Artists Back to Basics - Issue 6 Volume 3 2016

Just Add

Water 1

With Artist Derek L Newton

T

hats--Not quite what

I had in mind

So

Lets start again-- Just add Water

This is more of what I have in mind.

My Painting of old Thames

River Barges, water colour

The Colour Painting

Process, Wet in Wet

Water colour painting is a very traditional

medium to work with, but a medium

many new- comers shy away from

because of its uncontrollable nature,

but it’s this very uncontrollable nature

and unpredictability that can make it

so much fun. For the most part, water

colour paints the picture for you as

it moves and soaks into the paper

depending on the amount of water

and incline of the surface; the same

artist with the same materials could

never paint the same picture twice,

even trying to do them simultaneously

because, any slight difference in the

amount of surface water on your paper

will change the way the colours spreads

out and is absorbed into the papers

surface. Many artists even use the

first few minuets after applying a wash

to steer the paint around by holding

their backing board at different angles,

thus helping the paint/water to move

up, down or sideways. Wet in Wet.

Photo Lake Joondalup

So let’s break it down a little.

Materials used for this demonstration

Arches medium water colour

paper half sheet $3.00. Art spectrum

Payne’s Grey watercolour paint $0.20

(new tube about $8.00). Winsor and

Newton designers Gouache, $0.10

(new tube about $12.00). Add-ons,

masking tape, Hake brush number

2, rigger brush. Total cost of material

I used about $3.30. Probably less.

The official definition of a

watercolour painting.

Source, Water Colour Society

of Western Australia

When water is the vehicle for mixing

and applying colour pigment, any

water colour based medium may be

used in the recognized water colour

techniques with the exception of water

soluble acrylics, oil and pastels.

Teacher’s Pet