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CHAPTER 1
TOOLS & MATERIALS
Before you begin painting, it's a good idea to acquire a few basic tools that will make your foray into watercolor easier and more enjoyable. Specialty options are abundant, but the following introductory materials will get you off to a promising start.
Paints
Watercolor paints are available in cakes, pans, and tubes. It's always best to use good-quality paint, but if you are just starting out, it's OK to use less expensive student-grade paint and upgrade to professional grade later. You don't need to have a huge palette of colors; each project in this book lists the specific colors you will need.
Masking Fluid
Masking fluid, or liquid frisket, is a latex-based substance that can be applied over areas you want to keep white. When dry, the mask repels paint, so you can paint over it without staining the white support underneath. When the paint is dry, gently rub off the mask with masking fluid pickup or an old rag. You can also apply masking fluid over color that is already dry to protect it from subsequent layers of paint.
Brushes
A wide range of brush types and sizes is available. Brushes come in three basic hair types: soft natural-hair, soft synthetic-hair, and bristle brushes. Synthetic brushes work well with masking fluid; however, they don't retain as much water, so you may find natural-hair brushes easier to use with paint.
BRUSH SHAPES
Flat brushes are ideal for creating straight edges and strokes of uniform width. Their heads vary in length; the longer the hairs or bristles, the longer you can stroke without reloading the brush.
Round brushes taper to a soft point, allowing for varying stroke widths. They hold lots of moisture and don't need to be reloaded with paint as often.
Liner brushes have only a few long, soft hairs, making them perfect for fine lines and details.
Hake brushes have short, soft hairs and a wide base. These brushes create bold strokes with rough trails and are ideal for laying in washes.
Paper
Watercolor paper comes in a range of textures: hot-pressed, which is smooth; cold-pressed, which has a medium texture; and rough, which has plenty of tooth (raised areas of paper). The three different sheets of paper (right) show how watercolor paint looks on rough, textured paper (A), cold-pressed paper (B), and hot-pressed paper (C). Watercolor paper also comes in different weights, designated in pounds. The higher the number, the heavier the paper and the less likely it is to warp when you apply water.
Palettes
The fluid nature of watercolor and gouache painting calls for palettes with wells for containing mixes. Rectangular wells are often slanted for better pooling. White plastic palettes are an economical choice for watercolor, as they are lightweight and easy to clean; the white also allows artists to judge their paint colors as they will appear on white paper. Some artists opt for uncoated aluminum palettes, which offer a bright, reflective surface that is durable, resistant to rust, and easy to clean. Many watercolorists use white porcelain palettes; these heavier dishes are sturdy and resist beading on the surface.
ADDITIONAL MATERIALS
Spray bottle for rewetting paint and keeping watercolors moist
Artist tape & clips to secure paper to a painting board or tabletop
Rags & paper towels for cleanup and correcting mistakes
Sponges to create washes or add mottled texture
White ink or gouache for touch-ups and highlights
CHAPTER 2
PROJECT ONE
CREATING THE ILLUSION OF DEPTH
You can add depth to a flat painting by changing value, color temperature, color saturation, and softening edges.
Sketch the ladybug and flower onto watercolor paper. Then trace the outline of the flower onto a piece of frisket film. Cut the frisket slightly smaller than the subject, and lay it on top. Paint liquid frisket around the film, covering and sealing the edges.
TIP
Liquid frisket (also called masking fluid) and frisket film can be used to protect and preserve the white of the paper. Using frisket film to mask a large area is less damaging to the paper than masking fluid and won't lift the pencil drawing.
Wet the background, and drop in spots of yellow, allowing the color to spread. Next drop in a mixture of light green, yellow, and cobalt turquoise in several spots and a darker green mix of yellow and phthalo blue in a few spots on the lower half. As the wash dries, spatter it with rose droplets by tapping your finger against a small loaded brush.
Gradually darken the color toward the bottom half of the painting to create the illusion that the front of the subject is closer than the back.
USING MASKING FLUID
1. Apply the masking fluid to the desired areas of your paper using an old paintbrush (small rounds work well).
2. Allow the paint to dry, and then rub away the mask with a clean finger or rubber cement pickup eraser.
3. Eliminate bubbles, which may allow paint to reach the paper. Once dry, paint over the mask.
4. The mask will leave behind clean, crisply preserved areas of white paper.
When the background is dry, peel off the frisket. Use the dark green mixture to paint the tiny lines between the background petals. Then paint the yellow center. Use a very diluted wash of cerulean blue to paint the back petals and lines in the foreground petals, as well as to suggest a shadow under the ladybug.
TIP
Using multiple layers of color creates shadows and soft highlights that result in a more realistic ladybug.
Graduating from warm red at the back to cool red about halfway forward, paint an initial light wash over the ladybug, covering everything but the white highlight. Once dry, apply a second darker wash, this time leaving the areas for the black spots unpainted. Create a black mixture with phthalo blue, rose, and a bit of yellow, and apply a light wash over the head.
