The Watercolour Artist's Bible

INTRODUCTION 6

GETTING TO KNOW THE MEDIUM 8

Watercolour choices 10, Watercolour papers 12, Brushes 14, Water 17, Additional equipment 18, Choosing colours 20, Mixing greens 22, Mixing skin tones 24, Overpainting effects 26

TECHNIQUES 28

Basic techniques 30
Washes 30, Graded and variegated washes 32, Dropped-in colour 34, Brushwork 36, Analysis: Brushwork 38, Blending 40, Reserving white paper 42, Masking highlights 44, Analysis: Masking fluid 46, Soft and scratched highlights 48, Lifting out 50, Wet-on-dry 52, Wet-in-wet 54, Analysis: Wet-in-wet 56, Hard and soft edges 58, Underdrawing 60, Altering and erasing 62

Advanced techniques 64
Backruns 64, Brush drawing 68, Analysis: Brush drawing 70, Drawing with a stick 72, Dry brush 74, Analysis: Dry brush 76, Glazing 78, Gum arabic 80, Body colour 82, Analysis: Body colour 84, Spattering 86, Salt spatter 88, Stippling 92, Scraping back 94, Impressing and indenting 96, Wax resist 98, Line and wash 100, Analysis: Line and wash 102, Mixed media 104, Squaring up 106

Useful hints and tips 108
Managing your watercolours 108, Travelling light 114, Paper and paints 116, Special effects 118

SUBJECTS 120

Landscapes 122
Composition 122, Fields and flatlands 124, Rocks and mountains 126, Tutorial: Foreground figures 128, Weather 134, Trees 136, Skies 138, Tutorial: Using opaque paint 140

Waterscapes 142
Waves 142, Still water 144, Reflections 146, Tutorial: Sky and water 148

Buildings 150
Lighting 150, Atmosphere 152, Texture and pattern 154, Buildings and landscape 156, Interiors 158

Still life and flowers 160
Composition 160, Arranging 162, Colour schemes 164, Natural habitat 166, Garden settings 168, Botanical studies 170, Tutorial: Exploiting edge qualities 172

People 178
Figures in landscape 178, Portraits 180, Children and young people 182, The figure in context 184, Tutorial: Working from sketches 186

INDEX 188
CREDITS 192

About Marylin Scott

Marylin Scott is a professional artist who works across a wide range of media. She studied painting at the Guildford School of Art and the Royal Academy of Painting in London. She is a respected practical art author.

Sue Squibb

As someone who has enjoyed painting and drawing as a hobby in the past, I had been unable to keep up with it for quite a while and had, therefore, lost confidence. This book is ideal for helping me get back into my stride, especially as I had struggled a bit with water colour work in the past. The book contains many useful tips for anyone starting for the first time and for someone like myself who needs to go back to the basics. I would also think that the wealth of techniques described in the book would be further inspiration for any artist who, although already competent with watercolours, could enjoy experimenting with different styles and effects in their work. Initially I thought I would read through the book before starting to paint - but I couldn't wait! However, first efforts made me keep going back to the book for advice! I intend to work through it trying out the tutorials as I go along. The introduction about the different papers and paints available and the results you can expect from them was particularly useful for me. To show how long it was since I had last painted, I had to go out and buy a new bottle of masking fluid as my previous one had turned solid, despite the cap being tightly fitted. I am looking forward to many hours of fun ahead!

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Cas Evans

What an excellent book. It is a manageable size and weight with waterproof cover enabling it to be transported easily 'out in the field' to support and inform 'plein air' work. Despite not being spiral bound, the book stays relatively flat when open allowing work to be done with reference to the appropriate section. The layout is excellent with good quality photographs balanced with step by step explanatory text which is kept clear and succinct with the addition of Artist's Tips where applicable. It covers practical advice from choosing the necessary tools and equipment, choosing and mixing colours to the wealth of techniques possible with the water colour medium. The diversity of style and subject matter that is possible is illustrated by a wide variety of established artists' work and a section of 'Tutorials' which enable you to follow the artist's progress from initial planning to completion. Beginners and experienced watercolorists alike would find this book invaluable

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Debra Hall -TSS Reviews

Watercolour is the trickiest painting medium to get right. The teachings in this book will really help to properly equip and to practice all the effects that can be achieved including blending, stippling and adding lustre. As someone with some experience with watercolour painting I think the book will still prove to be a useful guide to have at my side; so it is not necessarily for beginners only. And if, like me, you find it challenging to be neat with the edgings, especially when allowing the paint to bleed on the surface of the wet paper and that this may often result in colour patches with no definition; then the subjects section in this book will be particularly helpful. The tutorial 'Exploiting Edge Qualities' is definitely worth a try. Fully recommend this book, it is well constructed and the publishing quality is excellent