I find that there is nothing quite like the feeling of discovering something you like, especially when you didn’t expect it, it’s a little bit like an “aha-uplevelse” as we call it in Sweden, the moment of realisation. Since I love creating it applies just as much to art as it does anything else.
Most recently I found myself appreciating water colors more than anticipated. What I really like about water color is how it handles.
If you’re not used to it it can be a bit tricky to control; too much water and you quickly develop big unwanted blobs on unsuspecting parts of the paper. This can largely be prevented with a decent quality brush though. But if it still does happen luckily this can usually be sorted if you have some kitchen roll or tissue paper to hand, to soak up excess water.
Something you need to get used to is the particular order you need to work in with water color, the only white as well as all the light you need in your painting comes from the white of the paper. Because watercolor are quite transparent in nature there isn’t any white in you watercolor palette. This means you have to know where your light is and work systematically from lightest to the darkest.
The benefits far outweighs the small obstacles presented by this medium though. It is quick to start working with since it requires very little preparation, once you have the paper on which you will be painting and your set of paints all you need is some water and you are good to go. Because this paint only uses water the drying time is low and is dependent only on the temperature of your surroundings ie. outdoors on a cool winter day it might not dry at all (while outside) which could be great for experimenting with the colors and wet in wet techniques. Whereas in a nice and toasty room, drying times could be as little as minutes which would be optimal for highly detailed work.
This also means it is great for keeping with you as an easy to hand paint kit or for going out to do field studies fast or slow. In addition it has a great flow making covering big part in the same color a breeze and you feel almost as if you’re wielding magic, creating layers of light colors creating some amazing atmospheric and ethereal scenes. Because of its great covering qualities it’s suitable for both quick color sketches as well as more lengthy paintings.
Personally I find water color easier to mix though i wouldn’t be able to say how and any paint left after a session can either be poured into the sink, dried up with some paper or left to dry on the pallet to be used the next time. Easy breezy!
– jeanie