WATERCOLOR ON PLATE BRISTOL 1: intro & materials
This is #1 in a series of blogs demonstrating how to do watercolor on plate bristol.
This is the technique made popular by Burt Silverman in his out-of-print book Breaking The Rules Of Watercolor. I've attempted to show some of the finer aspects regarding methods and materials that you don't get from Burt's videos or books, and to show how someone else approaches the technique...
Felipe Echevarria "The Scout" watercolor on plate bristol 9.25x5.5"
THE PAPER
My primary painting surface is Strathmore 500 Series 4-ply Plate Bristol . You can use 3-ply, but it's not as rigid. Personally I like the extra rigidity. Also, make sure you get the plate finish and not the vellum finish! The whole point of this technique is that it's on a slick (smooth) surface so you can make corrections. The vellum finish is a rougher finish and it will not work as well for this particular approach.
I buy these 23x29" sheets in packages of 25 from Utrecht or Jerry's Artarama, usually 4-6 pack orders to save cash and shipping costs. This paper is made of 100% rag (cotton fibers) and it can take a beating. Each sheet is run through a plater machine to flatten the paper fibers and thus creates a smooth surface shell, (but not too smooth like the 100% polypropylene (plastic) Yupo "paper", which typically yields a drippy, splotchy painting):
Below, a detail from a painting done on the Yupo polypropylene (plastic "paper").
Splotchy and somewhat messy looking, isn't it? This can be nice in it's own right, but...
...look at the refinement below (or in "The Scout" painting above) in a detail from a painting done on Strathmore plate bristol paper--what do you think? Wouldn't it be worth the extra time and effort to master this method?
Now, I have purchased packs of plate bristol before that were "defective." The plys would separate and bubble up as water was applied. If this happens, return it, or better yet--use the bad sheets for their designed intention of detailed airbrush or ink media! (Note: I have written to Strathmore many times with various questions regarding this paper. Be forewarned that Strathmore's customer service knows about people using this paper for watercolor, but don't like the idea. The paper is not designed for watercolor. Still, to me, if a sheet de-laminates when watermedia is applied to it and most of the time that doesn't happen, then it's defective, right? But, just understand we're treading on orthodoxy here, you may not be able to return it since you're abusing the product away from it's original design).
A 23x29" sheet of Strathmore 500 Series 4-ply Plate Bristol from a 25-sheet pack.
(p.s. do you like my Gustav Klimt rug?)
While in my 3rd year at the Joe Kubert School of Cartoon & Graphic Art I learned from George Pratt in my Technique & Style class the basics for painting on this paper. Then in 1996 I studied with Burt Silverman, a famous realist painter who brought to the forefront the technique of painting on this slick surface paper and I nailed down the method. I recommend finding Burt Silverman's books Breaking The Rules Of Watercolor and Painting People to further learn this technique (try Ebay, Amazon).
THE ADVANTAGES OF EMPLOYING THIS TECHNIQUE ARE:
THE ONLY DISADVANTAGE IS:
PSYCHO pages
I did roughly 5 to 7 panels for 75 pages, which equals over 450 little paintings. Even though I didn't do it quite properly in the beginning of the series, I got good at it pretty fast! Just stay with it!
PAINT
We've all been deceived by paint manufacturers and misinformed by painting teachers when it comes to selecting artist's paints. For decades the manufacturers had us under the spell of a romantic allure for selling paint. They still do, but fairly recently they were forced by artist's demands and a new awareness of how to use color properly to make changes to their color ranges for paints.
What caused this? The widespread realization that literally half the paints they sold were cheap, non-lightfast imitations and redundant applications of colors that were an unnecessary expense. An example: making the basic reliable green-blue pigment PB15 Phthalocyanine Blue into redundant mixes to sell more paint, like Peacock Blue, Winsor Blue, Blockx Blue, Brilliant Blue, Helio Blue, Intense Blue, Rembrandt Blue, and more. Or continued selling of traditional Alizarin Crimson, a color that fades over time. This is still being done, but now there is more information available about the pigments and mediums manufacturers use, so you are now better equipped to make decisions when purchasing paint. There are also books available that have scientific critiques of each manufacturer's paint line.
