505553 Watercolor Painting Tutorials - [PDF Document] (2024)

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Watercolor Painting Tutorials 2004, 2005 Gregory Conley -www.WatercolorPainting.com Click Here to Print This Page*Click Hereto open in new window

Painting a Flat watercolor wash OBJECT: Learn to lay aneven-toned flat watercolor wash.

In the beg inning...

Draw a square or rectangle on your paper, or visualizetheboundaries of such as you go. (wing it)

Select a darker hue for your w ash (it's easier to see)and mix aliberal amount of medium intensity (30-50%value) paint on yourpalette. I'm using a 1 " (381mm)Winsor & Newton Series 965 flatwash brush and HolbeinSap Green watercolor paint for this lesson.The paper isArches #140 CP.

Charge your brush with paint, and starting in the upperleftcorner touch your brush to the paper and gently pull astraight lineof paint to the upper right corner.

NOTE: If left handed work right to left!

Make your second stroke

Return to your palette and refill your brush.

Start the next stroke at the bottom of the f irststroke, beingsure to overlap the bead of paint now

formed at the bottom of the first stroke.

TIP 1: If the flood of the first stroke doesn't fully flowintothe new stroke, increase the angle of your board to aid theflowof the wash.

TIP 2: Increasing the angle of your work also increasesthechances of drips running wild down your paper. If theyannoy you,work faster or keep a tissue or damp sponge inyour free hand toquickly blot them away.

Repeat as necessary...

Refill brush and continue overlapping strokes, riding theflow ofthe paint and keeping an even tone as you go.

TIP 3: You can use the flat edge of a wash brush to "cut"thestarting edge.

TIP 4: If you want to square up the final edge of thestrokeslowdown, pull the brush up, and use the sharpflat edge again. Pull itup to your line and "cut" the finaledge with a downward pull.

TIP 5: If your stroke breaks up, load your brush and

repeat the stroke IMMEDIATELY. See (Tip 7) below!

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Almost there, keep going!

Repeat steps making stroke after stroke to the

bottom. Try to keep an even tone as you go.

TIP 6: You would not believe how much variety there is in

the behavior of different brands and grades of paints andpapers.The more expensive well-known brands usuallymake your work easierby offering consistent high quality.

TIP 7: If your strokes break up and your brush is fullycharged,you are either using a rough textured paper orthe paper could beheavily sized. If you find heavily sizedpaper like this, spray thepaper, sponge it off with a cleandamp sponge and let it dry beforeuse. The surface willnow be more receptive to your paint.

I've painted something!

Rinse your brush out in clean w ater and blot orsqueeze out theexcess the water.

Carefully pick up the bead of paint that runs across thebottomof the wash using the wick action of your brush. Ifyou draw up toomuch paint you will lift the color off thepaper.

Let the wash dry. If you've ended up with an even-tonedsquare ofcolor, congratulations! If not, try it again. I did.And do.

TIP 8: Try practicing your flat washes with different colorsandintensities. Each color has it's own physical propertiesthat affecthow they feel and flow in washes.

TIP 9: For a pronounced texture in your wash let it dry atanangle. The pigment will settle out in the texture of thepaper.

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All contents Copyright 2004, 2005 Gregory Conley. All rightsreserved.

*Permission to print www.watercolorpainting.com watercolorpainting tutorials grantedfor school classroom or personal useonly. All other permissions must be attained bycontacting[emailprotected] or by writing: Watercolorpainting.com, ATTN:GregoryConley, 21228 Northwood Avenue, Fairview Park, OH 44126USA.

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Painting a Graded watercolor wash OBJECT: Learn to lay angraded-toned watercolor wash.

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Preparing to wash

Draw a square or rectangle on your pape r.

Select a darker hue for your wash (it's easier to see)and mix aliberal amount of medium intensity (30-50%value) paint your brush.In a clean part of your palette mixanother puddle at about half theintensity of the originalmixture.

MATERIALS USED: I'm using a 1 " (381mm) Winsor &NewtonSeries 965 flat wash brush and Winsor & NewtonCobalt Bluewatercolor paint for this lesson. The paper isArches #140 CP.

Charge your brush w ith paint from the darker mix, andstartingin the upper left corner touch your brush to thepaper and gentlypull a straight line of paint to the upperright corner.

Light

Dab your brush on a sponge or paper towel and refillyour brushwith the lighter mixture.

Start your second stroke overlapping the bottom of

the previous stroke.

Notice that the left side of the stroke has alreadyflowedtogether with the top stroke. Let gravity do it'swork.

Lighter

Rinse your brush and blot it on a towel or dampsponge, refillfrom the lighter mixture.

Make your next overlapping stroke.

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Lightest

Rinse clean and dip your wet brush into the lightermixture,further lightening the wash.

Lay your next overlapping stroke.

TIP 1: If your stroke doesn't flow evenly or breaks up,chargeyour brush and repeat the stroke IMMEDIATELY.

A clear finish

Rinse your brush well and using clear water startyour lastoverlapping stroke.

Squeeze the w ater out of your brush and pick up thebead ofpaint at the bottom of the wash.

All Done.

Ask the paint settles and flows, minor imperfections intone willusually smooth themselves out before they dry.

This example shows some graining in the final wash.Cobalt Blueis a coarser and heavier pigment that settlesinto the texture ofthe paper.

