5 posts tagged “watercolor lessons”

About Aileen

Aileen is a multi-medium artist/tutor. Her portraits have been included in major portrait exhibtions and she has been commissioned to paint VIP. Aileen has been a guest on national TV pertaining to her art and appeared in various leading magazines. Portraits are a great love and she welcomes commissions in this and other subjects/mediums.

Visit Aileen’s Site by Clicking Here.

Step By Step Watercolor Painting Lesson

I love to share this SPONTANEOUS EXPERIENCE in WATER COLOUR.

This sweet face belongs to Harmoni and I was drawn to paint her portrait for her first birthday. The paper used was Canson 33.gms. a lovely surface for detail and a good weight to prevent buckling. No. 12 and 4 sable brush was my choice.

STEP 1. Sketch the features with a Light Red aquarelle pencil.

STEP 2. A wash of Burnt Sienna was used to establish the shadows.

STEP 3. Golden Red was washed into the hair.HINT: Try to hold the brush in a relaxed manner as in sample 2.

Please follow this link to view the rest of this free watercolor lesson ..

Getting to Know Your Palette Part 1

These are the colors that are currently in my watercolor palette. I use mostly Winsor & Newton tube paints, and I squeeze them on to my palette and allow them to dry. This makes my palette portable, and shortens my prep time. I also find I waste less paint this way.

Click Image For Larger View

Some colors here look quite similar - for example, the cobalt blue and ultramarine. They are different, but similar enough that I could probably use one or the other. I use about 3x as much cobalt as ultramarine, but I keep ultramarine in my palette because it is a granulating color and so it has a different texture when dry than cobalt. But I use cobalt for mixing with burnt umber to obtain my favorite gray.

Speaking of burnt umber, I really don’t like Winsor & Newton’s burnt umber. It is lighter than I am used to (not sure what my previous brand was) and also more orangey. I bought a tube of sepia recently, in search of a darker brown, but I need to make space for it in my palette. Maybe I’ll get rid of the Winsor Yellow light - I rarely use yellow, and when I do I use Gamboge or Raw Sienna. Not sure if Raw Sienna counts as a yellow.

My quinacridone and permanent rose magenta are also very close in hue. I will remove one from my palette, but I’m not sure which yet. I’ll check the labels to see which one is most lightfast, and which one is most staining, and decide from there.

I’m planning a part two of this post, showing a sheet where I’ve mixed all the colors. And a part three comparing staining & non-staining, opaque and transparent might also be a good idea.

If you are starting out in watercolor and aren’t sure what to purchase, don’t feel like you need to copy my palette. Get some basic colors and familiarize yourself with them. Make some swatch charts, one of pure colors like the one above, one showing gradation of each color from dark to light, and one mixing each color with the other colors in the palette. Then paint a lot and get used to the colors you have.

The paint colors I would recommend for a beginning watercolorist are:

Raw Sienna

Gamboge Hue

Burnt Umber

Sap Green or Hooker’s Green

Cobalt Blue

Cadmium Red Med. or Dark

Quinacridone or Permanent Rose

From these you can mix nearly every other color you might desire.

Getting to Know Your Palette Part 2

Click Image For Larger View

Color Mixing Chart for Watercolor based on Angela Fehr’s palette

Part two of getting to know your palette is all about color mixing. In part one you used water and paint to lay down a block of each hue, and if you did as I recommended, you went a little further and varied the ratio of water to pigment to gradate each color from dark to light, and are now familiar with the pure colors in your palette.

However, in watercolor (and perhaps in all painting disciplines), the artist almost never uses pure color - at least not in representational art. While pure Hooker’s Green will look phony and plastic for foliage, when mixed with a little red or brown, it rings much truer and more natural.

In order to know what colors to mix to get the hues you desire you need to experiment and get familiar with the results of different color combinations. With only a few colors, the combinations are vast, and I have used only six colors from my palette for the sample color mixing chart above. Click on the image to enlarge it.

I painted each of the six colors twice, once along the left side of the paper, and once along the bottom. Then I mixed each color along the bottom with the colors along the left, stopping before I started repeating mixtures or mixed a color with itself.

As you can see, some of the hues are pretty predictable, or are not too visibly altered. Some colors (like cadmium red) are opaque and dominant their more transparent companions. The interest is in the colors that dramatically change - like the browns created by mixing hooker’s green with the two reds. Used in its most saturated form, cadmium red and hooker’s green would make a great black, don’t you think? Like many watercolorists, I prefer mixing my darkest (black) values from two opposite colors, making a richer, deeper, more “alive” hue than using black paint.

