce.So,howdowedepictair?

Thetermatmosphericpaintingdidn’tcomeoutoftheblue;airhasahugeimpactonourpictures.Especiallywhenjoinedbyhaze,fog,ordust,theeffectisverynoticeable:Thethickerthelayersofair,thepalerthesubjectbehindit.Thesubjectlosescontoursandintensity,andtheoriginalluminosityofthecolorsdisappears.

SMOGANDATMOSPHERE

Mostdrawingandpaintingmediumsmakeitdifficulttocapturethemisty,ghostlyphenomenaofair.Bycontrast,watercolorpaintisadvantageouswhencreatingtheillusionofairinapainting,becauseitworksthesamewayairdoes.Botharetransparentmatterinwhichparticlesfloat,suchassmokeorfog(inthecaseofair)orcolors(inthecaseofwater).Depictingatmosphericsituationsisthereforesimple,astheyaresosimilartothephysicalnatureofourpaint.Inaddition,paintinwaterbehavessimilarlytohaze,smoke,orcloudsintheair:itfloatsinthewetareasandliesonthepaperincloudytransitions.Atthesametime,dilutedpaintisnearlyastransparentascloudsorair.

Soinordertodepicthaze,weneedtodonothingmorethanapplyareasofclearwaterandallowminimalpainttogentlyfloatintoit.

Webeginbyletting“air”intothearea,orwettingit.Thesecondstepistocarefullyaddthepaintandallowittowaftlikesmokeorfogintothewetterareas.Dependingonthedirectionourpicturetakes,ourdepictionbecomesmoretangiblestepbystep.

Amongotherthings,itisadvisabletoselectindividualelementsofapicturetoblurintothehaze,andtofindmorehardedgesintheforeground.

Weachievethisbylettingourfirst“layeroffog”drycompletelyafterwepaintitandthenplacingmoreconcreteshapesintheforegroundinthesecondlayer.Ifyouwishtodepictbrightcloudsorsmokeplumes,besuretomaketheiroutlinesabitmoresolid.

Itisfareasiertopaintairthanyouprobablyimagined.Nomatterhowparadoxicalitsounds,airisbestdepictedwithwater.

SteelworksintheUSA,withtheleftversionshowingwet-on-wettechniquesincorporating

atmosphere,haze,andsmoke.

WHATISBEAUTYANYWAY?

Whethersomethingisbeautifulornotisuptoyoualonetodecide.Often,watercolorpaintersareexpectedtopaintoldfarmsinProvence,sailboatsinMediterraneanports,orwindmillsinHolland.Ofcoursetheseareallbeautifulsubjects.Butintheend,itmakeslittlesensetoalwayspaintwhatothersexpectyouto.Inreality,Provencewascertainlymoreidyllicinthesixtieswhenacupofcappuccinodidn’tcost$8.50andthereweren’ttorrentsofcarslaboringtheirwaythroughperfectlyrestoredoldtowns.So,whyshouldwekeeppaintingthingsoverandoveragainjustbecausepeopleoncethoughttheywerebeautiful?

Myadviceistolookforyourownsubjects.

Ifyouplantopaintsomething,youshouldpaintitforitselfandnotfortheexpectationsofpastgenerations.Seeninthelightofday,ahouseinProvencemaymeanverylittletoyoupersonally.Itmaylookpretty,butisitjustasimportantasyourfirstlove’shouseorthehouseyougrewupin?

Ontheotherhand,weperhapsthinkthesupermarketaroundthecornerisaboringsubject—butisitreally?Youmayfindsomethinginterestingifyoulook.Plus,wespendagreatdealofourlivesthere—farmorethaninanovercrowdedtouristdestination.Isitthereforeapoorsubjectsimplybecausenooneeverthoughtofpaintingit?

Intwentyyears,Ibetyouwillderivefarmorepleasurefromthepaintingofthesupermarket.“Thosewerethedays”willprobablynotbeyourfirstwordswhenreviewingyourProvencepicture.Probablymorelike,“Wherewasthatagain?”

Inshort,paintwhat’saroundyou—thingsthatyoucaneasilyreference.Artistsoughttobeauthenticandtellsomethingabouttheirworld.It

makesnodifferenceifit’saprefabblockofapartmentsinRomaniaorasupermarketinupstateNewYork.What’simportantisthatyoupaintpicturesandnotreproductions.

TIPS&TRICKS

COMPOSITIONANDDESIGN

Topaintonebigpicturesuccessfully,youneedtopracticeonmanylittlepictures.

Inotherwords,designingapicturefirstisamust.Whetheranimageisgoodorbadnotonlydependsuponthesubject,butequallyreliesonhowtheindividualelementsarecomposed.

Whetherasubjectiscloseorfaraway,whetheramountainrangegrazestheedgeofthepainting,whetherabuildingintheforegroundisontherightorleftisbynomeansincidental.Compositioniselementary,andyoushouldneverleaveittochance.

Inmanyways,pictureslivethroughtheirindividualparts.Everyline,everyarea,andeverycolorinapaintinginfluencesitsvisualbalance.Everyelementthatyouaddtoyoursubjecttransformsthepicture.Witheveryadditionaldesignelement,wealteritsinnertension.Thismakesdesignanimmenselyimportanttopic.