TIP 2: Try practicing your graded washes with differentcolorsand intensities. Each color has it's own physicalproperties thataffect how they feel and flow in washes.

TIP 3: Practice transitioning one color into anotherforinteresting multi-color effects.

Perfecting a graded wash may take a little morepractice than aflat wash, but any time painting is timewell spent.

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All contents Copyright 2004, 2005 Gregory Conley. All rightsreserved.

*Permission to print www.watercolorpainting.com watercolorpainting tutorials grantedfor school classroom or personal useonly. All other permissions must be attained bycontacting[emailprotected] or by writing: Watercolorpainting.com, ATTN:Gregory

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Conley, 21228 Northwood Avenue, Fairview Park, OH 44126 USA.

Watercolor Painting Tutorials 2004, 2005 Gregory Conley -www.WatercolorPainting.com Click Here to Print This Page*Click Hereto open in new window

Glazed Wash watercolor tutorialOBJECT: Learn transparentwatercolor glazing effects.

A little information

I will improvised a landscape on the fly to show theprinciplesof glazing watercolor washes.

MATERIALS: Arches #140 CP watercolor paper,Grumbacher 1" flatred sable, Kalish Kolinsky Red Sable#8 round, Kolonok #4 flatKolinsky red sable, Winsor &Newton Series 820 #8 Round, and aKolonok #4 roundKolinsky red sable brush. A blow-dryer.

COLORS (various manufactu re): Cadmium Yellow Light,CadmiumYellow Medium, Cadmium Orange, Cadmium RedMedium, Permanent Rose,Dioxazine Purple, Cobalt Blue,

Ultramarine Blue and Sap Green. Colors chosen aretransparent andsemi-transparent.

Using my 1" flat red sable brush I used a Cobalt Bluewash toblock in the sky, mountains, and river area. Ibroke up the wash andadded some clear water to softenthe area that would be awaterfall.

A mountain and red clouds

This lesson is designed to be as obvious as possible.

Using bright transparent colors allows you to see howeachsubsequent wash is affected by those washes lying underit. Plusit allowed me to play with a new style of painting.

Using the same 1" brush I mixed a transparent wash ofPermanentRose and painted a band of red clouds acrossthe sky area.

Rinsing my brush I mixed up a light wash of CadmiumYellow Lightand started painted the mountain area. Icontinued to the foregroundand layed in a large yellowunderwash.

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I got the blues

Staying with the 1" flat red sable I then used alightUltramarine Blue and Cobalt Blue mix to block in amountainhorizon and negatively define the backgroundsmaller yellowhill.

For some reason, after I undercut the backgroundyellow hill withblue, I then pulled a blue stroke straight

down and cut the left corner in and lifted off with a flip.

TIP 1: Allow each wash time to dry before overlaying thenextcolor. You can use a blow dryer to effectively andsafely dry yourpainting: Low setting, at least 10" awayfrom surface, keep itmoving, NO STEAM!

More color!

Same brush, different color. Needing to detract andbalance theblue I had just finished, and making someinteresting colors alongthe way, I mixed a straight washof cadmium orange. I made orangebanks in theforeground and then laid the orange over the roseandblue in the sky.

You'll notice the jewel-like qualities of working withpurecolors in a transparent manner. The glazed washcould just as easilybe a faint muted gray on a solitary rockin a large, photorealisticlandscape painting.

Hey! A different brush

Switching to my #8 round red sable I mixed up a verystrongCobalt Blue wash and strengthened the line ofmountains at thehorizon, varying the width by twistingand changing pressure on thebrush as I went.

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Creating on the fly

Using the same #8 red sable and Cobalt Blue wash Istartedplaying in the waterfall after stopping on a farbank. Sometimesvisual clichs are your friends, a few bluecircles at the bottom ofan apparent blue hill can becomethe bottom of a waterfall.

Rinsing well, I made a puddle of Cadmium Yellow

Medium and used that to paint some areas on the banksand somerepetitive circles inside the blue on the bottomleft.

A few m ore bubbles

After the previous washes dried I used varying valuesofDioxazine Purple to add color variety to the foregroundwaterfallbubbles.

A consideration and a deep breath

I w anted some major elements to start pulling thisthingtogether so of course I though: trees. I rummagedaround my studioand found items I could trace circles offofI found three differentsizes.

Using the #8 round red sable I mixed up some bright,

transparent Sap Green and painted three circles.

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Flora and lumberjacks

Staying w ith the same brush , I mixed a light wash ofCadmiumRed Medium and layed the lumber under thelovely green foliage.

Rinsing and picking up some Cobalt Blue, I addedsome minoraccents on the water near the background andforeground banks aswell as a shape in the sky. A small

orange rectangluar area was added to the left foreground.

I then alternately used Cobalt Blue, Permanent Rose,and SapGreen washes to paint some icons of grassrandomly around theforeground.

Details to Final painting

Permanent Rose and Cadmium Red Medium wereused to add the finaldetails. The trees were found to befruit trees with red fruit, someon the ground. And eachtrees trunk was striped like a barber'spole.

If you look closely at the enlarged version of thefinishedpainting, you can see how each layer of paint youapply affects allthat came before. Values change for thedarker by default, but thecolors created by glazing washesover one another can be trulybeautiful and effective.

