July is International Watercolor month, so I decided to feature it this month. One of my hobbies, other then writing, reading, and watching Star Trek is art, of various methods and mediums. Watercolor is not usually one I do often, though I do have the tools for it. Usually when I do painting its acrylic.
Watercolor is often the first paint children use, as it is easy to clean up and usually* less likely to have toxic ingredients. That is not always the case, so please make sure you check what paint you give your children and follow all warnings.
NOPE
Watercolor is probably not the first paint you think of when you think of fine art. Oil and Acrylic paint tend to get all the glory in that regard, but Watercolor should not be ignored. It has a long history, and is often the first paint someone has experience with as many children’s art kits come with watercolor paints.
Painting is not a medium I use often, and I tend to use acrylic but I have done watercolor. It’s a completely different medium then acrylic. Its usually on paper, and the colors tend to be muted. It also doesn’t have the texture that acrylic and oil paints can make in a painting. That being said, it can create awesome paintings, particularly landscapes and atmospheric paintings.
Watercolor lends itself to landscapes, invoking emotion and memory. While looking for some paintings to show, I saw many that could easily inspire a fantasy novel.
Some famous people who have been known to exhibit watercolor paintings include Prince Charles of the UK who has several watercolors out on exhibit (and apparently Ebay). His father was also a painter, but it seems Prince Phillip was more of an oil painter. There is also John Singer Sargent, who did both oil and watercolor. Georgia O’Keeffe also produced watercolors earlier in her career, painting abstract images.
If you want to learn more about watercolor artists, you can find a good list here.
If you want to start watercoloring yourself, here are some good youtube videos to help you on your journey.
Watercolor can be fun and enjoyable, and just as expressive as other forms of painting. I don’t have many watercolors up on my online gallery so I won’t be sharing any of mine, but maybe one day I will make some more and be able to share them with you.
Sokorra Lewis 