Watercolor For the Absolute Beginner

132 Pages·2016·19.75 MB·English

by  Willenbrink Mark

Watercolor
for the
A clear and easy guide
.:W^ to successful painting
MstKtind Mary Willenbrih

Watercolor for the Absolute Beginner
f
Bubbles
10" X 14" (25cm x 36cm)
140-lb. (300gsm) cold-presswatercolor paper
Watercolor
for the
Absolute
Beginner
Mark WiUenbrink
written with
Mary WiUenbrink
NORTHLIGHTBOOKS
CINCINNATI, OHIO
www.artistsnetwork.com
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
—
i?-^_
,
WatercolorfortheAbsolute Beginner. Copyright©2003 byMarkand
MaryWillenbrink.ManufacturedinChina.Allrightsreserved.Nopart
ofthis book may be reproduced in any form or by anyelectronic or
mechanicalmeansincludinginformation storageandretrievalsystems
withoutpermissioninwritingfromthepublisher,exceptbyareviewer
who may quote briefpassages in a review. Published byNorth Light
F&W
Books,animprintof Publications,Inc.,4700EastGalbraithRoad,
Cincinnati, Ohio45236. [phone]. Firstedition.
OtherfineNorthLightBooksareavailablefromyourlocalbookstore,
artsupplystoreordirectfromthepublisher.
07 06 05 04 03 5 4 3 2 1
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Mark Willenbrink was trained as a commercial artist and
Willenbrink,Mark.
worked in advertising and then as a freelance illustrator. Watercolorfortheabsolutebeginner/MarkWillenbrinkwritten
—
withMar)'Willenbrink. 1sted.
Mark currently teaches watercolor classes and is a con- p.cm.
Includesindex.
tributing editor for WatercolorMagic magazine.
ISBN 1-58180-341-9 (p—bk. : alk. paper)
Mary Willenbrink obtained a master's degree in counsel- 1.Watercolorpainting Technique.I.Willenbrink,Mary. EI.Title.
ing and worked as a drug and alcohol counselor. Besides
ND2420 .W548 2003
herwork as a writer, she currently homeschools theirtwo 751.42'2—dc21 2003048796
children. Editor: Amanda Metcalf
Production Editor: MariaTurtle
As a husband-and-wife team, Mark and Mary have been CoverDesigner:WendyDunning
InteriorDesigner: AngelaWilcox
writing togetherfor overfive years. They reside in Cincin-
Production Coordinator: Mark Griffin
nati, Ohio, with theirtwo children, one cat and a rescued
Metric Conversion Chart
greyhound.
TO CONVERT TO MULTIPLY BY
Inches Centimeters 2.54
Centimeters Inches 0.4
Feet Centimeters 30.5
Centimeters Feet 0.03
Yards Meters 0.9
Meters Yards 1.1
Sq. Inches Sq. Centimeters 6.45
Sq. Centimeters Sq. Inches 0.16
Sq. Feet Sq. Meters 0.09
Sq. Meters Sq. Feet 10.8
Sq. Yards Sq. Meters 0.8
Sq. Meters Sq. Yards 1.2
Pounds Kilograms 0.45
Kilograms Pounds 2.2
Ounces Grams 28.3
Grams Ounces 0.035
DEDICATION ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Laus Deo We would like to thank those behind the scenes at F&W Publications who have
Praise to God made this all possible: acquisitions editor Rachel Wolf, contracts managerJulia
Groh, editorial director Greg Albert, production editor Maria Tuttle, designerAngela
Wilcox, production coordinator Mark Griffin and marketing director Howard Cohen.
We also would like to add a specialthanks to Ann, Maureen and Kelly at Watercobr
Magicfor getting us started and giving us the opportunity to try writing and illus-
trating as a team. We thank all ofyou foryourtime and experinse.
To Amanda Metcalf, our editor, we give our heartfeltthanks foryour time,
patience, listening skills and expertise. We could not have done this withoutyou!
Our relationship is blessed with confidence and peace.
We also would like to thank those who have encouraged us to take the giant
step forward to write this book. To Mary's parents. Bud and Grace Patton, foryour
consistent encouragementto keep on writing. To Mark's parents, Roy and Clare Wil-
Lenbrink, foryour encouragement and support in so many ways. To Mary Helen Wal-