Tip:Useminiaturesketches,orthumbnails,toputyourcompositionstothetest.

Howdowebegin?

Thisisamatterofdevelopingafeelingfordesignandcomposition.Ifyoulearnsolutionsbyheart,theywillonlyhelpyoutosolvethesameproblemsoverandover.

Trainyoureyesinstead;onceyoucanrelyonyourfeeling,youwillbeabletoencounternewdesignproblemswithoutreproducingthesameoldthing.So,leavethedrydocksandlearnfromyourexperiments.

Startsmall.

Compositionandpicturedesigncanbeplannedinadvanceusingthumbnails.

Thumbnailsareminiatureviewsthatenableustorunthroughvariouscombinationsquicklyinreducedsize.Whetherasubjectshouldstandontherightorleftcanberesolvedeasilythisway.Therefore,beforebeginningyourpainting,makeaseriesoflittlesketches(perhapson

theedgeofthepictureoronapageofyoursketchbook)inwhichyourunthroughthevariouspossibilities.Thecompositionisvisibleeveninthesesmallversions,andyou’llsavetimeandeffort.

You’llsee.Thisway,importantpicturecompositionissuescanbeclarifiedinadvancewithoutwastingtime,paper,andnerves.

Bytheway,weartistsoftenpretendtobeomniscient.

Somesay,“Artissynonymouswithskill.”Isay,freeyourselffromthat!Inreality,skillcomesfromdoing,anddoingcomesfromtrying.Goodcompositioncannotbememorized.Trydifferentthingsoutasoftenasyoucan—yourpictureswillbenefitfromit!

Tip:Thedistancetoyoursubjecthasconsiderableinfluenceonthecompositionofyourpictures.So,takealessonfromfilmmakingandworkwith“shots.”

HerearefourshotsusingtheexampleofmytomcatJuri:

Panorama:Juriisfaraway.Hedisappearsasapointinthelandscape.

Longshot:Juriinhismilieu.

Kneeshot/shortfocus:Jurifillsuptheframe,perhapswithtruncatedupperbody.

Close–up:Juriisextremelyclose,hisfacefillstheframe,andyourecognizeeverydetail.

SMUDGESANDSPOTS

Splotches,drops,andpaintsplatters—thingsthatcanusuallyruinpictures—canhaveanastonishinglygreateffectonwatercolorpictures.Onesplashorsprayintherightplacewillgiveyourpictureaboost.

Thedifficultywithmakingsplotchesisnotsomuchthesplotchingitself(weusuallylearnthatbeforepainting),butworkingconfidently.Wearealreadyfamiliarwiththisfromwatercolors:itisahard-to-graspblendofcontrolandlettinggo.

Ofcourse,youcanaddthesplotchesseparatelyinPhotoshop,buttoinsertthesplotchesskillfullyyourself,you’llhavetorelyonabagoftricks.

Firstofall,onceadropdripsitdoesn’thavetostaythewayitis.Forexample,ifwewanttoinfluencethedirectionitflows,wecancontrolthisverywellbyblowinggentlyatitthroughastraw.

Butitgetsevenmoreinterestingifweusesplotchesandsplatterstoimitatetextures.Sometexturesareverydifficultandtime-consumingtoimitateusingwatercolorpaintinthetraditionalway.I’mthinkingofcoarsetextures,forexample,likestonesanddust,orvegetation,butalsofinesurfacessuchasskin.Inthesecases,asprayedpatterncanbeveryhelpful.

Ifwetapthebrushagainstourfingers,thepaintspraysinroughsplattersonthepaper,creatingtexturessimilartothoseseeninvegetation.(Manypaintersdepictshrubberythisway.)Ifyouwanttoachievesmallerandfinertextures,useatoothbrushforsplattering.Atoothbrushisindispensableformimickingalmosteverythingfromsandtofreckleswithsplattering.

Tip:Youcan,bytheway,controlthedirectionofadrop’sflowsuperblybyblowinggentlythroughastraw.

Finerdropsandpatternscanbesplatteredusingatoothbrush.

Itcanbetrickytoprotectcertainareaswhereyouarecreatingtextureswithsplattering.IusestencilsthatImakemyselffromthickerpaper.Stencilsthatareperfectlycutlookveryunnatural,though,sotrytearingyourstencilsinsteadofcuttingthem.

Noonehasfrecklesthatstopasifcutoutwithscissors.(Ifyoureallywanttoreserveanareawithdistinctedges,likeeyes,youcanusemaskingtape.)

Nomatterhowyougetyoursplotchesundercontrol,whenmanipulatedskillfully,spotsandsplattersarenotdetrimental.Instead,theyarepreciselythatbitoftamedcoincidencethatmakeswatercolorssoterrific.

Tip:Stampsorprints(usingleaves,fabric,sponges)arealsoperfectforimitatingsurfacesandtextures(forexample,treesorshrubs)orjusttopepupyourpictures.

PAINTINGWHAT’SNOTTHERENegativeSpace

Somethingsaresoobviousthatwenevernoticethem.Yetalotdependsonwhatwemiss.

I’mtalkingaboutnegativespace.

Inapicture,notonlythepartsthatwepaintaresignificant.Thepartsthatwedonotpaintarealsoexceedinglyimportant.

Whitehasaneffect,andnegativespaceisadesignelement.Inreality,itisasignificantpartofyourpainting.