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All contents Copyright 2004, 2005 Gregory Conley. All rightsreserved.

*Permission to print www.watercolorpainting.com watercolorpainting tutorials grantedfor school classroom or personal useonly. All other permissions must be attained bycontacting[emailprotected] or by writing: Watercolorpainting.com, ATTN:GregoryConley, 21228 Northwood Avenue, Fairview Park, OH 44126USA.

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Wet-in-Wet watercolor tutorialOBJECT: Learn wet-in-wet stylewatercolor technique.

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Set-up and start...

MATERIALS USED: Spray bottle of water, a clean sponge,Arches#140 CP watercolor paper, Grumbacher 1" flat redsable, and mytrusty Kalish #8 Round Kolinsky Red Sablebrush.

COLORS USED (various manufacture) : CadmiumYellow Medium,Alizarin Crimson, Cerulean Blue, BurntSienna, Pthalocyanine Green,Hooker's Green Dark, SapGreen, Lamp Black.

I start by spraying my mounted paper with water tosaturate thesurface.

Even out the moisture

Using a CLEAN damp sponge lightly smooth your paperand spongeoff any excess water.

Repeat until paper is evenly saturated, it with a dullsatinfinish.

If your paper is shiny after soaking in the water, thepaper istoo wet. Wring out your clean sponge and smoothoff excesswater.

Where to start?

Creating a landscape "on the fly" I decide to start withthesky.

I mixed up some Cerulean blue and used my 1" flat

red sable to form the clouds. In a full wet-in-wetpainting it iseasier to work from the background forward.

Using a twisting motion I start applying the sky

washes in a calligraphic fashion trying for someinterestingshapes.

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S'cuse me, while I kiss the sky

I continue the sky area with the blue wash, making itlooknice.

The initial strokes you lay down in a wet-in-wetpainting diffuseand disperse widely in and on the moistpaper. Watch your strokesspread as you paint.

Well grounded foreground

I w anted the foreground fairly diffuse so I quicklymixed upsome Sap Green and a bit of Cadmium YellowMedium and formed aninteresting spread of wide strokeswhich I finally decided lookedlike brush and bushes withsome gaps for rocks.

The foreground paint was a thicker w ash than the firstbluewashes and spread a little less initially.

As the paper continues to dry the painted strokesspread less andless.

Adding a little form

I w ent to the palette and mixed some PthalocyanineGreen andAlizarin Crimson to get a grayish cool green.

I started implying some pine trees across the horizonusing my #8round red sable .

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Intensifying the structure

Having added the trees across the horizon, varying theintensitya bit as I went, I decided to use some darkeraccents to startpulling the design together.

Using a straight heavy mixture of Hooker's Green Darkand myround brush I picked out details and shapes tofinish the treeline.

A Rock and a hard place...

To imply some rocks and such, I used a mixture of LampBlack anda bit Burnt Sienna to create a light warm gray.

I pulled the wash across the existing foregroundwash with somewhite paper showing through. Thewarmer color helps to pull theforeground together andforward.

Making a major point

I liked the overall look but it needed some jarringaccents topull it off as an actual "painting."

Using a thick mixture of Alizarin Crimson with a touchofPthalocyanine Green to darken it. I started from the leftaddingsome "florals" in the foreground area.

Even as the red dots spread out I could tell they wouldoverpower the rest of the painting.

I let the red spread a bit and then, using a clean, rinsedandblotted #8 red sable brush I lifted some light centersout of thered dots.

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The final product

I then dripped a few drops of clean w ater in thecenter of acouple of the "florals" to let them spread andmingle with thesurrounding colors.

One of the hardest parts in working exclusively in thistechniqueis knowing when to stop. You cannot get finedetails initially andas you keep working the previous

washes you've layed in continue to spread, mix, andmingle whichmay muddy some colors if you are notcareful.

Wet-in-wet watercolor technique is at timesfrustrating, butalways exciting. There is host of hypnoticpossibilities as thepaint spreads and mingles on your wetpaper.

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All contents Copyright 2004, 2005 Gregory Conley. All rightsreserved.

*Permission to print www.watercolorpainting.com watercolorpainting tutorials grantedfor school classroom or personal useonly. All other permissions must be attained bycontacting[emailprotected] or by writing: Watercolorpainting.com, ATTN:GregoryConley, 21228 Northwood Avenue, Fairview Park, OH 44126USA.

Watercolor Painting Tutorials 2004, 2005 Gregory Conley -www.WatercolorPainting.com Click Here to Print This Page*Click Hereto open in new window

Dry Brush watercolor tutorial OBJECT: Learn dry brush watercolorpainting techniques.

The parched painter

MATERIALS USED: Arches #140 CP watercolor paper,Grumbacher 1"flat red sable, and Kolonok's #4 flat and#8 round Kolinsky redsable brushes.

COLORS USED (various manufacture) : CadmiumYellow Medium,Cadmium Orange, Cadmium Red Medium,Alizarin Crimson, Cerulean Blue,Cobalt Blue, UltramarineBlue, Hooker's Green Dark, Burnt Sienna,and BurntUmber.

First off, I lightly sketched a random landscape

design on the watercolor paper using a #1 pencil.

With a light wash of Cerulean Blue I scumbled a roughsky in,dragging and pushing my 1" flat read sable tocreate texture.