lace for introducing Mark to watercolors. You and your ariiwork have greatly
inspired me and influenced this book. Jean Bouche, thanks forthe good times we
had painting together and foryour influence. To Dorothy Frambes for showing Mark
how to apply the fundamentals ofart in a practical manner while sparking his cre-
ativity. To George Soisterforyourfriendship and expertise in photography. Tom
Post, foryour constant friendship, honest critiques and encouragement, which
have challenged Mark to be a better artist and person. Thanks also to the talented
cartoonists and illustrators atthe lunch group. Being around all ofyou has "drawn
out" the bestin Mark. We would like to thank our children, ftimily and friends who
have walked through this time with us. Everyone, you've been so supportive!
Lastly, we acknowledge we could not have done this book without each other,
and it is by the Lord's grace that our combined talents were able to be used not
only to accomplish this book but also to grow in our marriage at the same time.
Tabte of Contents
Introduction 7
CHAPTER ONE
Gather the
Maten'ab p
a
^
Paints 9
^'^
Palettes 10
Paper 12
Brushes 14
StockingYour Studio 15
PaintinginYourStudio 16
PaintingOutdoors 17
DiscussingMaterials is
CHAPTER TWO CHAPTER THREE CHAPTER FOUR
Learn the Practice the Let's Paint ^
Basics Techniques GettingReady 67
Structural Drawing 68
Structural Drawing 21 MixingPaintand HandlingBrushes. . 45 PaintingWith One Color 72
Measuring 22 PaintingWet-on-Wet 46
PaintingWithThree Colors 76
DrawingLinearPerspective 24 PaintingWet-on-Dryand
PositivePainting 80
UnderstandingValue 26 Drybrushing 48
Negative Painting 84
MakingaValue Scale 27 Applyinga FlatWash 49
PaintingFlowers 90
UnderstandingColorIntensity 28 Applyinga GradatedWash 50
DevelopingComposition 96
PaintingAtmosphericPerspective ... 29 Applyinga VariegatedWash 51
Usinga ColorScheme 100
UnderstandingColor 30 Something'sWrongWithMyWash . . 52 Paintinga Landscape 104
UsingComplementaryand PositiveandNegativePainting 54
Planninga Painting 110
Analogous Colors 31 PaintingStraightLines 55
Paintinga StillLife 116
UnderstandingColorTemperature... 32 CreatingTexture 56
Paintinga Still LifeWithVegetables . . 120
Makinga ColorWheel 33 MattingandFraming 62
PlanningComposition 34 DiscussingTechniques 64 Glossary 124
FollowingthePaintingProcess 38
Index 126
DiscussingBasicPrinciples az
i
Introduction
You couldsay thatpainting with watercotors is like being married. In our
marriage we'vefound that the same things we loved about each other in
the beginning drove us crazy later. As we learned more about the "art" of
marriage, we learned to appreciate each other^s qualities andgo with the
flow. Painters need to have thesame relationship with watercolors. Asyou
grow inyour talents, you will be able to embrace the unique spontaneity
andjoy that watercolors can bring to the artist Each painting then will
become notjust a product ofthe artist but a product ofthe interaction
between the artist and the paint
We hopeyoufindajoy in watercolors with all theirtemperamental and
lovable qualities the some way wefoundjoy working together to create
this book. We wish we could be there withyou to supportyou andencour-
ageyou asyou paint, but we're confident thatyou'll grow
in your gifts and talents as you progress
through this adventure. Justgo with
theflow, literally!
Gather the
Materials
Whenyou're prepared, sitting down to paint a watercobr is excit-
ing. When s/ou're notprepared, the stop-startfeeling ofgetting
up and down tofindsupplies orgo to the store can impedes/our
creative mood, inspiration andfocus. This chapter will helpyou
collect the right materials to prepare youfor a positive experi-
ence wheneveryoufeel inspired to paint.