Watercolor Dirtbag
I recently went through Liz Steel’s Watercolor course, which was a great way to geek out about color. The course is appropriate for beginners but probably ideal for people with, say, about a year of experience (like me!), and focues on color choice and pigment characteristics, brush technique, and trying different styles. One of the … Read more
Perylene Maroon sits somewhere between crimson and earth red, a deep red with a brownish cast; sort of brick-colored. Many artists find it useful to dull greens and blues to make them more realistic landscape tones. I became interested in Perylene Maroon after watching Denise from In Liquid Color paint a pigeon using shades of gray from a mix of Perylene Maroon and Cerulean.
Jane Blundell’s Ultimate Mixing Palette includes the highly granulating ochre Goethite Brown Oxide (PY43), with Monte Amiata Natural Sienna (PBr7) listed as an alternative. But what’s the difference between these two colors?
Perfectionism is the creativity-killer. I do my worst work and have the least fun when I’m putting the most pressure on myself. Expecting and demanding perfect work from yourself does not lead to perfect work – it only leads to burnout. The truth is that I’ll never be perfect – nobody is – and for … Read more
Traditionally, Alizarin Crimson is made from pigment PR83, which is falling out of favor because it is not lightfast. Different companies have different solutions to this, offering colors with names like “Permanent Alizarin Crimson” made from various mixes of lightfast reds. Some artists also mix their own (a popular recipe is Perylene Maroon + Quin … Read more
Written in the late 90s/early 00s, Bruce MacEvoy’s handprint.com is still an invaluable resource for information about watercolor pigments. In his watercolor guide, MacEvoy has listed every color available from major brands at the time – and since watercolor catalogues don’t change that frequently, they’re still pretty much accurate, with the occasional missing pigment, review … Read more
Phthalocyanine blue (PB15) is an incredibly intense, staining, transparent, non-granulating, lightfast pigment that comes in two versions:
(I’ll call them GS and RS in this post.)
What’s the difference, and which should you choose?
I just love this unique color. It’s a warm pinky red, yellow-toned, but not in orangey way. It truly is coral. It reminds of a cherry Italian soda. It’s a great color for flowers, the inside of a strawberry, and coral of course! Experiment Results Gradient: Bold gradient from a deep, juicy orange-red to pale … Read more
Sometimes two colors you like are so similar that it seems silly to have them both on your palette, but how do you choose which one to use? It’s like that for me with Quinacridone Rose (a pink made from the pigment PV19) and the color that I usually call Purple Magenta (PR122), which is also known as Quinacridone Lilac (in Daniel Smith) or Quinacridone Magenta (in Holbein and some other brands).
In late November/early December 2021, I did Kolbie Blume’s 10-day Painting the Wilderness challenge on Youtube, and I had an amazing time. It came at just the right time in my watercolor journey, showing me that I could paint far more complex scenes than I thought I could. So when Kolbie released a second ten-day challenge in late April/early May 2022, I was excited to join in again.