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Laying some foundation washes

I w anted some underlying tones to dry brush thesubsequentstrokes over.

I made a light wash of Hooker's Green Dark grayedwith a touch ofAlizarin Crimson and I painted thebackround tree line around whatis now determined to be alake using the #8 round red sable .

Using a w ash of Dioxazine purple I painted the shadowareas ofthe tree, keeping the edges rough with brokenwashes.

While this was stil l wet I added some blue accents witha mix ofCobalt blue.

Letting the underpainting dry

I tried to keep the underpainting as dry and brokenlooking aspossible, except for the lake area which neededsome suggestions ofthe reflections and flow of the water.

Using a gray made ofBurnt Sienna, Cobalt blue andHooker's GreenDark I scruffed in a foreground bank area.

I let the underpainting dry.

A tree emerges

I mixed up a strong blue w ash from Cobalt andUltramarine Blueusing a #4 flat red sable.

Holding my brush at a rather severe angle I let it layon thepaper with varying pressure as I dragged strokes tocreate theshadows and texture on the tree trunk.

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It's Fall!

After finishing the large tree trunk I decided it was fall(whichit was at the time) and using all the Cadmiumcolors; yellow medium,orange, and red medium, Iroughed in fall foliage with some rathergarish colors.

I used the Kolonok #4 flat red sable for these washes.

A change in plans

As I finished the riot of color on the far banks I added alightwash of orange as a reflection in the lake of the largebackgroundtree followed by a run of pure Cadmium yellowmedium down the bankunder the far tree. I mixed a darkbluish gray from some Cobalt blueand Burnt umber andquickly drew in some dark accents strokes on thelargetree trunk.

At this point I considered the flaming trees andthough of thedark maroon maple trees across the street.Using the underpaintingas a base I scrubbed in the maintree shape with a mixture ofAlizarin crimson andPthalocyanine green which gave an adequatemarooncolor.

As I w orked on the big maroon tree in I relied on thenaturalspread of the #8 round red sable brush to helpcreate convincingfoliage textures.

The classic water effect

I decided the water in lake would be a greenish brown.I usedHooker's Green Dark and Burnt Umber to get asatisfactory color.

I start dragging texture parallel with the horizon line,

across the lake using the not-too-wet #4 flat red sable.

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A lake appears before me

As I pulled each stroke across the lake I variedpressure on thebrush to create the "sparkly" water areas.

TIP: If your brush is too wet, you'll lay a flat wash. Blotyourbrush on a flat damp sponge or paper towel to adjustthe amount ofpaint in the brush.

A little detail and punch up

Using Hooker's Green Dark I made a medium tonedpuddle of paint.I used my #4 flat red sable brush,charged, and blotted. I tweakedit between my thumb andfinger to spread the hairs a bit.

Using an upward " flicking" motion I added somegrasses under thetree. I used some of the same color onthe far bank.

Just a minu te, almost done...

I decided the lake had some sw ampy areas near theshore and Iadded some calligraphic indication of cattails.

By now, the blue in the sky was looking a little too light.Imixed up some more Cerulean Blue, a little darker thistime, andscumbled the sky areas again.

Using the same blue and a #8 round red sable brush Iadded thesky color to the lake reflections.

Finished! Click image to enlarge.

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All contents Copyright 2004, 2005 Gregory Conley. All rightsreserved.

*Permission to print www.watercolorpainting.com watercolorpainting tutorials grantedfor school classroom or personal useonly. All other permissions must be attained bycontacting[emailprotected] or by writing: Watercolorpainting.com, ATTN:GregoryConley, 21228 Northwood Avenue, Fairview Park, OH 44126USA.

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Watercolor Painting Tutorials 2004, 2005 Gregory Conley -www.WatercolorPainting.com Click Here to Print This Page*Click Hereto open in new window

Lifting wet watercolor paint OBJECT: Learn watercolorcolor-lifting techniques for wet paint.

Facial Tissues

Wad up some facial tissues and use them as a negativepaintingtool.

Facial tissues are absorbent and leave a softer-edgedimpression.Use gentle pressing and twisting, or a dabbingmotion.

If you try to scrub with a facial tissue, most will fallapartand soil your washes.

Excellent for clouds, soft lighting effects, and puddlecontrolas you paint.

You can use TP but that's gross and most brands fall topieces orleave lint all over your painting. Good for blottingbrushes (ZoltanSzabo), leave it on the roll though.

"I t's a sponge, Bob."

In the band of green in the middle-ground I used awrung outnatural sea-sponge.

Natural sponges w ill l ighten a watercolor wash in alittle moredispersed and textured manner.

Light texture will be more pronounced if color is liftedas thewash is getting drier.

You CAN scrub your paper with a natural sponge, justwatch outfor paper damage.

Synthetic cellulose sponges abound in my studio. Theycan blotlarge areas (and your brushes) quickly and can becut into any shapeyou need.

Paper Towels

Here, I blot some simple shapes with a folded papertowel tolighten the foreground.

Paper towels can impart an more angular andmechanical texture asyou blot a wash.

Paper towels can suck up a lot of paint VERY quickly.

A large fresh wash of non-staining color can becompletelyremoved at times. If you lay a glaze overanother wash and it was amistake, quickly lay a flatsection of paper towel down and blot theentire wash upbefore if has time to affect the underlying wash.