Also, look at the green created by mixing hooker’s green and new gamboge. Another example of a color brought alive by adding another hue. Hooker’s green is a gorgeous green anyhow, but when combined with other colors it just gets better.

My standard gray is also here on this chart - the combination of cobalt and burnt umber. I’m not overly enamored of my Winsor & Newton burnt umber - it’s too light and orange-y, in my opinion, but it still makes a rich grey shade that I use frequently. By varying the proportions of burnt umber to cobalt blue, I get a wealth of grays, and when I have a little purple in my palette, I throw that in, too!

You can expand this exercise by mixing your palette’s colors in a variety of saturations. Try increasing or decreasing the water in the mixture to see the resulting color when lightened or intensified. Increased familiarity with color mixing and what each color can do will increase your confidence as a painter.

Watercolor By Alistair Butt

Enjoy a new step by step watercolor lesson that I recently posted on my main art instruction blog.

This demo is by the very talented Alistair Butt from the UK. 

Please click here to view the step by step watercolor tutorial.

One of the biggest challenges beginners face with any type of art, is the ability to really connect with the creativity that is inside of them. It's difficult in the beginning to just let go and paint from your heart and soul. Your mind is being filled with techniques and systems for approaching painting, that may inhibit your creativity. Don't get me wrong, painting techniques are essential to learning, but there should be a point where you begin to draw from your own creative imagination.

When painting a subject, whether it be a person, landscape, wildlife, etc., it is important that you first carefully study and observe your subject. You need to get intimate and personal with the subject you are painting. If you want to learn how to paint great landscapes, then you should spend time in and around the area that inspires you to paint. Only then can you really get a sense of what it is you are seeing, and how to re-create that scene on paper.

Before you even touch the paint though, head down to your location with only paper and pencils. One of the best ways to become closer to the scene you are painting, is to spend time there doing sketches. This will really force you to observe what you see and burn the image and the environment into your senses. You will be amazed at how much you learn about a scene by simply doing a few drawings.

Painting on location can be rather challenging, especially when just starting out. As the day progresses and the sun changes location in the sky, the scene you are painting can change dramatically. There are certain techniques in watercolor that require the paper to be at certain angles, or the paper needs to be saturated to a certain degree, etc. To get everything right within such a short time span is difficult. If you feel you will not be able to capture the scene with paint, bring a camera with you. In the beginning you should probably choose compositions that are not overly detailed or complex. Once you find a composition that you like, take a bunch of pictures at different distances and angles. When you get back to your studio you will now have some great reference photos as well as the drawings you created.

Another great way to immerse yourself in watercolor landscape painting is to find artists who share the same interest. Search online for any groups or websites for landscape painters in your area. Start chatting and get to know everyone. Many of the artists in these groups love to connect with other artists and plan painting trips. This is a great way to gain experience.

When painting on location you don't need to bring an entire studio worth of supplies. Some artists make the mistake of bringing far too many supplies with them, which becomes more of a nuisance than anything else. Only bring the colors and supplies that you really need to work on a particular scene.

Remember, things change very quickly outdoors. Lighting conditions and weather can change in a matter of minutes. You must be able to paint quickly without being too sloppy. Block in all of your large areas first then go back and start adding your details. Many landscape artists usually block in the sky area first. The sky is generally paler than the rest of the painting, which enables you to work from light to dark. The sky area also influences the way you paint the rest of the objects in your painting.

When painting objects in the foreground that require a lot of detail, do not try and paint every single leaf or blade of grass that you see. This will create too much detail and will draw focus away from the center of interest in your painting. It also consumes too much of your valuable time. Besides, a painting is not meant to be an exact replica of what you see, rather your unique impression of the scene. If you want exact details, you are better off taking a photograph.

Don't be afraid to use your imagination. If you are painting a scene and feel that you should add a few trees here, or a bush there, or a bird on a branch, then by all means go for it.

If you find one particular location appealing, and have already painted there once before, don't hesitate to go back and paint it again, only this time go out on a cloudy day instead. You will be surprised how different a scene can look when the weather changes.

I hope these landscape watercolor painting tips have helped. If you ever find yourself getting discouraged or frustrated by your progress, don't give up. Instead, welcome and learn from your mistakes. It will make you a much better painter.�

For more free watercolor painting tips head over to http://www.creativespotlite.com/watercolor-instruction.htm. Be sure to also visit the Creative Spotlite Art Instruction Blog for more free painting lessons. �

Like any new form of art, watercolor painting can be difficult at first. It is only with time and practice that one becomes a better painter. Never become discouraged by your mistakes or lack of progress.