Fifty to eighty-percent of all manufacturer's paint lines is a redundant, unnecessary expense, you only need 3 to 6colors, 10 at most, to be able to do virtually everything possible. Actually, six colors will do the job, but the other four I use have special qualities not possible with the six.
I often paint with just 3 colors and easily obtain simplicity and full-color harmony:
(But for this technique I use Cerulean Blue instead of Pthalocyanine Blue. Pthalocyanines stain the paper too easily and is hard to remove).
<<< LEARN TO BUY AND MIX PAINT. Save money! Save time! Get the color you want every time. SEE MY ON MIXING COLOR ART BLOGS. >>>
My WATERCOLOR palette:
I use any brand of professional-level paint (not student-economy lines), but usually only 2 or 3 brands. As long as the paint is bright, clean, lightfast, reliable, and makes luminous, consistent washes, I'm happy. Please keep in mind that this list is what I use, and not indicative of what can be used. You will eventually find your own palette for this technique. You might also refer to Burt Silverman's book Breaking The Rules Of Watercolor to get more ideas.
Below I list the color bias, the trade name, and the pigment generally used (look for these pigment designations when purchasing as some manufacturers often use the trade names below as dumping grounds for other inferior pigments):
MY MUST-HAVE LIST for this technique:
green-blues:
violet-blues:
orange-reds:
violet-reds:
green-yellows:
orange-yellows:
earth (sedimentary colors):
whites, as mentioned farther above:
MY OCCASIONALLY USED LIST or used as convenience colors (saves mixing time):
Notice! No blacks, greens, oranges, or purples in my MUST-HAVE LIST. Again, see my ON MIXING COLOR blogs for the reasoning behind this, and why you might want to adopt this practice.
Brands primarily used: Da Vinci, Winsor & Newton, Daniel Smith. I use professional grade only, no student grades and no hues (hues are less expensive substitutes for the real thing, and usually have a noticeable degradation in quality). Professional grade paints cost more, but are worth the quality level and finish. Although, some student lines have some paints with the same exact pigments and quality as the professional lines. Personally, I like Da Vinci paints, not only for their quality and price, but because they seem to possess more integrity than Winsor & Newton and Daniel Smith. These last two make nice products, but they seem to endlessly proliferate their lines with glamour colors just to sell more paint. (update January 2007- Da Vinci paints have expanded and now have as many redundant glamour colors as Winsor & Newton and Daniel Smith. Oh well...)
BRUSHES:
OTHER TOOLS USED:
For tips on how to use these materials for plate bristol watercolors, click below to go to the next blog:
THE PAPER
My primary painting surface is Strathmore 500 Series 4-ply Plate Bristol . You can use 3-ply, but it's not as rigid. Personally I like the extra rigidity. Also, make sure you get the plate finish and not the vellum finish! The whole point of this technique is that it's on a slick (smooth) surface so you can make corrections. The vellum finish is a rougher finish and it will not work as well for this particular approach.
I buy these 23x29" sheets in packages of 25 from Utrecht or Jerry's Artarama, usually 4-6 pack orders to save cash and shipping costs. This paper is made of 100% rag (cotton fibers) and it can take a beating. Each sheet is run through a plater machine to flatten the paper fibers and thus creates a smooth surface shell, (but not too smooth like the 100% polypropylene (plastic) Yupo "paper", which typically yields a drippy, splotchy painting):
Below, a detail from a painting done on the Yupo polypropylene (plastic "paper").
Splotchy and somewhat messy looking, isn't it? This can be nice in it's own right, but...
...look at the refinement below (or in "The Scout" painting above) in a detail from a painting done on Strathmore plate bristol paper--what do you think? Wouldn't it be worth the extra time and effort to master this method?
Now, I have purchased packs of plate bristol before that were "defective." The plys would separate and bubble up as water was applied. If this happens, return it, or better yet--use the bad sheets for their designed intention of detailed airbrush or ink media! (Note: I have written to Strathmore many times with various questions regarding this paper. Be forewarned that Strathmore's customer service knows about people using this paper for watercolor, but don't like the idea. The paper is not designed for watercolor. Still, to me, if a sheet de-laminates when watermedia is applied to it and most of the time that doesn't happen, then it's defective, right? But, just understand we're treading on orthodoxy here, you may not be able to return it since you're abusing the product away from it's original design).
