Working in Watercolour
The type of paint your select directly effect the outcome. This isn’t news, but as an oil painter whose main body of work is large process-led oil paintings I do sometimes encounter a curious look when I say that I really like watercolour too. The thing is they both work in very different ways which allows me to work in very different ways too.
Watercolour has a simple practicality that allowed me work on the kitchen table during lock-down…or to take a set on holiday with the intention (not always realised!) of ‘doing a bit of work while I’m away’.
Fundamentally they are little blocks of pigment joy - colour drenched possibilities that just require a splash of water to make them come alive.
Doodles and Sketches
Firstly I use watercolours as a sketching tool - when I just want to play and doodle ideas…creating forms, shapes, patterns - drawing with the paint. There are boxes of such works in my studio, the equivalent of sketch books I suppose.
During my art school years the keeping of sketchbooks was mandatory but since then I have tended to prefer to draw and sketch on loose sheets of paper. I find it more practical as I can lay work out side by side to view it and work quickly with paint and ink without the worry of pages sticking together!
My process in watercolours
As a counterpoint to the multilayered reworking of a canvas, when I begin a watercolour, I can see the end in sight. My Strip watercolours are a response to my large oils, in particular Fray-red (below), where I built up a textured surface of repeated linear marks…tally lines counting out time.
Fray - red oil on canvas, 2022/23
The motif of repeated linear ‘tally’ marks covering the picture plain. In oils the surface become heavy with paint.
I considered how changing to watercolour would affect the outcome, so I painted my two studies - Study for Red and Study for Blue. I included the addition of a thin gap between each coloured section. Allowing the strips of colour to appear as the equivalent of a single mark.
The segments of colour began to resemble torn strips of paper. Working, adding one segment then add another and another, on repeat, until it covers the paper…It’s something akin to a jigsaw, only with no picture to refer to.
I should have mentioned that I never pre-draw the composition - as far as planning goes I select a colour ‘theme’ as my starting point and as the marks are added the paper is gradually covered. I don’t labour over the colours and I mix and add without pausing too often. There is a simplicity to this way of working which I find absorbing.
As the sheet of paper fills I loose myself the process. One colour down, then add another…mix and re-mix. Rotate the paper, get clean waters…stand up and stretch, then continue.
Collecting watercolours
Watercolours will normally fall under the ‘Works on Paper’ category at most art galleries, along with drawings and fine-art prints. Because of the established pricing hierarchy in art, you’ll find, on the whole, that Works on Paper are more affordable than paintings on canvas or board.
The material quality of the watercolour means that these work have a very flat, matt, surface which is dependent in part on the type of paper used as a substrate. I currently use Arches Aquarelle for the larger works.
It’s usually recommended that watercolours are framed because both the paint and the paper are vulnerable to damage. Personally I opt for simple white or natural wood framing with museum glass - it creates an almost invisible layer between you and the artwork, allowing minimal shift in colour and reduces glare. I can offer framing advice on any work bought direct from my studio.
Study for Red and Study for Blue sold earlier this year to a collector and I’m now building a series of large watercolours, with the repeated ‘strip’ motif, which I am aiming to complete by this Autumn. I’m disrupting the compositions with a range of circular and linear gaps to break the surface - this relates to my Circle oil paintings…They will work as individual pieces, but will be displayed together to allow their colours to connect and play off each other.
Thinking of starting an art collection?
On a final note, it’s woth mentioning that I offer free advice on framing, hanging and caring for your artwork. So if you’re thinking of starting to collect art or purchasing from me I’m always happy to discuss what might work for you. Just drop me an email.
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