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gemini-art In reply to MarkSatchwill [2007-06-04 10:57:04 +0000 UTC]

No, but I've considered it. I've heard some artists talk about the difficulty of watercolors becoming muddy when mixing. I've also heard that they can lift off when overpainting. Obviously you have amazing results. What are your thoughts?

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MarkSatchwill In reply to gemini-art [2007-06-04 20:38:10 +0000 UTC]

Well, I guess I am biased I tried oils and acrylics and pastels etc when I was a student but have pretty much stayed with either watercolor or gouache (often mixing the two) for years now. People do say they can be difficult to use - I think with any media it's learning what you can and can't do with it, how to create diferent effects etc and these often come from simple exploration (and talking to and looking at other artists work of course). Obviously wth watercolor you are working from light to dark. You need to be in control - it's pretty unforgiving in that once you have made your marks it's quite difficult to remove them - but not impossible. Keeping colours from getting muddy is a simple question of knowing which colours you need to mix and not sludging too many together - I'm sure thats just as relevant in oils/acrylics. As for colour lifting, that's a technique I actually use in my paintings - I layer colour, then lift areas off, then add more layers etc. Watercolour works for me because it's relatively quick - I like to work fast,not spending too long on something. Looking at this piece I would say you might enjoy it.

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gemini-art In reply to MarkSatchwill [2007-06-04 21:11:30 +0000 UTC]

Thanks for the ideas. I may give them a try. The idea of working quickly appeals to me. I'm an impatient artist. That's what I love about acrylics is the fast drying time. I've heard that working with oils takes forever because they take so long to dry. But, because acrylics dry so quickly, there is little chance for blending. There's definitely a trade off. I want to be able to have plenty of time for bending and correcting, but also fast drying time so I can move on to my next layer. I guess we can't have it both ways, huh?

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