A 23x29" sheet of Strathmore 500 Series 4-ply Plate Bristol from a 25-sheet pack.
(p.s. do you like my Gustav Klimt rug?)
While in my 3rd year at the Joe Kubert School of Cartoon & Graphic Art I learned from George Pratt in my Technique & Style class the basics for painting on this paper. Then in 1996 I studied with Burt Silverman, a famous realist painter who brought to the forefront the technique of painting on this slick surface paper and I nailed down the method. I recommend finding Burt Silverman's books Breaking The Rules Of Watercolor and Painting People to further learn this technique (try Ebay, Amazon).
THE ADVANTAGES OF EMPLOYING THIS TECHNIQUE ARE:
- You can get any level of finish, from a loose, sketchy look to a full oil painting-like finish, and have it be dry within minutes for scanning or mailing (even drum scanning, because the paper can be rolled up). With oil or alkyd painting that's an impossibility.
- You can make corrections, even virtually wipe out your entire painting and start over if needed. With traditional watercolors that's an impossibility.
- You can blend, re-work, and fully model a form's planes. With acrylics that's virtually an impossibility. Notice I said "virtually"--more and more manufacturers of acrylics and mediums are increasing the "open" time on acrylic paint, the length of time you have to blend before it becomes unworkable. Still, acrylics dry waterproof. With this watercolor technique I can come back into a painting years later and still make changes (the paint does settle in over time and gets tougher to remove but you can still do it).
THE ONLY DISADVANTAGE IS:
- Takes lots of practice to do it well (the way Burt Silverman does it). The subtlety of this technique can be mind-boggling. I taught this technique for a few years and even experienced watercolorists struggled with it. In my early career I worked on a 3-issue painted comics adaptation called Hitchcock's PSYCHO, see the pages on www.Felipe.tv below:
PSYCHO pages
I did roughly 5 to 7 panels for 75 pages, which equals over 450 little paintings. Even though I didn't do it quite properly in the beginning of the series, I got good at it pretty fast! Just stay with it!
PAINT
We've all been deceived by paint manufacturers and misinformed by painting teachers when it comes to selecting artist's paints. For decades the manufacturers had us under the spell of a romantic allure for selling paint. They still do, but fairly recently they were forced by artist's demands and a new awareness of how to use color properly to make changes to their color ranges for paints.
What caused this? The widespread realization that literally half the paints they sold were cheap, non-lightfast imitations and redundant applications of colors that were an unnecessary expense. An example: making the basic reliable green-blue pigment PB15 Phthalocyanine Blue into redundant mixes to sell more paint, like Peacock Blue, Winsor Blue, Blockx Blue, Brilliant Blue, Helio Blue, Intense Blue, Rembrandt Blue, and more. Or continued selling of traditional Alizarin Crimson, a color that fades over time. This is still being done, but now there is more information available about the pigments and mediums manufacturers use, so you are now better equipped to make decisions when purchasing paint. There are also books available that have scientific critiques of each manufacturer's paint line.
Fifty to eighty-percent of all manufacturer's paint lines is a redundant, unnecessary expense, you only need 3 to 6colors, 10 at most, to be able to do virtually everything possible. Actually, six colors will do the job, but the other four I use have special qualities not possible with the six.
I often paint with just 3 colors and easily obtain simplicity and full-color harmony:
(But for this technique I use Cerulean Blue instead of Pthalocyanine Blue. Pthalocyanines stain the paper too easily and is hard to remove).
<<< LEARN TO BUY AND MIX PAINT. Save money! Save time! Get the color you want every time. SEE MY ON MIXING COLOR ART BLOGS. >>>
My WATERCOLOR palette:
I use any brand of professional-level paint (not student-economy lines), but usually only 2 or 3 brands. As long as the paint is bright, clean, lightfast, reliable, and makes luminous, consistent washes, I'm happy. Please keep in mind that this list is what I use, and not indicative of what can be used. You will eventually find your own palette for this technique. You might also refer to Burt Silverman's book Breaking The Rules Of Watercolor to get more ideas.