However,itisimportantthatthenegativespacedoesnotjust“happen.”Youhavetoconsciouslycomposeit.So,whilepainting,payattentiontowhatisthereandwhatisn’t.Thesuccessofapictureoracompositionisequallydependentonboth.

Tip:Tocomposethenegativespace,youfirsthavetoseethepositive.Simplifyyoursubject.Inyourmind,reduceittoaflatsurfaceorshape;therestwillhappenonitsown.

Wedonotjustseesubjectsastheyare.Thenegativespacethatresultsfromthemisalsoapartofourassessmentwithoutconsciously

realizingit.

Trytoalwayspictureboththeformofyoursubjectandtheshapesofitsnegativespaces.

You’resurelyfamiliarwithopticalillusions;forexample,ifyoulooklongenough,agobletbecomestwofaces.Trytothinkthiswaywhilepainting.Putalittledistancebetweenyourselfandyoursubject,andcheckwhetherthenegativeshapesarealsocompositionallyappealing.Reduceyoursubjectstoflatforms,andthenseewhatthenegativeshapeslooklike.You’llbesurprisedathowmuchyourpaintingsbenefitfromthis.

Tip:Theseprinciplesofwhitespacealsoapplyquitewelltootherareasofdesign.Thenegativeshapeofafont,alogo,oranotherdesignelementisalsosignificant.Here,too,whatweseeisnotallthatdecides“good”and“bad”;theresultingnegativeshapesalsocontributetoit.

WHITEASpecialCase

Aswhiteassnow,whitelikethelight,whiteaspaper.Withwatercolor,innocentwhiteisafartrickiermatterthanyoumightthink.

Theproblemliesinthenatureoftheglaze:everylayerweapplydarkensthepicture.Itdoesn’tmatterwhatcolorwelayernext;evenlightcolorsmakethepicturealittledarkerwitheverylayer,andeverystepwetaketakesusalittlefartherawayfromthelight.

Unlikeallotherpaintingtechniques,watercolorisaone-waystreet.Thetransparencyofthepaintmakesitpracticallyimpossibletoapplyalighterhueontopofadarkerhue.Appliedpaintcanonlyberetouchedwithdifficulty,andonceatoneisdarkeneditcanneverbemadelightagain.Withopaquemediumslikeoilsoracrylics,wesimplyuseatubeofwhitepaint,butwithwatercolors,wearesomewhathelpless.Whitewatercolorpaintstraightfromthepalettejustlooksdirtyandunnatural.Thatiswhytheruleforwatercolorsisthis:whiteisnotpainted.Instead,whiteisomitted,or“reserved.”Thisisalsooneofthereasonsthatwatercolorisnotaneasytechnique:wecannotmakecorrections.Thewhiteinourpicturesisthepaper,andthisforcesustoknowbeforehandexactlywhereinthepicturewewantittoshinethrough.

Inwatercolorpainting,thewhiteinthepictureforcesustoplanahead.

So,howdowegoaboutit?Simplypaintarounditandreservethelightestshade?

Inpractice,thisisanythingbutsimple,becauseoftenthelightestpartsofthepictureareonlyverytinythings,likethelightreflectedinaglass,thewhiteofaneye,orastrandofhair.

Tip:Maskingfluidhastheunpleasantattributeofclumpingupyourbrush.Therefore,neveruseexpensivewatercolorbrushestoapplyit.Instead,uselessexpensivemodels,suchascraftbrushes.Itisalsohelpfultodipthebrushbrieflyinsoapywaterbeforepaintingwithfrisket.

Obviously,insuchcaseswecan’tconstantlybe“hoveringaround”theseareas,especiallynotiftheyareincorporatedintolargerareasofcolor.

Forthesefinickycases,masks,orresists,areasolution.Thesimplestmaskcanbemade,forexample,frommaskingtape.Papermaskscanalsobeused,butthesearedifficulttoadheretothepaper.

Anothertrickistopre-drawthewhitepartsofthepicturewithwaxcrayonsorcandles.Thewatercolorswillnotadheretothepre-treatedplaces,andthesethenremainwhite.However,thismethodisnotveryprecise,andthewaxcannotberemoved.

Whenworkingwithwatercolors,frisket,ormaskingfluid,isthebestmaterialformasking.

Frisketisawater-solublelatexfilmappliedtoareasyouwanttoprotectfrompaint.Itisappliedinliquidformandthenallowedtodry.Once

thefilmisdry,youcanpaintoverit.Theplaceswherethefrisketadheresremainunpainted.Later,youcansimplyrubthelatexlayeroffwithyourfingerorarubbereraser.Fortunately,themaskingfilmcanberemovedwithnoresidue,andyoucanpaintagainoverareasthathadbeenmaskedlater.

STUDIES,SKETCHES,ANDDRAFTS

Watercolorisatransparenttechnique.

Thelayersofpaintdonothideoneanother,andtheirtransparencyalwaysensuresthatunderlyinglayersremainvisible.Thisistruenotonlyforthepaintbut,inparticular,forsketchesandstudies.

Thisisreasonenoughtotakeacloserlookatsketchesandwatercolors.

