Posted on 2 Comments

Basic Guide to Watercolor Painting Supplies

h-watercolor-supplies

h-watercolor-supplies

When first starting with watercolors, like many ask themselves about “What Watercolor Set Should I Buy”. I am by no mean a watercolor professional, i am still in the learning process.

The first thing to look at when buying a watercolor is whether it is light-fastness or not. Major watercolor brands are generally not permeated with extenders.

What is a watercolor?

A “watercolor” (from the Latin “aqua” = “water”). The special feature of the watercolor is the luminosity that can be achieved by the special structure of the color. Watercolor paint is water-soluble, and it is applied by glazing generally. The white of the image carrier (usually paper) shines through the thin layer of paint through and gives the watercolor image a special glow.

Watercolor painting has an artistic technique, a centuries-old tradition. Although the painting technique in principle is very simple, it requires in detail but a lot of practice to achieve true mastery.

cotman_2

The following watercolor brands are recommended: Winsor & Newton, Van gogh, Pelikan, Lukas, Daniel smith, and Schmincke (Schmincke is probably the highest quality). Pelican Watercolors and boxes are not recommended for experienced artists, but rather for students or beginners. Most brands come with both student and professional artist grade. If you just starting out, then student grade is a good option for you. Another good option will be White Nights Watercolours from St. Petersburg, Russia. I have been experimenting with these watercolors pan and  i must say that it is highly pigmented, a good choice if you want to start transitioning from student grade to artist level without breaking the bank if you are on a budget.

Anyone who wants to create watercolors of lasting value (e.g. years under hanging on the wall), should invest in better supplies by that i mean watercolor paints with lightfast pigments. Nothing is more annoying than a beautiful image that fades over the years, because the artist or the artist has used cheap supplies while working.

DSW150xxx

Watercolor Painting Medium: mixing colors

Watercolor painting based on a glazing technique. this means that the colors are applied only translucent on paper. The underlying layers are visible. By layering of different colors is also produced a mixture of colors – if you mix blue for example with yellow, it creates a shade of green. You can freely and effective mix in a suitable way a watercolor box and  watercolor paint.

Watercolor Palette

Because of the mixed media of watercolor paint on watercolor paper Comes the “primary colors” in Watercolor paintings has a special significance. Blue, Red and money must in every watercolor box. It is advisable to have two shades in the box. In addition, depending on the “color of the artist”, a few individual sounds that can give the image an individual focus. More about “Watercolor Set Basic Set”.

Watercolor Light-fastness

Care should be taken not only to the color value, but also on the light-fastness when buying watercolor paint. In stores are almost always specialized panels designed on which the light-fastness with stars or points indicated. Make sure that you select colors possible with maximum light-fastness. Otherwise it may happen that the water colors over time (especially by light-exposure) luminosity lose (fade). In the worst case, even the color can change itself. More about the specifics of watercolor paint.

2 thoughts on “Basic Guide to Watercolor Painting Supplies

  1. […] Basic Guide to Watercolor Painting Supplies […]

Leave a Reply