Explore the synergy of abstract and observed art to enrich your creative expression in watercolor.
This class is about the meeting point between experimental special effects in watercolor - mixed media embellishment and development of an image - and the incredible artistic focus we can gain with just a couple of compositional and design touchstones.
We’ll be working in different ways to achieve abstract and semi-abstract paintings - distilling shape, color, texture, and presence from things we see and love, but transforming them to align with our inner visions on the page, and to make them more powerful and more articulate with
some strengthening through design.
I believe that abstract art and observed art are complementary practices that support one another and deepen one another. You are ready for abstraction, and it is ready for you!
WATERCOLOR
I like M Graham for in-studio use and Rembrandt for squeezing into pans. Colors Used:
PAPER
I HIGHLY recommend single sheets of 9x12 cold press cotton paper for the “series” lessons, Winter Dreams and Lighthouse Variations. A 12 sheet Arches gummed edge pad (rather than a block) is great for this class - the two “series” lessons are best with 4 sheets dedicated to each lesson. A great alternative is to cut down full size sheets of watercolor paper, sold in 22x30 sheets, so you have as many 9x12’s as each sheet will yield. This can be quite cost-effective. Blick makes a really good cotton cold press 140 pound paper called “Premier” in sheets and in blocks. Your results will always be best on cotton paper when painting in this water intensive way. For the journaling section and for watercolor sketching and journaling I have two recommendations if you don’t want to continue using cotton 9x12’s: The Strathmore Mixed Media 500 series is a cotton paper that lacks watercolor sizing, but will give smooth blends, transitions and behaviors for watercolor and inks. I like the softcover journal because it will stay open, and I like the Visual spiral bound version for the same reason (also it is a very good price for cotton paper!)
My best experiences with non-cotton papers have been with Canson Montval, so I like and recommend the Artist Series spiral bound book. For our “flash cards” I used Canson XL watercolor. XL is a student paper and a sketch-test paper I use a ton. These papers aren’t “bad” though you might hear that a lot - they just don’t really give the best result for layered and water-intensive work, which is what we’re doing in the lessons.
SUPPORTS AND TAPES
BRUSHES
GOUACHE
THE FUN STUFF
(it gets used a lot in this class, if you have trouble getting gum arabic or masking fluid don’t stress it, though):
OPTIONAL
MIXED MEDIA