Youcanmakeapreliminarysketchusingalmostanything,ofcourse.Themostobviouswayistousewatercolorsthemselvesforthesketch.Forthis,weusethedilutedpaintofalighthue—saybeigeoryellow—toputdownarapidsketchonthepaperandlaterpaintthepictureoverit.Doingsowillcausesomeoftheinitialsketchtodissolveintothepaint,creatingacertainlightness.

Usingapencilforapreliminarysketchcreatesaslightlymorevisibleimage.However,penciltendstobecomeaffixedbywatercolorpaint.Evenathinlayerofpaintmeansthatwecannolongererasethepencillinesunderneath.Therearewater-solublecoloredpencilsthatblurordisappearwhentheycomeintocontactwithwater.Butinmostcases,thelineremainsandformsthescaffoldingofourpicture.

Besidesusingpencil,youcansketchusinganynumberofpermanentpens.Ipersonallyprefertoworkwithpermanentfine-pointpens,likeKoh-I-Noor,Copic,Sakura,orsimilar.

Agoodmethodfortransferringapreliminarysketchtowatercolorpaperistousealighttable.

Forthisyoumakearoughdrawingonathinsheetofpaperandthensimplytraceitonyourwatercolorpaperonthelighttable.Ifyoudon’thavealightorlayouttable,youcanjustuseawindowthatdaylightshinesthrough.It’sagoodideatotapethetwosheetsofpapertogethersotheydon’tsliparound.

Unfortunately,eventhestrongestlighttablewillnotshinethroughapadorblockwithacardboardbackingorapaperstretchedonaboard.Inthesecases,you’llhavetofindanothersolution.

TryworkingwithSaralpaper.Thisisakindofcarbonpaperfortracingdrawings,which,unlikerealcarbonpaper,isavailableinvariouscolors.Thetracedlinescanbeerasedaway.

Butyoucanalsomakeyourowntransferpaper.

First,weblackentherearsideofthesketchwithasoftpencil(3Borsofter).Whenwelaythissketchonourwatercolorpaperanddrawoveritwithaharderpencil,thelinesaretransferredthroughtotheunderlyingsurface.Anexactpenciledcopyofoursketchappearsonthewatercolorpaper.

Themainadvantageoftracing,inmyopinion,isthatitmakesusfeelmorerelaxedaboutourpictures,andyoudon’triskdamagingthewatercolorifyouneedtoeraseyourdrawing.Often,theattitude“Ifitdoesn’tworkout,I’lljusttryitagain”willleadtoyounothavingtotryitagainatall.Itsoundsodd,butsimplyhavingtheoptiontoredoapicturelowerstheprobabilityofactuallyhavingtoredoit.

Tracinginthreesteps:

1.Sketchbook

2.Copyortracingpaper

3.Watercolorpaper

Ahardbrushwithpigbristlesisalsosuitableforfirmremoval.

However,atleastafainttraceofcolorwillusuallystillbevisibleonthepaper,sowashingoutthepaintisnotalwayshelpful.

Anothermethodistoremovethepaintnotwithwaterbutwithadrytechnique.Forinstance,youcanusearazorbladeorsomesandpapertoscratchofflayersofpaint.Thisworksparticularlywellonsmooth,hardwatercolorboard,butonlyonsmallareas.Ahardrubbererasermayremovepigmentsthathavesoakeddeepintothepaper,butthesecanbeverytoughonpaper.Erasewithcaution.

However,somecolors(manyredandgreenshades,inparticular)permeatedeepintothesurfaceofthepaperandaredifficulttoremove.So,donotexpectperfectlycleanresults.

Inpractice,acombinationofwetanddryremovaltechniqueshaveprovensuccessful.However,ifyoutrytoremovepaintwithwaterfirst,makesurethepaperdriescompletelybeforeattemptingadryremoval,becauseitmaytear.

Ofcourse,thebestthingtodoisstandbyyourmistakes.

Watercolorpaintscanprovestubbornwhenyouwanttoremovethem.

Somehuescanbewashedoutwithoutresidues.Forthecleanestremoval,moistenthepaint

brieflyanduseaspongeorsyntheticbrushtoremoveitafterafewseconds.

Somehuesleaveashadowbecausethepigmentshavepenetrateddeepintothepaper.Inthis

case,ahardrubbererasermayhelp,butonlyongoodqualitypaper.Left,top:Paintsthathave

beenwashedoff.Left,bottom:Afterusinganeraser,inadditiontowashingout.

Youcanalsoremovewatercolorpaintswithaknife,razorblade,orsandpaper.Thesematerials

arealsousefulincreatingeffects,forexampleimitatingthinbladesofgrassonameadow,

fluffyclouds,orreflectionsinwater.

MERGINGCOLORSWorkingfromOneColor

Thereisagrayveiloverthecity/Thatmymotherhasn’twashedoffyet.—DieFehlfarben,1980

Don’tyouagreethatonaJunedayat7:52p.m.,theworldisatitsloveliest?Whenthesunislowintheskyandimmerseseverythinginayellowglow?Orwhenthefogcomesinfromtheharborandlaysamilkyhueoverthehorizon?

Whatabouttwilight—whenthestarsappearintheeveningskyandthenightsteepsinallblueandviolet?

Acommonmoodinthelightingisnotjustlovelytolookat;itisalsoincrediblyimportantinpainting,asitunifiescolors.