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Negative brush w ork

The brushes you put the paint down w ith can also pickthe paintup.

Rinse clean and squeeze out excess water. Your brushwill wick upthe wet paint.

Using a damp 1" wash brush, I blotted the brush to

keep it's edge.

Sweeping back and forth I pick up the color with theedge of thebrush, blot the brush dry, and pick up somemore. I "drew" in a lineof fence thingies.

The finished lifts

Click the photo to enlarge and see the results of the wetliftingtechniques described above.

Other techniques for lifting wet color I've used:

1. Spraying water to wash away areas of color.2. Using variousabsorbent fabrics and towels.3. My hands or parts there of. Yourskin can pick up

color like a stamp pad. You'll leave personaltextures. DON'TPICK UP TOXIC COLORS INTHIS MANNER! (and don't use yourtongueeither , duh...)

4. Several cats in my lifetime have lifted paw printsout of awet wash.

5. Sgrafitto techniques will scrape away color butbruise thepaper in the process.

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All contents Copyright 2004, 2005 Gregory Conley. All rightsreserved.

*Permission to print www.watercolorpainting.com watercolorpainting tutorials grantedfor school classroom or personal useonly. All other permissions must be attained bycontacting[emailprotected] or by writing: Watercolorpainting.com, ATTN:GregoryConley, 21228 Northwood Avenue, Fairview Park, OH 44126USA.

Watercolor Painting Tutorials 2004, 2005 Gregory Conley -www.WatercolorPainting.com Click Here to Print This Page*Click Hereto open in new window

Lifting dry watercolor paintOBJECT: Learn watercolorcolor-lifting techniques for dry paint.

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Watercolor Brushes

Any of your regular watercolor brushes can be used tolift drywatercolor paint. Use clear water with a gentlescrubbing motion,blotting carefully with a drier brush ortissue as you go.

Using red sable or other soft hair brushes creates asofter edgebut is less effective at loosening the dried paintfrom thepaper.

This method offers greater control in the areas youarelightening.

Using your good painting brushes for lifting paint canwear downthe fine tips over time. If you've investedmoney in high qualitybrushes spend a few more bucksand keep some synthetic watercolorbrushes handy foryour dry color lifting needs.

Acrylic or Oil painting brushes

The tough and resilient synthetic and natural bristle

brushes used in acrylic and oil painting are the moretraditionalchoice for "scrubbing" lights into watercolorpaint.

The stiffer hairs can quickly scrub an area covered inpaint downto the paper surface.

Control is rather coarse using bristle brushes. The softhairlift (see "watercolor brushes" above) "teases" thepaint from thepaper. This "scrubbing" method is moreaggressive and can harm thepaper if used with too muchenthusiasm.

Spray and Blot

Spraying clear water on an area of yourn painting andblotting itwith a paper towel can lighten large areas of apainting bydegrees.

Using the force of the spray in a "sandblast" manner toforcepigment loose and off the paper is effective also.

Across the blue wash on the bottom I proceed to blastand blotsome white holes in the painting.

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Sandpaper

Sandpaper is rarely used because of it's destructivenature. Tinysharp shards of sand or other abrasives riplayer after layer ofpaint and paper away with each stroke.

Sandpaper, when it IS used, is best used as a finaltouch forsubtle textured highlighting.

If you try to paint over a sanded area, your paint willsuck intothe holes of raw paper fiber like a blotter.

Razor blades, pen knifes and X-actos

Sharp things! Be careful. Take a digit count. You needto havethe same amount going out as you do coming in tothis section.

Single-edged razor blades can pick out individualhighlights andscrape rough lines.

Sharp pen knifes offer a safer alternative to razor blades.Thehandle offers a better grip for control but make sureyou don'taccidentally fold the knife blade into your fingerswhile using. Ithurts.

X-acto blades can produce finer linear highlights. Taketime tofind out which blade angle works best for what

effect you need.

All of these mothods are destructive in nature andsomewhat riskydue to the sharp tools used.

Sponges again, Bob

Use only natural sea sponges or cellulose (o'cello style)spongesin natural or neutral colors. They are stronger andhold more waterthan lightweight foam sponges.

Simplest to use, use a clean damp sponge with a

gentle wiping motion. Lift color from the paper, rotate tocleanarea on the sponge, wipe again. Repeat as needed.

Here I carefully rub a large swath of color off thebottom middlesection of the painting.

New sponge? Rinse out new sponges thoroughly usingclean water.Most are lightly sized to hold their shapebefore sale. Make sureyour tools are clean.

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Finished

Click picture to enlarge for a more detailed look ateachtechnique's unique properties.

As you can see, many techniques for removing dry paintcan resultin damage to your paper surface. Whenscraping, scrubbing, orpicking out highlights with sharp orrough tools it can be easy tomake a mistake that won't be

easily corrected.

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All contents Copyright 2004, 2005 Gregory Conley. All rightsreserved.

*Permission to print www.watercolorpainting.com watercolorpainting tutorials grantedfor school classroom or personal useonly. All other permissions must be attained bycontacting[emailprotected] or by writing: Watercolorpainting.com, ATTN:GregoryConley, 21228 Northwood Avenue, Fairview Park, OH 44126USA.

