DILUTION OF WATERCOLOR
PREPARATION OF THE WORKSPACE
the sheet must be smaller than the media
it should be glued with paper tape making a frame all around
the sheet should not be peeled off until the job it is finished and dry
Let's learn how to properly dilute the color
In watercolor it is essential to dilute the color well: you must prepare a sufficient amount of colored water to work and you must mix it often before spreading it on the sheet.
If you put too much pigment, it is not absorbed by the paper and remains on the surface creating unwanted stains and marks.
Marks are created even if you paint with a little colored water because the force of gravity cannot act.
EXERCISE TO LEARN HOW TO DILUTE COLOR CORRECTLY
Prepare the sheet glued to the support
divide it into vertical strips.
Draw scribbles with pencil H without pressing too hard with the pencil.
prepare the color diluted with water on the palette
spread the color by holding the support inclined and moving the brush horizontally with regular movements
if the color has been diluted correctly, you will see the scribble perfectly
if the color is too thick, add water, mix well and repeat the operation on the second strip
if the color is too light, add some pigment and paint another strip
Exercise 2 to dilute the color correctly
Phase 1: preparation of the drawing
• With a pencil H lightly draw scribbles on the paper
• Within the spaces that are created, draw lines and small shapes at will which, repeated, will create textures
• PURPOSE OF THE EXERCISE : THE LINES AND TEXTURES SHOULD BE WELL READABLE EVEN AFTER THE COLOR HAS BEEN APPLIED
Phase 2: color preparation
• Choose a color from those you have available (I will use the primary blue , which we also used at school and which allows us to better see the errors)
• If you are using tube paint, put a small amount in one of the dimples of the palette and add water to dilute it
• If you use pastille colors , wet the surface of the tablet with a brush dipped in clean water and lightly rub the surface of the tablet with the brush to dissolve the surface layer
• Take the color from the tablet and place it in one of the dimples of your palette
• Add just enough water to get a liquid color (the amount of water you will learn with experience)
• Do a drafting test on a piece of paper to see if the color you have obtained in your opinion is suitable: if you think it is too light, add more pigment; if too thick, add more water
Phase 3: drawing up the color
PREMISES
• Remember that in the watercolor technique it is the water that paints, while the brush is used to guide the water onto the paper
• The force of gravity (the one that makes objects fall downwards) is also fundamental. This is why when you paint you have to hold the support to which you attached your sheet in your hand and you have to tilt it so that the water can go down.
LET'S START :
• Load the brush well with the diluted color and paint following ordered horizontal movements: from left to right and, going down slightly, from right to left
• Make sure that a puddle forms at the bottom edge of the stroke as you apply the paint. This excess color will be recovered in the return movement
• In case this deposit of color runs out, load the brush again and add the color, so that you can always use the force of gravity.
• Paint the entire surface of your sheet in this way, trying not to interrupt the work and not to go back to painting where you have already passed, perhaps to fill spaces that you have left empty.
• When you are finished, place the sheet on the work surface and let it dry (to speed up this phase you can use a hairdryer)
REMEMBER: if you go back to painting where you have already been, stains will be created and if you paint again while the sheet is wet, instead of adding color, you will also remove what you had already spread.
Phase 4: correction of the draft
Maybe you have been very good and this step is useless, but if by chance you notice that the color was too dense and you cannot see the pencil marks you had drawn on the paper, or if there are more intense or lighter spots or lines , you can easily solve the problem by following these instructions:
Dip your brush well in clean water and pass it over the entire surface of the painting.
Remember to hold your support in your hand so as to facilitate the downward movement of the water.
In the places where the color is more intense, insist more with the brush so that the excess color, which was not fixed on the paper, can dissolve again.
As you do this, tilt the media in different directions, so that the colored water can move and distribute the color over the entire surface (use the brush to help move the water and add more if necessary).
At this stage, the color that was already fixed on the sheet after drying will not come off and therefore you can work safely.
When you're done, place the paper on the work surface.
If you notice that puddles of diluted color have formed (usually in the folds of the paper and around the glue edges), wipe the brush on the rag and use it to absorb the excess color, which you will always remove by passing the brush over the rag ( you can also recover the color, putting it on the palette).
Let the sheet dry: the water will move around for some time and distribute the color evenly over the entire surface
the sheet still wet after working only with clean water to correct imperfections.
dry correct sheet
Step 5: optional
• You can now complete your work with colored pencils and a thin black marker (or ballpoint pen)
• Color the shapes of the textures with the colors of your choice
• Go over the outline marks of the scribble with the black marker