Onewaytocreateaharmonious,cohesivecolorschemeistomergethecolors.Thismeanscreatingtheillusionthatyourentirepictureisimmersedinonesinglekindoflight.

Thisworksbestbyfirstpaintingasinglecolorovertheentiresurfaceofthepaperbeforepaintingthedetails.Thisestablishesatone,abasicmood,overwhichyouwillpaintyourpicture.Awet-on-wettechniqueworksbesthere.Sincelayersofwatercolorpaintblendwithsubsequentlayers,thisoneinitialtonewillbepresentintherestofyourpicture;allofthelayersofcoloryoulateraddwillblendwiththisinitialsinglecolor,andwillthereforebeharmonious.Theunderlyingtonewilldrawthecolorsappliedoverittogether.

Youcanalsodoittheotherwayaround,andlayasinglelayerofcoloroveryourfinishedpicture.Thissubduescolorsthatwerelesssuccessfulandalsodrawsothertonestogether.Grays,forexample,likePayne’sgray,appliedquicklywithalargebrushworkwellwiththis

approach.However,there’sariskthatthenewlayerwillrewetandblurallofyourunderlyingwork.

Therefore,mypreferredapproachistobeginwiththeunifyinglayerofcolorbeforeworkingonthedetails.

Theunifyinglayerwaspaintedfirst.

Whenmergingcolors,youcanalsostartbybuildingwet-on-wetgradationsintoyourpicture.Youcancreateshimmersoflightorshadowsinthefirstunifyinglayer,creatingagraphicelementuponwhichthepicturecanbuild.Forinstance,adarkspotaddedtothepaperduringapainting’sinitialstagescanevolveintotheshadowsofaroomorthecenterofaflower.

Thesetechniquescausetremendouseffectsandestablishageneraltoneandmoodforasketchrightfromthestart.

Theunifyinglayerwasaddedlater.

WORKINGWITHCOLOREDPAPER

Anothergreattrickformergingcolorsistochooseyourpaperaccordingly.Trypaintingoncoloredpaperratherthanwhitepaper.

Itiseveneasiertoproducepleasantcolorharmoniesoncoloredsupportsthanitisonwhitewatercolorsheets.Justasaninitialwashofpaintunifiescolors,coloredpaperprovidesabasic,cohesivemoodortonethatvisuallyguidesallofthelayersofpaintonitinonedirection.Basictonedpaperscreatelightsituationsbythemselves.

Tip:Oncoloredpaper,youcanevenuseopaquewhitewatercolorpaint,whichappearsmuchmorepureandpristinethanitdoeswhenpaintedontopofwhitepaper.

Yellow,gray,orbrownpapersworkbest.Recycledpapercanalsobeveryeffective.Oldenvelopes,bookpages,wallpaper,gift-wrappingpaper,andoldkraftpaperareexcellentoptions.

Actually,allthatmattersisthatthecolorofthepaperhasenoughintensitytounifythecolorsyoupaintwith,butnotsomuchintensitythatitswallowsupyourwatercolorglaze.Itsoundssimple,butcoloredpapercreatesabasicframeworkthatfacilitatesworkingwithcolors,sinceitlendsyourpictureanatural,unifyingcolor.

Tip:Coloredpaperisverygoodforcollagesbecausethecontrasttothenewbackgroundproducesaconvincingplasticity.

SPECIALEFFECTS

Thereareanumberofadditivesandtricksthataltertheeffectofwatercolors.Oxgallisverycommon,andsomemanufacturersaddittotheirpaintsetsasastandardfeature.Oxgallismadefromthegallbladderofcattle(don’tlickthebrush,ittastesnasty!)andischieflyusedtoimproveflow,delaydrying,andtoremoveoil,perhapsintroducedbyfingerprints,fromthepaper.

Tobehonest,Idon’tthinkoxgallisveryessentialinpractice.Unlessyouhaveplentyofspaceinyourpaintbox,youcandowithoutit,asfarasI’mconcerned.

Thereareoneortwothingsthatarenotinyourboxthatcaninfluenceyourpaintingfarmore.Ifyouwanttocreatesplotchesandspatters,forexample,youcansprinklesaltorsaliva(really!)onyourpainting.Youcanalsoscrapetheleadoffofwatercolorpencilsandsprinkletheshavingsintothestill-wetpainttoachievegreattextures.Thistechniquecreatesparticularlyinterestingeffectsandreallyturnsupthecolorinapainting.

Naturally,trickslikethesealonedon’tmakeagreatpainting,buttheyarefantasticwaystoenhanceapicture.Inawintersky,salivacanlooklikesnow,andshavingsfromwatercolorpencilslooklikeorganictexturessuchasplantsorrocks.Usedskillfully,thesetricksareinvaluable.

LETTERINGANDWRITING

Picturesandcharacterswereessentialforhumandevelopment.Theycouldbeusedtoconveyideaswithoutspeakingdirectlyfrompersontoperson,soinformationcouldbestoredandtransported—timeandspacewerenolongerobstacles.

Withoutpicturesandwrittencharacters,wewouldprobablystillbefollowingherdsofreindeeraround.Everythingthathasbeendevelopedinthemodernworld,frombookprintingtotheinventionofthetoaster,couldonlyfollowbecauseweenabledourselvestopreserveandpassonknowledgetoothers.

