 Although artists have painted using watercolors since prehistoric times, watercolor painting has been popular in America only since the late 1800s. In watercolor painting, the artist paints using water-based pigments that can be dissolved in various amounts of water to achieve different colors. Usually watercolor painting is done on thick, textured paper. Nancy Langmack, founder of Peconic Bay Originals, says, "Watercolor paint is transparent, which gives works of art painted with watercolors a special luminosity. This radiance is one of the things that has made watercolor painting so revered throughout the centuries."
Watercolor painting has a reputation for being very difficult to master, because the paint is hard to control and fixing a mistake is often impossible. Artists have to learn how to be flexible and use unexpected results to their advantage. All of this takes time and much experimentation, even for the most talented artists.
In watercolor painting, the artist paints from light to dark. The lightest areas in the composition are left unpainted, and the white of the paper is left to show through. First, the artist fills in the lighter areas of the painting with highly diluted watercolor paint. Then the artist fills in slightly darker areas of the painting with slightly less diluted watercolor paint. The process continues until the darkest areas of the paper are filled in with paint that is the least diluted. Sometimes darker areas of the painting need to be painted multiple times to achieve the desired color.
There are many watercolor painting techniques. The artist can paint with a wet brush on dry paper, which creates a more controlled look, or the artist can paint with a wet brush on wet paper, which creates a loose, flowing style. In addition, the artist can paint with a dry brush on dry paper, which creates a grainy effect. Another variation in technique is to mix the watercolor pigments with zinc white. This creates paint that is opaque rather than transparent. Artists call this type of paint "gouache."
Watercolor painting has a long and storied history around the world. Cavemen used water-based pigments to paint on cave walls, so they are considered the first watercolor painters. Through the ages, watercolor painting was done in Ancient Egypt, the Far East, the Middle East, China, Japan, India, Persia, and finally spread to Europe in the 1400s. Albrecht Dürer of Germany, who painted in the late 1400s and early 1500s, is considered the first watercolor master.
Watercolor spread to England, and the British dominated watercolor painting in the 1700s and 1800s. Many advances were made in watercolor painting during this time. Watercolor painting technique improved, and watercolor painting became viewed as a primary painting medium, not secondary to oil painting. Famous watercolor masters, such as Joseph M.W. Turner, became adept at painting with multiple washes of paint, which gave their paintings a new radiance. Manufacturers began making portable paints, so that artists could use them for painting outdoors. Also, manufacturers began coating watercolor paper to keep pigment from soaking into the paper. This made paintings appear richer and brighter.
In the 1870s, watercolor painting became widespread in the U.S. when Winslow Homer became a master of the medium. Many artists studied his technique and began painting with watercolors. Numerous artists from that time period, such as Thomas Eakins, James Whistler, and John Singer Sargent are also considered watercolor masters. In the early 1900s, many American Impressionists began painting with watercolors. "The luminosity that a painter can achieve with watercolor paints was ideal for the Impressionists, who focused on showing the effects of light on a scene," adds Nancy. Also, Impressionists often painted outdoors, which made watercolors a wonderful choice, since watercolors are portable and easy to clean up.
Watercolor has continued to be a popular medium for American artists since that time. "At Peconic Bay Originals, we are proud to be associated with some remarkable watercolor painters," says Nancy. "The effects they can achieve with their mastery of the watercolor medium are really amazing." Most of these artists work exclusively in watercolor, but some use other types of paints as well. Please click on the links below if you would like to learn more about these artists.
Artists that paint landscape, seascape, architectural, and floral subjects:
Learn more about Judy Nakari
Learn more about Elizabeth Greaf
Learn more about Mark Benesh
Learn more about JoAnn Case-Nichols
Learn more about Carolyn Bucha
Learn more about Michael Killelea
Artists that paint botanical subjects:
Learn more about Kathy Cranmer
Learn more about Vicki Bloye Gainsburg
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