WATERCOLOUR PAINTING

Table of Contents

1. BACKGROUND
2. PAPER FOR WATERCOLOUR PAINTING
   1. Surfaces
   2. Paper Weight
   3. Watercolour Manufacturers
   4. Questions
3. DRAWING IMPLEMENTS
   1. Brushes
   2. Pencils and Drawing
   3. Questions
4. WATERCOLOUR PAINTS
   1. Colours Needed
   2. Mixing Colours
   3. Questions
5. COMPOSITION
   1. Questions
6. PERSPECTIVE
   1. Linier Perspective
   2. Arial Perspective
   3. Questions
7. PAINTING OUTDOORS
8. RESEARCH
9. BEGIN YOUR PAINTING
   1. Adding Colour to the Sky
   2. Adding Colour to the Ground
   3. Adding Colour to the Ship and Building
   4. Adding Colour to the Trees and Distant Surroundings
   5. Finish Painting

COMPOSITION

I should say before I go any father that there are NO absolute hard and fast rules, and that all rules in certain circumstances can be broken but only if you have the knowledge and skill to make the picture work and if you can artistically get away with it.

When composing a picture, whether landscape or portrait, it is better not to put the horizon across the centre of the page.

Landscape

Diagram 1 shows a landscape format divided into thirds in both directions and the cross lines marked a,b,c,d. It is better if the horizon is at a and b or c and d, and that a prominent item is placed on or near the divisions a,c or d,b. Do not place a large subject, like a tree, dead in the middle of the page.

Portrait

Diagram 2: portrait format. The eyes should not be in the centre of the page but approximately two thirds up the page, also roughly two thirds up the face at an eye distance apart, the tip of the nose should be half way between the eyes, the chin and the lips again halfway between the base of the nose and the chin.