Aboutfivethousandyearsago,theSumeriansinthecityofUruk(modern-dayIraq)madeahugequantumleaptowardrefininginformationbymovingfrompictogramstocuneiform,anearlyformofwriting.Asweshouldknow,picturesandwritingarecloselyrelated.

Allwrittencharactersbeganaspictograms,ordrawingsthatembodiedtheirmeaning.TheEgyptianhieroglyphicswerepictograms,althoughtheywerealsoassociatedwithconsonants.Insometypesofwriting,theoriginalpictogramscanstillberecognized.Forexample,theoldformoftheChinesecharacterfor“person”actuallylooksabitlikeastickfigure,andthecharacterfor“moon”reallydoesresembleawaxingmoon.

Overthemillennia,however,theoriginalpictogramsgraduallylosttheirform,becameboundtophonemesandsyllables,andwereabstractedtobecomewhatwerecognizeaslettersandcharacters.

Writingisnotonlyinformative,however.Italsohasitsownintrinsicbeauty.

Justaswecanusepensandpencilstobothwriteanddraw,abrushdoesn’tonlyhavetobeusedforpainting;wecanalsowritewithit.

Brushletteringisagoodwaytoreunitethelong-lostsiblingsofwritinganddrawing.Ifwesupplementpictureswithhandwritingorpaintcalligraphicwatercolors,weare,inaway,goingbacktoonesinglepiece;wegetnearertotheimageandmoveawayfromtheabstractionofwriting.Inaddition,withourhandwritingwebuildabridgethatlinkswritingtosomethingpersonal.

So,useyourwatercolorsetforwriting,too.You’llseethathandwritinglooksgreatandnotonlythat:writingexpressesyoupersonally.Itisashortpathwayfromyourmindtoyourhand,yourthoughtscoupledwithyourpersonalstyle,whichisgoodforfarmorethanjustasignatureatthebottomedgeofapainting.

Tip:Ifyouhaveeverattemptedtouseletterstampswithwatercolorpaint,you’llhavenoticedthatthepaintdoesnotadhereverywelltoregularstamps.Analternativeiscreatingthegoodoldpotatostamp.Watercolorpaintsadherewelltothestarchinthepotato,makingstampingfeasiblefortypographicalwatercolorexperiments.

LAYOUTS,SCRIBBLES,ANDSTORYBOARDS

Wedonotencountermanyhand-drawntechniquesinapplieddesigntoday,andthereisasimplereasonforthat:therevisions.

Layoutsandstoryboardsarealteredmuchmorethanyou’dimagine.Everyoh-so-minoradvertisement,illustration,animation,andfilmgoesthroughametamorphosisuntilitisconsideredpresentable.

Inthecourseoftherevisions,thewomanintheforegroundofacommercial,forexample,maybereplacedbyaman,whointhenextphaseisreplacedbyacar,whichisreplacedbyaboy,which,inthenextmeeting,mutatesbacktoawoman(whoisalsogivenadifferent-coloreddressinthefinalversion).

It’snotsomuchamatterofchangingaestheticsherebutmerelyhavingtheabilitytorevise.It’sobviousthatdigitaltechniquesaremoresuitedforthisthananyanalogones.

Still,itdependsonwhatphaseofaprojectwe’retalkingabout.Inthefieldorduringameetingorpresentation,thescalestipveryquicklyinfavoroftraditional,hand-drawntechniques.Toexplainsomethingquickly,to“throwanideaoutthere,”sketchingissimplyunbeatable.Watercolorsarealsoaverygoodoptionforthis.Youdon’tneedtolugaroundanassortmentofdifferent-coloredpenswithyou,asyouwouldwithmarkers.Instead,yousimplywhipoutyourminiaturepaintsetandlendcolortoyourideas.Inpresentationsandduringmeetingsinparticular,alittlescribblecanunderscorewhat’sbeingsaid,therebyachievingafantasticeffect.

Butweallknowthat,intheend,allthatmattersareyourideas.Thevehicleyouusetotransportyourideasshouldbechosenaccordingtothesituation.

Tip:Waterbrushesareparticularlysuitableforworkinginthefield,inmeetings,etc.,toavoidsplotchesandhavingtorunaroundwithglassesofwater.Thesebrushesincludeareservoirofwater,whichflowsunderslightpressure.Waterbrushescanbefoundinwell-stockedartsupplystoresoronline,andtheyareasplendidportableoptiontohaveonhand.

Above,left:Storyboardsandlayoutillustrations.

Above,right:Scribbleillustrationforinternalcommunicationsandclientpresentations.

Client:FactorDesign,Hamburg.

WATERCOLORILLUSTRATIONS

Thereissomethinganarchicaboutwatercolorpaint.Italwaysdoeswhatitwantsandisthereforenotnearlyaspredictableas,say,computer-generatedvectorgraphics.

Watercolorsandrevisions,therefore,donotgotogetherverywell.

Withwatercolors,somethingthat’sbeenpaintedcan’treallybeerased,orworse,paintedover.Althoughwecaninterveneusingimage-processingprogramslikePhotoshop,revisingwatercolorsbyhandismoredifficult.It’snotanewproblem:sincetheirinventionwatercolorshavebeendifficulttoretouch,butthedigitalrevolutionhasincreasedtheeaseofand,consequently,thedemandforrevisionsconsiderably.

