Painting in Watercolor: The Indispensable Guide

Comprehensive guidance for anyone painting in watercolor, from beginners up.

Watercolor is an exquisite medium but an unforgiving one, and there is nothing that will dampen enthusiasm more quickly than the lack of a good result. The essential techniques and detailed explanations and demonstrations in this beautifully produced book will educate and encourage beginner to experienced artists so that they too can obtain results and have fun in the process.

Readers will also discover the widest range of possible watercolor effects thanks to a team of 20 internationally recognized guest artists who reveal some of their painting secrets in a series of ’life lessons’. David Webb’s instruction, ’Help!’ panels that focus on what can go wrong, and advice on how to avoid typical mistakes will put new watercolor artists on the road to progress quickly.

Some of the topics covered include:

• Different paper surfaces and weights with examples of watercolors
• Brush shapes and sizes
• Step-by-step photo guide of paper stretching process
• Basic brushwork (wet-on-dry, wet-in-wet, graded wash, etc.)
• Building up a painting in washes, layer by layer
• Hard and soft edges
• Mixing color on the paper
• Selective seeing, editing what you see
• Choosing a viewpoint; landscape, portrait and square
• Creating a path through the picture
• Perspective, color and tone
• Creating atmosphere and mood
• Presenting your work professionally
• Photographing your artwork
• Exhibiting.

Throughout the book are the author’s personal tips and fixes gained over decades of painting experience. Problems are tackled with proven solutions and there is advice on how to avoid those problems in the first place. This book is an essential reference for watercolor artists, novice, experienced and aspiring alike.

David Webb has been an artist and illustrator, specializing in watercolor, for over 35 years. He writes for leading art magazines and is the author of two watercolor books. David also tutors painting courses and demonstrates to art societies. He is based in Devon in the UK. www.davidwebbart.co.uk