Why watercolor? Because you can suggest any texture or surface, lighting or atmosphere with this innovative medium. Let me explain:
Watercolor captivated my imagination when I saw how other artists had captured the feeling of sunlight and reality by simply using paint and water. I knew I had to know more about this magical medium. My journey took me so much further than I could have ever dreamed. Now I want to share that adventure with others.
Discovering how to paint in watercolor was one revelation after another.
The recipe for a great watercolor painting:
- Observation, observation, observation
- Intelligent composition
- Know how to approach painting the subject and in what order
- Understand basic techniques
- Good knowledge of mixing colors
Observation
We all believe we can see what is in front of us and we can judge the color of an object without too much difficulty. But have you ever really looked at something white for instance? A great example of this lesson is a white rose: What our brain tells us is white – is really a myriad of hues that support that notion. In fact a white rose is made up of all three primary colors: Red, Yellow and Blue. These colors are what mould the form of that rose.
The local color may appear white but when natural light hits the surface, it creates a blue/white highlight. As the petal unfolds and presents itself toward us, we notice there are other colors that seem to be there on the surface of that unfolding rose.petal. It may become quite cream looking or possibly a cream with a green tinge. Look at the other end of the rose petal as it is enveloped into the center of the rose. Notice how warm the hues are in the throat of the rose? We often see yellow and orange – sometimes red in the more central areas. This is due to the warm shadows bouncing around within that enveloped space.
Shadows always contain a touch of blue as well as yellow, orange and sometimes red. This gives us the depth and perfect color temperature to suggest a natural shadow. Shadows are not grey. Grey can be dull and give the impression of a hole rather than a shadow. Look into your white rose and you will be amazed at what awaits you.
So you can see how good observation can give you all you need to know about your subject matter.
Intelligent composition
You can be the best artist in the world with the most amazing brush skills but if your composition lacks interest – it will be nothing more than a pretty picture or wall hanging. Give your painting a narrative. Let it speak to the viewer. What do you want to say about your subject? Create your painting in such a way that it has a message and captures the imagination of the viewer of your work. With watercolor you can tell an amazing story with fine washes, fresh, clean highlighted areas or mysterious shadowed spaces.
For instance: A portrait of a person sitting squarely in facing the viewer is never going to capture interest or tell the viewer anything about your subject.
Try sitting your subject at an angle to the viewer, possibly emerging from the shadows and you will find this will create intrigue.
If you paint your subject in such a way it appears the viewer is looking up to your sitter you will give the sitter an impression of stature – either physically or vocationally. Conversely if you look down on the sitter you reduce their stature and feeling of importance. Either is good. They both tell a story and challenge the viewer to consider what that story is.
With watercolor it is possible to create soft translucent lights as well as rich, deep, transparent darks. Soft washes using my Priming Method can give gentle transitions and help create form in skin, fabric, petals, drapery, sea, sky – the list goes on.
Amazingly deep luminous darks are easily created by the gentle build-up of transparent hues. One on top of the other, allowing each to become bone dry before applying the next will allow you to create luxurious, mysterious shadows using my Priming Method.
What Order to Begin a Painting
It is easy, work from light to dark. Begin with your lightest subject in the painting and work toward the darkest area. Within each subject you will find light areas and darker areas. You are best to begin with a wash that establishes your lightest light. Then gradually build up your colors describing the mid tones and then finally the dark tones.
Methods and Techniques
My biggest breakthrough was when I invented the Priming Method. This comprises of two clear water washes and then one pigmented wash. Read my other Ezine articles on this method. It is amazing!
The other methods I use are the traditional wet in wet, wet on dry, and dry brush techniques.
Used at the correct times, you can paint anything you want and make it look so convincingly real that even you will be fooled by a dew drop, a leaf, beckoning eyes, a puff of wind through long hair. Everything can be as real as you want it to be.
Mixing Colors
Color theory is often confusing but it needn’t be. My simple method of understanding color and color mixing demystifies color theory and will launch you on the way to creating paintings that have a true presence.
In summary:
We have three primary colors: Red Yellow and Blue
These three colors can give you a multitude of hues.
We all know that mixing Red and Yellow will give us Orange.
Mixing Blue and Yellow will give us Green.
A mix of Red and Blue will create Purple.
Did you know that if we want to create a natural shadow color, we simply use the complementary color of the local color we are painting? What do I mean by that?
The ‘local color’ is the color of the object we are painting, before it is affected by light or shade. For instance the local color of a leaf is green. The local color of skin is skin tone.
If we painted a subject only using local color, it would have the appearance of being relatively flat.
When light is added it changes things. All of a sudden we have tonal value (light and dark). We also have color temperature (warm and cool). Tonal value and color temperature give us amazing ability to be able to capture realism.
Take a look at your arm. Hold it up to the light. Can you see how one side is light and the other side is in shadow and therefore looks darker? Can you also see that the light side has a cooler look while the shadowed side has a warm hue (more rich in hue with reds and oranges) – but darker?
These are the things an artist uses to help describe the roundness of all objects.
Complementary colors:
These are simple to remember:
We have three primary colors: Red, Yellow and Blue.
If we take one color away – the mixture of the other two will give you the complementary color of the one you took away.
For instance, lets take Red away from the other two primary colors. Then we mix those remaining colors and what do we have? Green. Yes – a mix of Yellow and Blue of course will give us Green. So what does that tell us: The complementary color of Red is Green. Exactly!
Just as the complementary color of Green is Red.
Try it with the other primary colors and you will soon realize you have this information at your fingertips!
We can use complementary colors to give us stunningly natural shadow colors.
Simply take a small amount of our local color and then add the complementary color to it. Now you have a beautiful shadow color that sings. Imagine how that compares to using a grey instead. It doesn’t bear thinking about does it.
Allow your paintings to glow with luscious watercolor hues using the methods, techniques and watercolor breakthroughs I have shared above.
Enjoy your watercolor journey!