Inspiteofthis,watercolorpaintisexcellentlysuitedforillustrationssimplybecausetheuntamablenatureofthepainthassomethingspontaneousandbeautifulaboutit.Thisiswhywatercolorsareindispensabletosomefieldsofillustration—forinstance,intheliterarysphereandinchildren’sbooksinparticular.

So,makecarefulpreliminarysketches.Ifyougiveyourclientscoloredsketchesthatalreadycontainallofthepictorialinformationtheyneed,youcanstillimplementrevisionseasily.

Tip:Giveyourclientsinformativesketcheswhenillustratingwithwatercolors.Possiblerevisionscanthenbeconsideredandimplemented.

WatercolorillustrationforthemagazineMare(Hamburg).

Above:Initialsketch.

Center:Precisedraft,stillusinganentirelydifferentcolorscheme.

Below:Finalartwork,resultofrevisionphases.

HOWMUCHISYOURPICTUREWORTH?

What’sthevalueofyourpainting?$50,$100,$1,000?

Oddly,almostallartistsandgraphicdesignersfindthetopicsomewhatunpleasant.Weavoiditaltogether,quotepricesthataretoohighortoolow,andarehappywhenothers(galleryowners,agents,orfriends)dothepricingforus.

It’snotthatwearebadatbusiness,butalltoooften,weneglecttoseepriceasthematerialequivalentofothers’recognition.Weerroneouslymakethepricetheindicatorofourownartisticquality.

Ifthepriceistoolow,weseeourselvesdisappearingintoirrelevance;ifit’stoohigh,thepressuretoperformsuffocatesus.It’snotthepricewearetalkingabout,butourselves.Strangely,thisiswhatmakesitdifficulttopriceourwork.

Theysaythemarketsetstheprice.Themorepeoplewanttohangthispictureontheirwalls(orinthecaseofusagerights,themorepeoplewanttoreproducethework),thehighertheprice.Therefore,ahighpricemustmeanthatthepictureispleasingtomany.

Itisremarkablethatweallowourvalueasartiststorelysomuchonthisprincipleofmarketvalue,sincethemarketdoesnotnecessarilyhavethemostwell-trainedeye.Marketvaluecanalsomakesomethinginconsequentialexpensive,andviceversa.

Agreatpaintingcanbeworthlessonthemarketbecausenooneacknowledgesit.

Tosumitup,Ipersonallydonotthinkthatpriceandvaluearethesamething.Onthecontrary,trulysignificantthingsareusuallyunmarketable:therearenopricetagsonhappymemories,summerdays,andfirstloves.Similarly,regardlessoftheirprices,paintings,pagesofasketchbook,ornotespossessaspecialvalue.

So,weneedtoturnitaroundandaskthefollowing:Whatisitsvaluetomepersonally?Whatinmylifeprovidesmewithvalue?

Picturescanalmostalwaysbevaluable,butthatdoesnotnecessarilymakethemprofitablemerchandise.

Evenifthevalueisfarmoreimportantthantheprice,artanddesign

are,ofcourse,work.Thus,aworkofartalsoshouldhaveamonetaryvalue.

Butoddlyenough,bothsocietyandartiststendtoleaptothesameextremes:onequicklyunder-oroverestimatesone’spricebecausetherearenouniversalyardsticksforpersonalvalue.

Lowpayisoftenjustifiedwith“itwasfuntodo.”

Isetmypricesasfollows:thedecisivefactoriswhetherIamsellingthepictureoronlysellingtheusagerights.Inthelattercase,retainingaroyaltyseemsthemostpracticalbecausethen,withouthavingtociterealfigures,youretainareasonableshareoftheprofit.

Ifyouwanttosellapainting,thepriceshouldaccountforskill,quality,idea,effort,andsize.Inaddition,trytotakethebuyer’sbudgetintoconsiderationtoacertainextent.

Personally,Idonotthinkthatapaintingshouldbemoreexpensivethanthesofait’shungabove.So,youmaywanttoadaptyourpricetowhetheryourworkwillbehungbehindausedIKEAsofaorbehindanItaliandesignerchaiselounge.

Tip:Don’tforgetthatthepriceisnotthevalueofyourpicture.Thatvaluecannotbemeasured.

EVERYTHINGENDSWhenIsaPictureFinished?

ThequestionofwhenapictureisfinishedneverariseswithaPolaroid.Lookthroughtheviewfinder,click,release,andthepicture’sdone.Iteitherturnsoutwelloritdoesn’t.

Itisquitedifferentwithapainting.Apaintingevolves—fromapreliminarysketch,toanunderpainting,topaint.Weaddanelementandtakeanotheraway.

Apaintingaccompaniesus;weinvesttimeandenergyinitsgrowth.Asitgrows,wegiveitdirection.

Asketchisnotthesamethingasasnapshot.Itisnotfinishedthemomentyoureleasethe

shutter—whileitgrows,wegiveitdirection.

Yet,sincewealoneareabletocontrolit,wearealsotheonlyauthoritythatcandeclareitfinished.

Thisisthedilemma.Wespendsomuchtimewithourpicturethatweoddlyalsolosedistancefromit.