Paint the black spots, thorax, and head, and add even more black to the darkest areas (the left side of the thorax and head). Next use a damp brush to rewet the highlights in the black areas, dabbing with a paper towel to lift color. Tone down the white areas of the ladybug with a diluted wash of cerulean blue and black.
Finish the legs and antennae. With the cerulean blue and black mix, paint the shadow under the ladybug and the overlapped petal in front. To finish, soften the edges of the white petals in the background with a damp brush. Rewetting the area slightly, lift color by rubbing with a paper towel.
CHAPTER 3
PROJECT TWO
EVOKING MOOD
Evoking a specific mood in a painting requires careful choice of color and form. To enhance the feeling of calm and wonder in this beautiful snow scene, simplify the details.
Draw the outline of the scene. Then mask the snow and highlights on the water. Next wet the paper and paint a mix of cerulean and ultramarine blue on the lower third of the water. Add a hint of the blue mixture to the top of the sky, and drop in watery rose around the distant tree line.
Wet the background snow, and drop in cerulean blue, cerulean blue mixed with rose, and cerulean blue mixed with rose and a bit of yellow. Once dry, rewet the water and paint the same colors, tilting the paper to let the colors mix and form reflections of the tree masses.
To achieve the look of distant trees shrouded in mist, let the dropped-in colors create a soft, nebulous mass of vague tree shapes. Then spatter clean water into the mass to create more mottling.
Paint the middle-ground trees with the purple mixes. Rewet the area, and paint slightly thicker masses, creating one tree on the right and a larger tree mass on the left. When dry, suggest tree trunks peeking out, as well as two bare trees. Rewet the water, and paint the middle-ground reflections with the same colors.
Mix phthalo blue, rose, and yellow to make a dark purple-brown, and paint the foreground tree. Again rewet the water, and apply another layer of cerulean blue to the foreground, adding the purple-brown mixture near the bottom edges. Once dry, remove all the masking and use a soft, damp brush to rub and soften any hard edges.
Using a light-gray mix of cerulean blue, rose, and yellow, paint the shadows on the snowbank and foreground tree. Use the dark purple-brown mix to add a few sticks and crevices.
CHAPTER 4
PROJECT THREE
ADDING INTEREST
People are fascinating subjects, but capturing human interest in a portrait requires a special approach that highlights the individual's unique characteristics. A dramatic background combined with playful bubbles adds interest galore to this portrait and accentuates the sweet innocence of childhood.
Make an initial pencil sketch on watercolor paper. Then paint a light wash over all areas. Use a light wash of yellow and light skin tone over the hair, leaving the highlight on the crown unpainted. Use a wash of cerulean blue and yellow for the dress.
Mix cerulean blue with permanent rose to make purple, and gray it down with a touch of the light skin tone mix for the background.
TIP
Adding a complementary color (purple) to the yellow in the girl's hair makes her tresses appear even brighter.
TIP
Using an opaque color like cadmium red in a skin color mix helps the skin appear solid, even with just a watery wash of color.
Rewet the face and arm, and layer on more of the light skin tone mix. Next mix the light skin color with yellow and paint between the strands of hair. Use more pigment to create darker skin tones for the shadows in the ear, the eye, and under the sleeve.
Wet the background with clean water, and use a large brush and the dark purple mix to paint. Work quickly around the figure, avoiding the delicate lines of the face and hair. Then switch to a small brush and carefully paint the dark color right up to the face and hair.
For the bubbles, paint circles of white and fill them with clean water so the white spreads into the centers. Then, after dabbing most of the white out of the centers with a paper towel, add a touch of white inside for a highlight. Use white to add hairs around the edges of the existing hair and highlights on select strands of hair.
Add more color to the hair and to the shadows between strands, and darken the neck and arm shadows. Finally, add a watery wash of alizarin crimson all over the skin. This "pinks up" the skin in a pleasing way and helps smooth the transitions from light to dark.
CHAPTER 5
CREATING TEXTURE WITH SALT & MASKING
The prospect of painting fur can feel daunting, but don't let the challenge hold you back! Rather than paint thousands of tiny hairs, simply apply washes of color and let salt create the illusion of fur.
Use the initial drawing to mark the light and dark areas in the fur on the body, paying close attention to the details on the faces, particularly around the eyes.
Mask the edge of the log and bunnies. Evenly wet the background, and drop in lemon yellow, letting it spread. Mix different shades of green (yellow + turquoise + phthalo blue + burnt sienna), and drop them in, tilting the paper to let the water and gravity blend the colors smoothly. Spatter yellow into the dark areas and a little green into the light areas. Then, working on dry paper, paint the grass.
To pull colors into each other, apply two washes side by side and tilt the paper while wet so one flows into the next. This creates interesting drips and irregular edges.