Below I list the color bias, the trade name, and the pigment generally used (look for these pigment designations when purchasing as some manufacturers often use the trade names below as dumping grounds for other inferior pigments):
MY MUST-HAVE LIST for this technique:
green-blues:
- Cerulean Blue PB35 (an opaque green-blue)
violet-blues:
- Ultramarine Blue PB29
orange-reds:
- Cadmium Red Light PR108
violet-reds:
- Quinacridone Red PV19 (this color may be too pink for you if you're used to the traditional Alizarin Crimson. You can find darker versions of this pigment that simulate Alizarin Crimson). Just don't use Alizarin Crimson, it fades over time.
green-yellows:
- Hansa Yellow Light PY3 (can also use Cadmium Lemon Yellow PY35 or PY37)
orange-yellows:
- Cadmium Yellow Light PY35
- Quinacridone Gold PO49 (transparent gold-ochre, good for glazing)
earth (sedimentary colors):
- Yellow Ochre PY43
- Burnt Sienna PBr7 (sometimes will stain the paper a little)
whites, as mentioned farther above:
- Winsor & Newton Zinc White gouache PW6 (opaque, but not used to cover up under layers)
- the paper itself (an existing, already available white)
MY OCCASIONALLY USED LIST or used as convenience colors (saves mixing time):
- Chromium Oxide Green PG17 (a flat sedimentary dull-green)
- Raw Sienna PBr7
- Raw Umber PBr7
- Cadmium Orange PO20
- Cadmium Red Medium PR108
- Phthalocyanine Blue PB15 (usually mixed media only, stains the paper too much for this technique)
Notice! No blacks, greens, oranges, or purples in my MUST-HAVE LIST. Again, see my ON MIXING COLOR blogs for the reasoning behind this, and why you might want to adopt this practice.
Brands primarily used: Da Vinci, Winsor & Newton, Daniel Smith. I use professional grade only, no student grades and no hues (hues are less expensive substitutes for the real thing, and usually have a noticeable degradation in quality). Professional grade paints cost more, but are worth the quality level and finish. Although, some student lines have some paints with the same exact pigments and quality as the professional lines. Personally, I like Da Vinci paints, not only for their quality and price, but because they seem to possess more integrity than Winsor & Newton and Daniel Smith. These last two make nice products, but they seem to endlessly proliferate their lines with glamour colors just to sell more paint. (update January 2007- Da Vinci paints have expanded and now have as many redundant glamour colors as Winsor & Newton and Daniel Smith. Oh well...)
BRUSHES:
- sable-hair rounds, sizes 3 to 12
- sable-hair flats, sizes 1/4" to 1"
- various mop brushes, squirrel hair rounds, and riggers used
- occasional scrubbing out with sturdy oil painting bristle brushes
- I use cheap synthetic rounds for scrubbing out color, since I tear them up quickly, and keep the sable-hair brushes for adding in color.
OTHER TOOLS USED:
- razor blades, smaller cutting blades
- hairdryer to speed drying time
- color-corrected bulbs for light
- plastic watercolor palette tray
- big metal butcher's tray for mixing large amounts of color
- Paper towels for picking out color with my finger
- water-soluble pencil HB and 2B, or regular HB pencil, or charcoal pencil
- toothbrushes for texture, splatter
- kneaded eraser
- various chipboards (old backs of drawing pads), Masonite type boards for taping down paper
- 3M Magic Tape, or comparable invisible tape, for masking off borders
- package strapping tape or duct tape for securing paper on boards
For tips on how to use these materials for plate bristol watercolors, click below to go to the next blog:
WATERCOLOR ON PLATE BRISTOL 2
To see my FINE ART ONLY site please visit:
http://www.FelipeEchevarria.com
To see my EVERYTHING ART site:
http://www.felipe.tv
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To see my FINE ART ONLY site please visit:
http://www.FelipeEchevarria.com
To see my EVERYTHING ART site:
http://www.felipe.tv
I've enjoyed reading your posts about Bristol board. This months cover (summer 08) of the American Artist Watercolor Magazine has a cover painted by Deborah Chabrian and the article states she uses Strathmore 500 Bristol Board. You can see her work at www.chabrian.com. I thought you might be interested. I have the Silverman book and plan to study it a little more. Thanks for your great blog and information. ns
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Thanks for the comments and the link, Nancy. I will check it out. Happy painting!
Felipe
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