Watercolor Painting Tutorials 2004, 2005 Gregory Conley -www.WatercolorPainting.com Click Here to Print This Page*Click Hereto open in new window

Splatter and Spray watercolor techniques OBJECT: Learn splatterand spray watercolor techniques.

Flinging paint is fun

I moistened the lower halfof the paper to see whathappenswet-in-wet as well as dry.

Exciting effects require some exciting motions. Startingwithsome Cadmium Yellow Medium a 1" wide washbrush, I stabbed somecolor into the lower wash rathersloppily.

Grabbing some Y ellow Ochre, with a quick mix I startedrappingthe edge of the brush against my finger. The paintappears to flyoff chaotically.

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Throwing paint willy-nilly

Switching from a #8 and #4 red sable I ran throughUltramarineBlue, Sap Green, and Alizarin Crimson as Ihad a rather goodtime.

If your brush is sopping wet you can't control muchwhen youthrow it. Big Splats. Shake a few drops outbefore you start for anillusion of control.

I usually use my fingers when I rap the ferrule of thebrush torelease the paint for more of a tactile control. (Ifthis techniquehurts whatever part of your hands you arehitting, try rapping on apen than has a padded rubberizedgrip.)

I squeezed several drops of Cadmium Yellow Mediumout of my roundsable from a height of 3' to make bigsplats (see finished exampleat bottom)

Spray it, don't say it

Before I started the spray example I tore up some smallbits ofpaper and scattered them randomly in the uppercorner.

I also moistend the lower half of the example with clearwater,and threw a light Dioxazine Purple wash into it.

Look for a old toothbrush and clean and rinse thebristlesthoroughly, removing any old residue.

Prepare for a mess.

>

It's like toothpaste for your muse

There are a couple ways to charge up a toothbrush. Youcan dip itdirectly in a paint puddle, but it is hard to fill thebristlesevenly with paint.

Here I charge the toothbrush from my #8 round brush.Theadvantage of doing it this way is that you can add as

much paint as you need easily and in a controlled manner.

You don't want the paint dripping from the toothbrush.

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A simulated aerosol attack!

If you w ant to get "into the process" you can gripthetoothbrush close to the head and drag your thumbnail backacrossthe bristles. It does alter the effect in a unique way,but extraclean up is needed.

Using the handle of a #5 round I started quickly rakingacrossthe bristles, releasing the paint in a spray. Pull

straight back in a quick motion. Alter the speed of releaseanddistance from the painting for variation.

Spraying mayhem continues - video at 11

I continue covering the example with all the samecolors i usedwith the spalatter technique above. Ithoroughly rinse thetoothbrush and dry it on a towelbefore refilling with a newcolor.

A modicum of control can be gained if you practice.Sometimes amodicum is all you need.

Evidence of effort

Click image to enlarge for details.

Some watercolor purists consider these techniquesgimmicks andbelieve only the brushstroke is suitable fortraditional watercolorpainting.

They are wrong of course. Use whatever device,technique, tool oraesthetic you want as long as it helpsyou attain your own artisticvision.

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Sgrafitto and Stamped w atercolor textures OBJECT: Learnsgrafitto and texture stamping watercolor techniques.

Etching dark lines

Sgrafitto is an Italian term for scratching techniquesusuallyassociated with stratching through layered ceramicglazes to exposethe underlying glazes. Do you recall thoserainbow colors covered inblack crayon you would scratchpretty pictures into as a child? Sameconcept. Still fun.

Shown in this example is a variation scratching a linewith afine sharp point, in this case a pen knife. The wetpaint is suckedinto the bruised paper fibers as you

scratch across the wash , creating dark lines.

Used judiciously, this technique is excellent for addingdetailsto landscape paintings in the form of naked trees

and branches, and other flora.

Broadside scrapes on credit

I often use old credit cards, cut to shape, to scrapelargerareas of paint around.

The smooth flat edge will act as a squeegee and pushthe paintoff the area you are scraping.

It's on the brush!

Many brushes come equipped with angled scrapers builtinto theirhandles. I have several sizes of synthetic brushesI've purchasedjust for their handles.

I use the scraper end of my old Grumbacher 1" flat redsable andproceed to push some light color tree trunks upand into the "sky"area. Notice the dark edges thatautomatically form where you scrapeaway the paint.

Had I w aited another minute the scraped areas wouldnot have asmuch back fill (fuzzy edges).

Timing is very important. Scrape too soon, you'll getbackfill.Scrape too late and it won't work at all. You'llburnish a smearthrough your paint.

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Feats of stamping

Stamping is putting paint on something and pressingthatsomething onto your painting. The stamping materialyou choose couldbe anything organic or synthetic. Try theclassic potato, pencileraser, or leather, lace, burlap,

leaves, grasses or your fingers. Use yourimagination,possibilities abound.

Using some facial tissues I waded up, I dipped intogreen andcrimson washes I had prepared on my palettesand stamped sometexture in the upper section.

Sponges!

I used a rather stiff slice of a sea sponge and dippedinto someSap Green and stamped the middle section.

The range of size, texture, density, and other variationsinnatural sponges is wide.

This sponge gave an excellent rough organic texturewhen stamped.I'll have to remember that.

This could go on forever...

A finer small soft sponge , a cellulose sponge, and somerathertribal use of various hand parts take place...

