Project 6: Watercolour

The final medium I have chosen to sample and experiment with is Watercolour. This has to be the medium I find the hardest to use, rather than keeping in my comfort zone and use mediums I feel comfortable with I will plumage in to depths unknown. The project can go one of two ways, I might learn so many techniques by experimenting that I finally like the medium and produce something I’m proud of. Or it can go the opposite way where it totally goes atrocious and I get convinced never to touch watercolour again. At the moment I’m more likely to produce the latter however if I have these judgments in my head I might subconsciously make it go terrible.

A couple of serious points which steers me away from using the watercolour medium, it’s very hard to alter mistakes or change youre mind, with acrylics you just paint over it. Preparing the paper stretching the support is a pain; with arcylics you just get a support and start painting. I also find it hard to control paint it spreads where it wants to go specially using the wet on wet technique. Using the white of the paper for the white is also putting me off, spending all that time applying masking fluid then rubbing it off seems very silly. You dont use white paint, I could go on and on why I don’t like this medium, why I’m I doing this?


Watercolour Research:
I have tried to choose artists that use the watercolours with a very strong mix more paint then water to produce vivid colours. I have always associated watercolours with the wishy washy look and that isn’t for me. Every time I have used them it’s never gone right so I try and keep away from them. I did manger to find a couple of artists which seem to use them in the way I would like too. The first artist is Richard Marsh he seems to paint landscapes and seascapes but there seems to be an illuminating glow with his work. His daytime skies seem to be unrealistic vibrant skis with all the colours of a rainbow which I like. The second artists Whittam I would class his work more as illustration, his work reminds me of Lowry’s which I have always admired. His scenes are of a Northern background around the Stockport and Manchester area which Lowry also drew, however Martin Whittam curves his paintings to make them out of shape which reminds me of some cartoons and work by Michael Gutteridge.