To start watercolor painting you will obviously need to purchase supplies. Purchase the best possible materials that you can afford. We all want to save as much money as possible, but if you work with cheap materials, you are not going to be happy with the end result, especially if you spend days or even months on a particular painting.

This does not mean you should go out and spend hundreds of dollars on top of the line supplies right away. Start off buying a small amount of good quality supplies until you become more experienced.

PAPER:

The quality and texture of the watercolor paper you choose will have a dramatic effect on the final outcome of your painting. Watercolor paper comes in several different categories: cold pressed, hot pressed, and rough. Rough paper has the highest tooth of all watercolor papers, giving you the most texture. Hot pressed paper has the smoothest surface available. Cold pressed paper has a slight texture to it and is more versatile. Cold pressed paper is the most popular paper amongst watercolor artists.

Two other things to be aware of when purchasing your watercolor paper are sizing and weight. Sizing is when the fibers of the paper are treated to make them less absorbent. The weight of the paper is the weight measured in pounds of one ream (approximately 500 Sheets). A heavier paper would have a weight of 300lbs or more, while a lighter paper would have a weight of 90 or 140lbs for example. The lighter the paper, the more likely it will wrinkle when wet. Lighter paper should be stretched to avoid this.

You will have to experiment with the different papers to find the one you like most.

PAINT:

Watercolor paints come in both Student and Artist quality. Artist quality paint has a more intense vibrant color. Student grade paints have more fillers in them rather than pigment, which is why they are less expensive. Many artists recommend only using artist quality paints, but it really is a matter of taste. Experiment on your own with both grades to form your own opinion.

Watercolor paint is available in tubes and pans. With watercolor pans, you have to add water to the dry cake in order for it to be workable. With pans, make sure your brush is clean before picking up a new color; otherwise you will dirty your colors. With a tube, the paint is more workable, but be careful not to squeeze out more paint then you need.

Purchase only a few primary colors and learn how to mix your own colors rather than purchasing premixed colors.

When you become more experienced, you can then start incorporating more colors into your palette.

BRUSHES:

Brushes are probably the most important part of an artist's supplies. The watercolor brush should be of good quality, with the ability to perform well under most conditions.

Brushes come in an assortment of sizes and shapes. There are both natural hair brushes and synthetic brushes. Natural hair brushes are more expensive, while synthetic brushes may not perform as well as natural brushes. It is therefore recommended that you purchase a blended brush that is made with both natural and synthetic hairs.

You do not need a ton of brushes to get started in watercolor painting. In the beginning, a few good brushes should do the trick.

You should at least purchase a round brush, a flat wash brush, an oval wash or mop brush, and a rigger or liner brush for fine details.

PALETTE:

You will need a palette for mixing your watercolor paint. The best kind of palette for mixing watercolor paints is a white palette. Since watercolor paint is transparent, a white surface seems to be the best color for clearly seeing your mixtures.

GETTING STARTED:

Now that you have a basic of idea of the watercolor supplies you need, it's time to find a place to setup your studio. You will want a location in your home or elsewhere that is quiet and where you will not be interrupted.

Next you will need a painting table. If you can, invest in a drafting table. If not, you can use a regular table. Whatever kind of table you use to paint on, it is important that your painting surface is inclined to a 15 or so degree angle.

Next you want to make sure you have an organized and clean painting area before you begin. Make certain that you have all the materials you will need within reach for that particular painting session.

Here are some things you should consider having in your watercolor studio:

- A large see through plastic jug to hold water.
- A clean absorbent cotton rag for drying your brushes
- A spray bottle filled with water to keep your paint wet and your palette clean
- Pencils for sketching
- Erasers
- A sketchpad for doing preliminary sketches.
- Container for your brushes

WHAT SHOULD I PAINT?

Many painters often struggle with this question. If you find yourself feeling uninspired or confused about what to paint, simply remember what subject in life that you feel an emotional or deep connection with. When you have this type of connection to a subject, your painting will reflect that passion and you will not lose interest.

You can develop great ideas for subjects in a variety of different ways. If you are a lover of the outdoors and nature, simply taking a trip with a camera can do wonders. If you love animals, you could take a trip to the zoo and snap off some shots or head to an aquarium and do the same. Take your photos back to your studio and find the most desirable subject for your painting.

I wish you the best of luck with your watercolor painting. If you become frustrated or discouraged remember that every artist has been there. The key is to never give up.

For more great watercolor tips, visit http://www.creativespotlite.com/watercolor-lessons.htm today!