(A flurry of activity and a couple of blurryphotographicsequences forced this montage, sorry ed.)

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Oooo, that was fun... where's the soap?

Click image to enlarge.

As lame as some of the technical execution was in partsof thisparticular sequence, I found myself thinking of thistutorial as apiece of art and continued trying to "pull ittogether."

I nested colors in colors using thumb and fingertips andsignedit with a big red hand print. A tip of the hat to theLascauxartistians.

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*Permission to print www.watercolorpainting.com watercolorpainting tutorials grantedfor school classroom or personal useonly. All other permissions must be attained bycontacting[emailprotected] or by writing: Watercolorpainting.com, ATTN:GregoryConley, 21228 Northwood Avenue, Fairview Park, OH 44126USA.

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Back Washes as Texture OBJECT: Learn to use clear water forinteresting back wash effects.

Before the flood

MATERIALS USED: Arches CP #140 watercolor paper, a1" Winsor& Newton Series 965 wash brush, #8 roundred sable.

COLORS USED: Permanent Rose, Cobalt Blue.

I start by mixing a large w ash of Cobalt Blue and layingin alarge loose wash from the upper left corner on acrossthe top of thepaper.

I used my 1 " w ash brush for the color washes

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A colorful mix

Mixing a strong tint of Permanent Rose I quicklycovered the restof the square with color.

As I painted I tried for an interesting mix of colors astheyflowed together.

This is the wash before any clear water has hit it.

Flicks of the wrist

I took my #8 round red sable, rinsed it in clear waterand leftit full.

With a few flicks of the wrist I started throwing somewater onthe wet wash.

Spreading the effect

As the w ashes continued to dry I dropped clear waterondifferent areas.

The degree of dryness ofthe underlying washdetermined how muchthe clear water affected the area.

Click image to enlarge. Notice the lighter areas withintheCobalt Blue areas and the Permanent Rose areas.Graining is becomingmore pronounced in some areas.

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Inducing backwashes and hard edges

As the example continued to dry I worked the surfacewith clearwater.

Backwashes are usually accidental in nature. Whenyou lay twodifferent washes close together and onehappens to touch the other,the wetter of the two will flowinto other.

These accidents can be of the "happy" kind or the "oh,@#!%#!"kind.

After reinforcing the "forced" backwashes on thebottom edges, Idropped a little more clear water on theclose-to-dry washes.

Water drops and backwashes

Click image to enlarge.

Notice the degrees of difference in the upper Cobalt

Blue wash. When the clear water was dropped on a verywet wash(left side) the effect is soft and subtle. Whenwater is droppedjust before a wash is dry the effect isharsh and creates hardedges. The drier wash is less likelyto flow back into the water tosoften the edge.

The bottom backwash areas were achieved by touchingthe very edgeof the rose wash with a brush loaded withclear water. You can seethe interesting shapes formed asthe Permanent Rose pigment waspushed away andconcentrated.

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All contents Copyright 2004, 2005 Gregory Conley. All rightsreserved.

*Permission to print www.watercolorpainting.com watercolorpainting tutorials grantedfor school classroom or personal useonly. All other permissions must be attained bycontacting[emailprotected] or by writing: Watercolorpainting.com, ATTN:GregoryConley, 21228 Northwood Avenue, Fairview Park, OH 44126USA.

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Alcohol watercolor texturesOBJECT: Learn the affect of alcoholon watercolor washes.

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Materials and set up

I drew a square and found some Q-tips and 91%IsopropolAlcohol.

MATERIALS USED: Arches CP #140 watercolor paper, a1" wash brush,the above mentioned items.

COLORS USED: Dioxazine Purple, Ultramarine Blue,Cobalt Blue.

Laying the field of attack

I mixed a large amount of Dioxazine Purple and startedblockingin a large wash on the paper.

The "before" picture

I continued painting in the rest of the loose wash witha CobaltBlue and layed in some Ultramarine Blue in theupper leftcorner.

Prepare to Drip.

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The first w ave not as eff ective...

Dipping a Q-tip into the alcohol I proceed to tap anddripalcohol directly into the washes.

As the alcohol hit the wash it repeled the paint, pushingit awaywhile leaving a lighter tint of the wash exposed.

Because the wash was so wet, I had to repeatedly drop

alcohol onto the open areas to keep the flowing paint atbay.

Getting interesting now

As the w atercolor washes continue to dry I try somesmallersplatters of alcohol throughout the area.

During evaporation there passed a peak time for theeffect towork best...although everything look interestingso far.

You w ill notice a "fish eye" effect in the middle of mostthelighter areas where the color slightly darkens.

Finished example: alcohol and w atercolor

I finished playing around and set the painting aside todry.

Click photo to enlarge.

Alcohol and w atercolor don't mix well. The results of

their fight on the paper is strangely organic in nature andnotachievable using any other technique.

The "fish eyes" are a signature of this technique, soit'sobvious to other painters what you are up to.

Use it judiciously or with total abandon , it's yournickel.

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Salt watercolor texture effects OBJECT: Using table salt forunique watercolor texture effects.

Materials and objective

MATERIALS: Arches #140 CP watercolor paper, IodizedTable Salt,Grumbacher 1" flat red sable. A small square ofdry cellulosesponge.

