A Little Chance and a Lot of Water
My watercolour palette has seen better days. The pans are stained, the colours have wandered into one another, and the handwritten colour chart in the lid is probably more useful as a reminder of what went where than an accurate guide to what is actually there.
There are fourteen colours, ranging from the earthy warmth of burnt umber, sienna and ochre to the brighter possibilities of scarlet, crimson, ultramarine and phthalo blue. It’s a modest selection, but there’s more than enough.I’ve always been interested in what happens when you allow materials to have a say in the finished work. Watercolour is particularly good at this. You can put down a wash with a clear idea of what you want, but the water and pigment often have other plans.
Landscapes, Real and Imagined
The paintings shown above and below illustrate how I use watercolour to explore landscape without becoming too concerned about accurately representing a particular place. Some are recognisable landscapes, with distant trees, sloping fields and open skies. Others are little more than suggestions of a horizon, a stretch of colour or the memory of somewhere I might once have visited. Warm ochres, greens and browns suggest sunny hills, while sweeping marks of blue and green establish distance and atmosphere. In some paintings, a single horizontal line is enough to suggest an entire landscape.
Letting the Paint Do Its Own Thing
One of the pleasures of watercolour is its unpredictability when using ‘Wet in Wet’ techniques. Pigment collects along drying edges, colours bleed and bloom into neighbouring washes, and unexpected textures appear as the water evaporates. In the more abstract paintings, these accidental effects become an important part of the composition. Dark horizons dissolve into soft washes, colours run down the paper, and scattered droplets suggest erosion, weathering or something slowly disappearing.
These are the moments I particularly enjoy, when the materials begin to suggest possibilities I hadn’t originally considered. Of course sometimes you end with mud.
Chance and Control
Working this way doesn’t mean abandoning control altogether. There is always a point at which a decision has to be made. Should I add another wash, strengthen a horizon or simply leave things alone? Knowing when to stop is probably one of the more difficult aspects of this style. Too much interference can destroy the delicate accidents that make watercolour so appealing.
For me, the process is a conversation between intention and accident. I establish a direction, allow the materials some freedom, and respond to whatever develops.
Back to the Palette
Much of my knowledge and my main watercolour palette has been derived from studying Jane Blundells ‘The Ultimate Mixing Palette: A World of Colours’ Book and her web site at https://www.janeblundellart.com/ a treasure trove of information. I also use Granulation Medium and occasionally a small amount of acrylic ink to help the granulation process along. Schminche Horadam Aquarell granulating watercolour paints granulate without help and feature subdued unsaturated earthy browns and greens.
Looking at these paintings together, I can see certain colours appearing repeatedly. Earth colours provide warmth and structure, while blues and greens introduce atmosphere and distance. Occasionally, a stronger red or orange interrupts the quieter passages. But it’s not really about individual colours. It’s about what happens when they meet, overlap, separate or dissolve into one another. My battered palette is simply the starting point.
I don’t always know where a painting is going, and I rather enjoy that uncertainty. Sometimes the result resembles a landscape, sometimes a memory of one, and sometimes something entirely different. There is just enough control to get things started, and just enough chance to make the outcome interesting
Materials Winsor and Newton watercolour paints, granulating medium, Schminche Horadam Aquarell granulating watercolour paints, plastic droppers, twigs, sponges and plastic straws for moving paint around, masking tape.
