Innholdsfortegnelse for Fall 2023 i Watercolor Artist

One of the many wonderful things about art is how eff ectively it can express a feeling, communicate an idea, even tell a story without the burden of language. Whether a painting is a depiction of a breathtaking landscape or a heart-wrenching portrait of personal grief, it has the power to reflect on the human condition in a language that's universal. Regardless of country, continent or primary language, artists and viewers can—thanks to the elements of color, shape and line—participate in meaningful conversation. In this issue, we went to various corners of the globe to touch base with artists who are using watermedia to convey their individual encounters with the world. Our featured artists will take you behind the garden walls of England; to the hillside villages of the Mediterranean;…

Watercolor has, until recently, been Weller's primary medium, but because of his failing eyesight, he has been drawn to oils. His watercolor paintings require a certain amount of tight detail, which he now finds more difficult to achieve. “I'm working bigger and looser in oil,” he says, “which works better with the macular degeneration.” What does this mean for Weller and his art going forward? “I think an artist is growing when he's changing,” he says. “An artist can only do the same thing over and over for so long before it begins to feel stale, so I'm trying to embrace change. “If you're in art to get rich, the odds are against it,” the artist says. “Better, I think, is to paint to please yourself and let the chips…

Fasht was elected an Associate of the Royal Watercolour Society (RWS), in 2018, becoming a full member just four years later. “I applied with a portfolio, sketch-books and finished paintings, after having had work accepted into the open exhibitions,” she says. “It was really encouraging to be elected by my peers; it's a very friendly society. Plus, there have been many opportunities and a more public platform for my work.” RWS holds two exhibitions each year, in the spring and fall, at Bankside Gallery, a stone's throw from Tate Modern on the bank of the River Thames. RWS recently invited Fasht to create work in response to the Chelsea Physic Garden—London's oldest botanic garden—which celebrates its 350th anniversary this year. “I made several visits during which I produced drawings in…

Woon Lam Ng is well known in Singapore, Asian watercolor circles and beyond. The award-winning plein air watercolorist, born in Malaysia and now a resident of Singapore, is known for his fast, loose and confidently rendered urban scenes, inspired by locations around the globe, each featuring bright pops of color that add a sense of vibrancy and liveliness. Yet getting to those fast-and-loose scenes requires a lot of forethought and copious planning on Ng's part. Much like the proverbial duck that appears to be gliding effortlessly across the water, there's a lot going on beneath the surface. ON GETTING STARTED Ng began painting when he was about 7 years old under the tutelage of Teck Kee Chang. As a student, he studied drawing, watercolor and Chinese calligraphy for nearly a…

/ WATERCOLOR WORLD / Every year, art enthusiasts from around the globe gather in the picturesque town of Fabriano, Italy, for the highly anticipated Fabriano InAcquarello. One of the biggest international events for watercolorists, Fabriano InAcquarello is a gathering for artists, organizations, art materials manufacturers and any other individual or entity associated with watercolor—all eager to share their collective knowledge. The gathering features captivating exhibitions, inspiring workshops and interactive demonstrations by renowned watercolorists. Visitors have the opportunity to immerse themselves in the world of watercolor, exchange ideas and connect with likeminded individuals. This year's events took place in both Bologna and Fabriano. The town of Fabriano (where manufactured paper was introduced to Europe in the 13th century) has only 200 hotel rooms, but the event draws more than 2,000 attendees.…

• Streamline your painting toolkit. Pack just the essentials to maximize efficiency and space. (See “In the Bag,” page 11.) • Limit your palette. Select paint colors that allow for a wider range of mixing possibilities, such as Hansa yellow light instead of Hansa yellow deep. • Bring a covered water container that features two or three separate compartments. A singlesource solution saves space and simplifies your setup— and prevents the possibility of spills if you should need to move locations. • Find a comfortable spot. Outdoor staircases and recessed entrances of nearby buildings are great out-of-the-way spots for observation and sketching. • Create quick thumbnails to plan your composition. Use them to plan what to include, including the use of white space. • Take the time to do a…

Nature's beauty delights us to be sure, and its life-giving energy, sustenance and meaning are vital for our existence in this world. Rukiye Garip recognizes how important it is that various elements of the natural world interact in balance and harmony. It's a concept that underlies all her watercolor works—a reminder, she says, of “the essential fertility of clean water, air and soil.” The stones, trees, water, sparkling reflections and clear sky that she portrays—all sensitively done in a crisp, highly realistic style—find perfect repose in the artist's luminous, soothing compositions. “Maintaining the natural life cycle and its balance is important for all living things,” says Garip. “I wish to convey in my paintings the serenity and calmness I feel when I'm in a natural setting. In our fast-paced cosmopolitan…

