20 artistMarch 2020 http://www.painters-online.co.uk
WATERCOLOUR
A
s a watercolour landscape
painter who simply tries to
paint what and how she sees,
the subject of using hard and
soft/lost-and-found edge techniques
to create a three-dimensional world
on a two-dimensional surface is at the
centre of my practice. For me there is
a direct link between the use of edges
and the way we see. Wherever we focus
our eyes and our mind we see clean,
crisp edges that define an object within
its environment. In a painting, however,
it is up to the artist to create a focal
point and lead the viewer’s eye towards
it, ultimately releasing the eye andBalancing on the edge
Deborah Walker discusses the importance of using
hard and soft edge techniques in watercolour, with
advice on how to use them in your compositions
completing the viewer’s journey. We
usually think of a focal point as being
established first through composition,
but it can also be done by the use of
edges. Creating a limited amount of
crisp, hard edges and balancing these
with soft or even invisible ones helps to
direct the viewer’s eye and create the
sensation of ‘how’ we see.Edges
Edges refer to where one shape ends
and another begins. This isn’t limited
to separate objects, it’s also a gradation
of colour and variances in shading.
Edges can be broken down into four