When the washes are dry, rub off the mask and apply another layer of masking fluid to the outside edges and tail of the foreground bunny. Paint each eye with a black mixture of phthalo blue, cobalt blue, and burnt sienna. Then paint the ears with a watery mix of rose and yellow.
For a mottled texture, sprinkle salt over a wet or damp wash. The salt absorbs the wash to reveal the white of the paper in interesting starlike shapes. The finer the salt crystals, the finer the resulting texture. For a similar but less dramatic effect, simply squirt a spray bottle of water over a damp wash.
Paint the background bunny with a blue-gray mix of cobalt blue and burnt sienna, leaving the white areas. Sprinkle salt evenly over the wet area. After the salt sets for a minute, lightly apply short strokes of darker blue-gray over the salted area. Then paint the wood with various mixtures of cobalt blue, burnt sienna, and yellow, carefully painting around the grass. Once dry, remove the masking from the edges of the foreground bunny, except for the tail.
The darker color spreads around the salt randomly, resulting in an organic, furry texture
Next paint the foreground bunny with a graded wash of colors, working from left to right. Paint clean water on the left side for the highlight; light burnt sienna on the neck and upper back; and dark blue-gray on the lower back (darkest around the tail), which blends into clean water on the right side. After the body dries, paint the head with the same colors.
Sprinkle the body with salt, let it set briefly, and work back into the salt with dark gray strokes. In this wash, the dark gray clings to the salt, creating a speckled effect.
TIP
Remove unwanted spots by rewetting them with clean water and wiping them away with a paper towel.
* Finish the grass by painting the bottom edge darker green and sprinkling it with salt. Once dry, paint a few areas with more yellow. Soften the back edge of the tree trunk by rewetting it and dabbing it with a paper towel. Then blend the front and back of the trunk on the left side and add bark to the bottom right side.
CHAPTER 6
PROJECT FIVE
CAPTURING ESSENTIAL DETAILS
Birds can stand on their own as captivating subjects, but they can also bring landscape and flower paintings to life by adding drama and movement. The trick is to familiarize yourself with the general anatomy of birds and study their nuances. Once you understand these essential details, you can convincingly capture a bird's essence.
Paint masking liquid around the sketch, and allow it to dry. Then wet the background with very light blue and drop in spots of perylene green, followed by three small spots of alizarin crimson. As the wash begins to dry, spatter it with clean water to add texture. Once dry, peel off the mask.
Apply a light wash of Winsor red on the cardinal's body. Paint the wings and tail darker, with alizarin crimson mixed with Winsor red. Next paint the orange beak with a mix of yellow and Winsor red and the eye and tree limb with a mix of orange and green. Mix blue and orange to produce a blue-gray color for the legs and the shadows on the tree limb.
Paint black around the beak and eye, and then apply another layer of orange to the beak. Paint a small black pupil in the eye, leaving a white highlight. Add another layer of warm and cool red to the body. Use a damp brush to draw into the wet area and create soft, subtle feather patterns.
TIP
Add suggestions of feathers with each wash, sometimes using small brushstrokes on dry paper, and other times painting water or a darker color into a wet wash.
Apply another saturated wash of warm Winsor red over the cardinal. Then work a darker alizarin crimson into the center of the body. Use a dark mix of alizarin crimson and green to paint the tail feathers. After using a cool black to create shadows around the toes and feet, add another layer of orange to the beak.
TIP
By capturing a bird's most prominent details-its eyes, beak, and the feather outlines that give its body form-you can make it appear as though it might soar off the paper. Start with a loose background, and layer color until you've created a fantastic feathered friend.
Paint one more layer of dark red in the middle of the body, and deepen the color of the wings and tail feathers. Then mix black with blue to make a light gray mixture and add shadows near the base of the snow.
CHAPTER 7
PROJECT SIX
RENDERING SOFT EDGES
Flowers are one of the most exquisite subjects an artist can paint. With a little planning, you can transform any arrangement into a stunning work of art.
You can "audition" colors by painting samples onto scrap paper (see "Selecting Mixes" on the following page). Paint several quick studies using the chosen colors with different backgrounds. Once you've selected your color palette, create a line drawing of the subject.
WORKING FROM A TEMPLATE
Take a few minutes to work out the best composition, colors, and background. These templates will help you feel confident in achieving your finest work.
Paint masking fluid around the outer edges of the flowers and vase before wetting the entire background. Then drop in diluted colors — rose and yellow at the top, rose and cerulean blue on the right, and cerulean blue and yellow at the bottom. Then spatter yellow with a toothbrush.
TIP
If an area begins to dry, mist it with a spray bottle.
Once dry, peel off the masking and work on the flowers. Keep each color — rose, yellow, and cerulean blue — separate, and use only clean water. Apply a light wash of color.
TIP
Use a palette for mixing to avoid contaminating your colors.
(Continues…)
Excerpted from "Painting Watercolor Basics"
by .
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