Weller not only lives in and paints the American West, but he explores it through the written word, too. In the spirit of embracing change, he's now writing modern Western novels, scaling the font size large enough on the computer so he can see it clearly. Sunrise Surprise, (Don Weller Western Art, 2023), the second in his murder mystery series featuring Jake Oar, a Utah rancher and cutting horse trainer, was released last spring; it's available on Amazon. Weller maintains a passion for writing about art, too, as in his award-winning Don Weller Tracks, A Visual Memoir (The Weller Institute for the Cure of Design, 2022). He recently worked with his wife and partner, Cha Cha, and watercolorist Marlin Rotach to publish The River Flows: Watercolors of the American West…

Suzy Fasht (suzyfasht.com; Instagram @suzyfasht) is an award-winning artist who works in watercolor, egg tempera and oil. She earned a bachelor's degree (with honors) in fine art from the Wimbledon School of Art, in 1995, and a post-graduate diploma in painting from the Royal Academy Schools in 1998. She was Artist-in-Residence at the London Business School in 1998. She was elected an associate of the Royal Watercolour Society, in 2018, and a full member in 2022. Her watercolors are available through Bankside Gallery, in London, and her egg tempera and oil paintings are available through Catto Gallery, also in London.…

Ng relies on these seven fundamentals for successful paintings. • Keep in mind that sketches are key to a smooth painting process. • Focus on thumbnail value studies. • Explore design, including space, patterns and colors. • Learn color theory, particularly the Munsell color system, but avoid depending on prescribed color recipes. • Play up the interaction between colors and shapes when painting loosely. • Mix colors on a large palette to create your own swatch combinations. Record the “recipes” for future use. • Practice brush control.…

When artist Carol McSweeney (carolmcsweeney.com) first began painting with watercolor, she used traditional colors for skin tones and hair. With time and experience, however, her desire to experiment grew. “I now enjoy choosing unique, mostly transparent versions of the primaries—red, yellow, blue— and then will play with them on paper to see how well they complement one another,” she says. “I might rotate colors until fi nding a satisfying combination and then add a few tube colors for accents.” It's an approach that helps the artist create dynamic portraits, such as Tightrope (15x11), in which the colors are vibrant but cohesive.…

Anne McCartney Often artists are so concerned with portraying an exact replica of a landmark that they forget to make the piece their own. When a landmark has already been painted many thousands of times, it's important to make your own interpretation distinct. Remember to include the key elements that make the particular subject recognizable, and then have fun with the rest. Be creative and make your painting uniquely yours. Alvaro Castagnet Strive to capture the essence of the landmark and convey its emotional impact. It's not enough to simply replicate the physical features; artists must also consider the atmosphere, the lighting and the feelings that the landmark evokes. Take time to research the subject, immersing yourself in its history, culture and symbolism. Consider the possible perspectives, angles and techniques…

Step 1 I outlined in pencil some of the stones that I intended as the focal point for the composition. After wetting the entire paper, I washed on a layer of French ultramarine. Step 2 I painted wet-into-wet with Vandyke brown to create the appearance of sand along the bottom. Using paper napkins, I removed paint from the light areas of the lightest-colored stones in the sand. Then I sprinkled the paper with salt to add texture to the stones. Step 3 Starting from the big stone in the focal area and the surrounding underwater stones that I originally outlined, I continued to paint and develop the forms using a drybrush technique on the textured paper. I took advantage of the spontaneous formations from the salt effect to build up…

Don Weller (donweller.com), of Oakley, Utah, is an awardwinning watercolor and oil painter. He graduated from Washington State University, earning a bachelor's degree in fine art, and recently received an honorary doctorate degree from the San Francisco Academy of Art. He has garnered numerous art awards and recognition over the years, most recently in 2020 with the Western Heritage Award from the Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in the Literature category for his book, Don Weller Tracks, A Visual Memoir. His work has appeared in notable exhibitions and can be found at Bolt Ranch Store, in Kamas, Utah; Howell Gallery of Fine Art, in Oklahoma City, Okla.; Montgomery-Lee Fine Art, in Park City, Utah; Wilcox Gallery, in Jackson, Wyo.; and Wild Horse Gallery, in Steamboat Springs, Colo.…

Fasht currently teaches watercolor painting two mornings a week at Arthouse, in South Brent, Devon. She also gives occasional workshops for the Royal Watercolour Society at its new Whitcomb Street gallery, just off Trafalgar Square. Here she shares six tips and pieces of advice for watercolorists. • Use quality paper, the heavier the better. “I use Saunders Waterford paper in A1 sheets in 200- and 300-lb. weights,” she says. “I fold and tear them to the needed shape and size. I can get a few paintings from one sheet; sometimes I'll join them together to make a large surface.” • Limit your colors and choose your palette before beginning a painting. Use artist-quality paint in tubes or pans. “I find that full pans are easier to use than half,” Fasht…