Watercolor Techniques

Beatrix Potter Watercolor Pen and Ink

TECHNIQUES

Techniques We Will Be Learning • Solid wash• Graded wash• Glazing (optical mix)• Wet on wet• Drop color on wet color• Dry brush• Scumbling• Negative painting• Lift or feather out• Pushing out pigment

• Wipe out brush/towel• Detail painting• Masking fluid/tape• Hard and soft edge• Scratching wet and dry• Salt• Water splatter/blooms• Sandpaper and

watercolor pencils• Sponge• Saran wrap• Rubbing alcohol

Washes

• Solid wash

• Graded wash

Wash• The most basic watercolor technique is the flat wash.

– It is produced by first wetting the area of paper to be covered by the wash, then mixing sufficient pigment to easily fill the entire area. The pigment is applied to a sloping surface in slightly overlapping horizontal bands from the top down. Once complete the wash should be left to dry and even itself out - don't be tempted to work back into a drying wash, the results are usually disastrous!

– A variation on the basic wash is the graded wash. This technique requires the pigment to be diluted slightly with more water for each horizontal stroke. The result is a wash that fades out gradually and evenly

Wet in Wet

Wet in Wet

• Wet in wet is the process of applying pigment to wet paper. – The results vary from soft undefined shapes to slightly

blurred marks, depending on how wet the paper is. – The wet in wet technique can be applied over existing

washes provided the are thoroughly dry. – Simply wet the paper with a large brush and paint

into the dampness. The soft marks made by painting wet in wet are great for subtle background regions of your painting.

Glazing

Glazing

• Glazing is a similar watercolor technique to a wash, but uses a thin, transparent pigment applied over dry existing washes. – Its purpose is to adjust the color and tone of the

underlying wash. – Non staining, transparent pigments such as Rose

Madder (or Permanent Rose), Cobalt Blue and Auroline are ideal for glazing as they can be applied layer after layer to achieve the desired effect.

– Be sure each layer is thoroughly dry before applying the next.

Dry Brush

Dry Brush

• Dry brush is the almost the opposite watercolor technique to wet in wet. – This process needs a brush loaded with pigment (and

not too much water) – The brush is then dragged over completely dry paper. – The marks produced by this technique are very crisp

and have a hard edge. – They will tend to come forward in your painting and

so are best applied around the centre of interest

Lifting OutBlotting/Lifting - As an area dries, you can used water in your brush to blot areas back to white by making the paint spread away or you can use a dry brush to absorb or lift the paint from the area.

Lifting Off

• Most watercolor pigment can be dissolved and lifted off after it has dried. – Staining colors such as Phthalo or Prussian Blue,

Alizarin, Windsor Red, Yellow or Blue are difficult to remove and are best avoided for this technique.

– The process for lifting off is simple - wet the area to be removed with a brush and clean water then blot the pigment away with a tissue.

– Using strips of paper to mask areas of pigment will produce interesting hard edged lines and shapes

Dropping Color

Dropping Color

• This technique is the process of introducing a color to a wet region of the painting and allowing it to blend bleed and feather without interruption.– The result is sometimes unpredictable but yields

interesting and vibrant color gradations that cant be achieved by mixing the pigment on the palette.

Saran Wrap

Rubbing Alcohol

• Drip some alcohol on the painted area and the paint will separate from the area. The dryer the paint is the darker and crisper the edges of the separated area of white will be.

Rubbing Alcohol

Salt

• Sprinkling Salt on the paint created a sandy texture. The longer you leave the salt there as it dries, the more the paint will spread but this works best the more semi dry the area is.

Salt

Types of Paper

• Cold Press• Hot Press

• http://letspaintnature.com/2009/10/29/difference-between-cold-press-and-hot-press/

Cold Press

Cold Press

• Cold press watercolor paper has texture. Little bumps and groves holds in the water and pigment.

• It really sucks up the water quickly. • Cold press is a good choice when you want to

convey texture in your subject.• The cold press is a little more dull

Hot Press

• Hot press is super smooth. No texture with this paper.

• This paper doesn’t suck up the water as fast as the cold press, allowing you to play around more, like re-wetting edges of pigment.

• hot press is more vivid and bright.

Great Websites and Resources Used For This PowerPoint

• http://www.johnlovett.com/techniq.htm• http://letspaintnature.com/2009/10/29/differ

ence-between-cold-press-and-hot-press/