Watercolor painting: Difference between revisions

'''Watercolor''' ([[American English]]) or '''watercolour''' ([[British English]]; see [[American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or|spelling differences]]), also '''''aquarelle''''' ({{IPA-fr|akwaʁɛl|lang}}; from Italian diminutive of Latin {{lang|la|aqua}} "'water"'),<ref>{{cite OED|aquarelle}}</ref> is a [[painting]] method<ref name="London, Vladimir p. 19">"Watercolor may be as old as art itself, going back to the Stone Age when early ancestors combined earth and charcoal with water to create the first wet-on-dry picture on a cave wall." {{Harvtxt|London|2021|p=19}}</ref> in which the [[paint]]s are made of [[pigment]]s suspended in a water-based<ref>"Ancient Egyptians used water-soluble translucent paints to decorate papyrus scrolls. They used such earth pigments as ochres and siennas, as well as minerals like reds, cinnabar, blue azure, green malachite, and so on, with gum arabic and egg white. Technically, these water-soluble colors were watercolors." {{Harvtxt|London|2021|p=19}}</ref> solution. ''Watercolor'' refers to both the [[List of art media|medium]] and the resulting [[work of art|artwork]]. Aquarelles painted with water-soluble colored ink instead of modern water colors are called {{lang|la|aquarellum atramento}} ([[Latin]] for "aquarelle made with ink") by experts. However, this term has now tended to pass out of use.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Ling|1991}}</ref><ref>{{Harvtxt|Waterhouse|1994}}</ref>

The conventional and most common [[Support (art)|support]] — material to which the paint is applied—for watercolor paintings is [[watercolor paper]]. Other supports or substrates include stone, ivory, silk, reed, [[papyrus]], bark papers, plastics, [[vellum]], [[leather]], [[textile|fabric]], wood, and watercolor canvas (coated with a gesso that is specially formulated for use with watercolors). Watercolor paper is often made entirely or partially with cotton.<ref>"100% cotton papers are more absorbent in most brands, but there are papers that have only 50% cotton or even high quality papers, which have no blending with cotton." {{Harvtxt|Viscarra|2020|p=21}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Vloothuis |first=Johannes |date=2017-07-14 |title=Understanding the Different Grades of Watercolor Paper |url=https://www.artistsnetwork.com/art-mediums/watercolor/understanding-the-different-grades-of-watercolor-paper/ |access-date=2018-10-03 |publisher=Artists Network |language=en-US}}</ref> This gives the surface the appropriate texture and minimizes distortion when wet.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Watercolor Paper: How to Choose the Right Paper for Use with Watercolors |url=http://www.art-is-fun.com/watercolor-paper/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151007051717/http://www.art-is-fun.com/watercolor-paper/ |archive-date=2015-10-07 |access-date=2015-10-06 |website=art-is-fun.com |publisher=Art Is Fun}}</ref> Watercolor papers are usually cold-pressed papers that provide better texture and appearance with a weight at least 300 gsm. Under 300 gsm is commonly not recommended for anything but sketching.<ref>"I would not recommend a weight less than 140lb (300 gsm) to paint anything other than quick sketches." {{Harvtxt|Mann|2016}}</ref><ref>"a paper that weighs 300 grams x meter² (140 pounds), has more body and looks more like a cardboard or thin cardboard, which makes it better to support the use of water." {{Harvtxt|Viscarra|2020|p=17}}</ref> Transparency is the main characteristic of watercolors.<ref>"It consists of a mixture of pigments, binders such as gum arabic and humectants such as glycerin, which together with other components, allow the color pigment to join and form the paint paste, which we know as watercolor. With regard to the colors, the quality of the pigments and their degree of concentration, it is what determines how good the watercolor is and also its price. A paint that has a high concentration of pigment, professional type, allows us to use it with a large amount of water without losing the intensity of color." {{Harvtxt|Viscarra|2020|p=47}}</ref> Watercolors can also be made opaque by adding [[Chinese white]]. This is not a method to be used in "true watercolor" (traditional).<ref>"Turner himself was of the same opinion; he declared to me [Munro] that water-colour painting would be totally mined, and lose all its individuality and beauty by the bad practice of mingling opaque with transparent colour." {{Harvtxt|Redgrave|Redgrave|1866}}</ref>