Thequestionofwhenapictureisfinishedis,towit,extremelyimportant.Shouldwechangeanelementoraddanother?Isthisreallytherightform,therightcolor?Yet,ifwejustkeeppaintingandcannotbringittoaclose,weriskdestroyingit.Watercolorpaintinparticularappearsdeadwhenwekeeppilingonelayerontopofanother.Watercolorsthatarere-wettedandpaintedoverbecomedullandlosetheirluminosity.

Thereisamomentineverypicturewhenanyfurtherpaintingdoesnotmakethepicturebetter,butworse.Painterstalkabout“paintingapicturetodeath.”Amajorcomponentofart—especiallyinwatercolorpainting—isrecognizingwhenthisisabouttohappenandputtingdownthebrush.

Onereasonthatweoftenworklongeronapaintingthannecessaryisthatweknowoncewedeclareapicturefinishedwesubjectittoevaluation.Unfinishedpicturescan’tbecriticized.Aslongasthepaintingisaworkinprogress,wearedelayingthatmomentoftruth.Merelyoutoffearofthismoment,wegetstuckinakindofpurgatoryanddabbleawayatourpaintingslongerthanweneedto.

Paradoxically,thisisexactlywhatmakesapictureworse.Ifwehadthecouragetodeclarethatthepaintingiscompleted,wecouldpreventitfrombeingpaintedtodeath.

Whenisyourpicturefinished?Themomentyoufeelthatitcannotgetanybetter,butonlyworse.

AbouttheAuthor

FELIXSCHEINBERGERisanillustrator,artist,anddesigner.Heistheauthorandillustratoroftwootherbooksonwatercolorsandhasillustratedmorethanfiftychildren’sbooksinthelastdecade.HisworkhasappearedinmagazinesincludingHarvardBusinessManagerandPsychologyToday.HelivesinBerlin,Germany.

Air,5.1,5.2

Black,1.1,4.1

Blue,itr.1,2.1,2.2

Brushes,4.1,6.1

Brushwork

Colorcodes

Colorgenerators

Colorharmonies

analogous

collecting

complementary

cool-cool

designing

monochromatic

split-complementary

tetradic

triadic

unfamiliar

warm-warm

Colors

complementary,2.1,2.2

culturalcontextand

economicaluseof

effectsof,itr.1,1.1,2.1

favorite

intensifyingwith

lightfastnessof,itr.1,4.1,4.2

luminousvs.nonluminous

merging,6.1,6.2

mixing,1.1,4.1

perspectiveand

sciencebehind

spicingup

typesof

ofwetvs.drypaints

Seealsoindividualcolors

Colorwheels,2.1,2.2

Composition

Contrasts

Creativity,3.1,3.2

Design

compositionand

decisionsand

Emotions,2.1,3.1

Equipment.SeealsoBrushes;Paints;Paper

Finishing

Food,painting

Glazing

combiningwashingand

withIndiaink

layersof,1.1,1.2

mixingcolorswith

practicing

Gray,1.1,1.2

Green,itr.1,2.1

Gumarabic

Iconographiccolor

Illustrations

Indiaink

Layouts

Lettering

effectof

shadowsand

whiteas,1.1,1.2

Liquidwatercolors

Localcolor

Looseningup

Masking,6.1,6.2

Mistakes

Monochromaticharmony

Negativespace

Orange

Outdoorpainting

Oxgall

Paintboxes,4.1,4.2

Paints

applying

buying

characteristicsof

colorof,wetvs.dry

compositionof

diluting

liquidwatercolor

mixing

removing,1.1,6.1

symbolson

intubesvs.pans

choosing

colored

historyof

stretching

Pencils,4.1,4.2,6.1

Perspective

changing

colorand

Pigments,itr.1,itr.2

Priorities,roleof

Purple

Red,itr.1,2.1

Sellingprices

Shadows

Sketches,preliminary

Specialeffects

Splotches,6.1,6.2

Stamps,6.1,6.2

Storyboards

creativityand

findingyourown

looseningupand

Subjects

choosing,3.1,5.1

distanceto

Thumbnails

Truecolor

Value,conceptof

Washing

combiningglazingand

effectsof

techniquesfor

Water,painting

Waterbrushes

Watercolor

attitudestoward

characteristicsof,itr.1,4.1

historyof

timeand

Watermarks

Weather,bad

Wet-on-wettechnique

White,1.1,1.2,3.1,4.1,6.1

Writing

Yellow

urban watercolor sketching: a guide to drawing, painting, and storytelling in color

Documents

watercolor paint on matt cardstock · watercolor markers on...

sketching and sketching technique

watercolor sketching for travelers.pdf

watercolor still life - watercolor learning center

sketching manga style vol 5 sketching props

watercolor sketching for travelers - peter mcreynolds

visit us at tenspeed - penguinrandomhouse.biz · visit us...

watercolor techniques. beatrix potter watercolor pen and ink

chinese watercolor

shrinkycircuits: sketching, shrinking, and formgiving for...

watercolor masterpieces

watercolor techniques: 8th grade€¦ · the properties of...

watercolor lamp

visual storytelling and instant sketching. my portfolio

sketching manga style vol 1 sketching to plan

watercolor gift ideas or illustrations: watercolor home...

watercolor birchtrees

stylized rendering techniques for scalable real-time … ·...

lunchtime watercolor

embedding and sketching sketching for streaming