COLORS (various manufactu re): Alizarin Crimson,Cobalt Blue, SapGreen

Start out with a painting

Using a 1" flat red sable I use washes of Cobalt Blue to

paint a sky area. I graded the sky using lighter bands ofCobaltBlue closer to the horizon.

Using straight Sap Green I blocked in the right hillelement.

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The hills ran crimson

I w ashed in the Alizarin Crimson hill on the left andpulled astroke up the top edge of the Sap Green hill a bit.

I let the Sap Green and Alizarin Crimson battle it outwhere theymet in the middle.

When it rains...

Holding my new tool, a canister of salt, I slipped openthe metalspout and tried a few light dustings od saltcrystals andwatched.

Hmmm... there's salt sitting in puddles of paint.Lookinglike...salt sitting in puddles of paint.

As the minutes passed, I decided to add a bit more saltto theheavier areas of wash on the bottom.

Wow , I'm impressed!

There's not much happening at this stage. So now Iwatch thedrying to see what happens.

There were a few areas I'd left to drop the salt on whenalmostdry. I dropped a bit of salt in those areas.

I set it aside to dry thoroughly.

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Pass the salt please

As the painting dried, the salt's effect on the watercolorwashesbecame visible.

But there was salt stuck all over my painting!

Using a clean dry hand I gentle started brushing awaythe saltfrom the sky area.

As I got to the hill sections heaviest with salt it felt likeIwas sanding my skin off! There was more availablebinder (gumarabic) in the more intense washes which heldthe salt tight.

Change of plans.

The proper tool for the job

I cut a dry cellulose sponge into a small square to usesas asurrogate for my skin.

This enabled me to quickly and gently rub and wiskaway theremaining salt. When removing any abrasivefrom your paint (salt,sand, etc.) take care not to scratchthe paintings surface.

The salt watercolor texture effect

Click image to enlarge.

As the w ashes dry the salt crystals suck up pigmentgradually,creating a myriad of light star-like shapes. Thisis most noticablein the sky areas and was less effective,and different, in thedarker areas.

Experiment w ith various types of salt: table salt(iodized andnon-iodized), sea salt, rock salt, kosher salt,etc. Larger grainedsalt will produce a larger, morepronounced starring effect.

I have no idea how salt affects the longevity of yourart.Considering salt's corrosive nature I would think overtime it mayinteract with pigments and natural paper fibersin an unintendedway.

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*Permission to print www.watercolorpainting.com watercolorpainting tutorials grantedfor school classroom or personal useonly. All other permissions must be attained bycontacting[emailprotected] or by writing: Watercolorpainting.com, ATTN:GregoryConley, 21228 Northwood Avenue, Fairview Park, OH 44126USA.

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Tissue Paper watercolor texturesOBJECT: Learn to create uniquewatercolor texture with tissue paper.

Materials and intentions

MATERIALS USED: Arches CP #140 watercolor paper, a1" Winsor& Newton Series 965 wash brush, a crumpledpiece of white giftwrap tissue paper.

COLORS USED: Permanent Rose, Alizarin Crimson, SapGreen.

I started by wadding up a single sheet of tissue paperandpreparing washes of Sap Green, and a wash ofPermanent Rose andAlizarin Crimson.

I contemplated their fate.

Making a field of color

Using my 1 " w ash brush I loaded it up with thepreviously mixedPermanent Rose and Alizarin Crimson.

I proceed to lay washes and cut in the edges in withred.

I dipped the corner of my (red) brush into some SapGreen andstabbed and mixed these two colors on thepaper.

Before the big cover-up

I continued to scruff in the middle a bit and thenthoroughlyrinsed my brush.

I finished painting the rest of the surface with a strongSapGreen wash intermixed with the reds from before.

The surface is wet and saturated with watercolor paintin strongcolors.

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Clean that mess up!

I spread the tissue out and shaped it into theapproximate size Ineeded.

Being careful to cover the entire area, I positioned the

tissue over the wash and gentle pressed down with mypalms.

I did not press the tissue entriely flat, allowing thecrinklesand creases to do their job.

I set the example aside to dry, almost.

Tissue paper watercolor textures

I knew that a couple of the pigments I used have highbinderlevels (see the salt tutorial) and the tissue papercould be gluedto the painting if I let it dry completely.

I lifted a corner to see if the design was set and gentlypulledthe tissue paper off to reveal the effect you see.

Click image to enlarge.

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*Permission to print www.watercolorpainting.com watercolorpainting tutorials grantedfor school classroom or personal useonly. All other permissions must be attained bycontacting[emailprotected] or by writing: Watercolorpainting.com, ATTN:Gregory

Conley, 21228 Northwood Avenue, Fairview Park, OH 44126 USA.

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Plastic w rap watercolor textureOBJECT: Learn how to createunique watercolor textures with plastic wrap.

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Before the flood

MATERIALS USED: Arches CP #140 watercolor paper, a1" Winsor& Newton Series 965 wash brush, plastic foodwrap.

COLORS USED: Pthalocyanine Blue, Sap Green.

I start by mixing a large w ash of Cobalt Blue and layingin alarge loose wash from the upper left corner on acrossthe top of thepaper.

I used my 1 " w ash brush for the color washes

The underpainting completed

I finished the underpainting with Sap Green, spreadingthingsaround in interesting shapes.

I measured off a piece of plastic wrap by sight, ripped itoffthe roll