These last few days I have come across with a lot of talented bloggers/etsians who use Watercolor as their main media. I have to say, Watercolor is hard for me.. h-a-r-d. I thought it was so hard that I left my art supplies in storage, that disappointed I was!
But you are right and I am wrong, most people.. and when I say people I mean artists- do not born with the talent but they develop it. Of course, they can have a tendency but I believe is matter of practice. Just like the great Thomas Edison said once " "Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine per cent perspiration ".
Here are my great ETSY finds of today:
"Love Blooms in Spring"
I am terribly in love with pink and blue color.. so this one has it all! I was about not to share and buy it for me haha But after taking a look at
Montri's (the talented hand behind this painting) Etsy store, it has been sooo difficult to choose one.
Another beauty I found:
It was a true delight finding this
store. Go see for your self! From foxes to rabbits, all kind of critters, butterflies, cows, dogs.. you name it! Plus, Irene will paint any animal you want including your pet! Isn't that fabulous? Definitely beautiful watercolors will arrive to your house from Italy :)
"Watercolor (US) or
watercolour (UK), also
aquarelle from French, is a painting
method. A watercolor is the medium or the resulting artwork
in which the paints
are made of pigment suspended in a water soluble vehicle. The traditional and most common support for watercolor paintings is paper; other supports include papyrus, bark papers, plastics, vellum
or leather
, fabric
, wood, and canvas
. Watercolors are usually transparent and it allows light to reflect from the surface of the paper. This gives a luminous effect."
Interesting huh?! Soooo, now that you are inlove with Watercolor and it has appealed to your interest.. what are the tools? Below I found the perfect 'material list' at
David Mikael's blog that besides having a lot of good gossip, has a good share of info about the topic plus some
cool tricks (that I am already dying to try..)
Here you find what you need to start Watercoloring.. of course don't forget your watercolor pad!
Where to buy? I heard
DickBlick's is a good source and not crazy expensive or you can try Ebay for good deals. I would try to stay away from chain craft stores because they tend to be very expensive. Although, if you have a good coupon It could be good (ei.
Michael's 40% off on one reg priced item). Do what I do and print several coupons and pay a visit to the store every day! haha.. hey! it is valid! Plus, they are still getting my business hehe.. Anyway, back to the topic.. So, you have your tools and your desire to start.. you have two options:
1.- Sketch and start experimenting with Watercolors
or
2.- Take a Watercolor class locally (which is exactly what I will do at the
University)
The two have ups and downs I would say. Starting on your own nurtures your creativity and it is open ended learning where you put the rules.. while at a class, you are directed.. it can be great with a good instructor but it can be limiting too. If you go to class for the basic knowledge and the technique and then go home and are not afraid to experiment and make tons of errors... then you should be fine.
I am a crazy perfectionist, but with art.. I think you have to let go. I have to let go! It is the expression of our true selves.. why not let go.. LETS LET GO!!
Ok ok, so, how to find classes near you? Google: "Watercolor classes (your city)", "Water Media art (your city) classes". Community colleges and local art centers offer classes too. Worst case scenario there is always Amazon.com and its books such as:
I cannot really say if they are good since I have not bought them yet, but you take a look at the reviews and decide for your self if they have what you might like.Of course, there are many many more books. Just browse around!
Well, that is the story for today. I am definitely taking a Water Media class that will include transparent watercolor (what we normally see), gouache (opaque watercolor), acrylic, and watercolor pencils. I am so excited! I will be posting my first steps on Watercolor this upcoming July! (I will also include the brands of my tools :)
I will leave you with "Fishing Boats on the beach" - Watercolor by our crazy genius friend Vincent van Gogh
Happy Thursday
.. and don't forget it is almost Friday! yay!!!
