How to learn to draw watercolor from scratch?

For the first time watercolor drawings appeared in ancient China. Here, people were the pioneers of the elegant drawing and learned how to learn how to paint with watercolors. It was in this country that a special paper was made, suitable for working with watercolor. In the western countries of the continent, the watercolor drawing was not given much attention for a long time, and it was not until the end of the 19th century that he was given a deserved place in the history of world painting. Using the technique of drawing with watercolor, you can achieve amazing elegant lines, translucent background, interesting blurry details. All this can give the drawing a mystical effect.

What brushes are needed?

Before you start studying the technique of watercolor drawing, you need to pay attention to materials for its high-quality execution. Correctly selected brushes - the first need for those who want to learn how to learn how to draw watercolor from scratch. They should have the following properties: quickly absorb water, have the flexibility and ability to immediately return to the old form, and also have smooth, not protruding hairs. Handles for watercolor brushes are always short. A wide flat brush is used to remove excess paint, since its hairs have increased stiffness. Brush for washing is used to paint the background. It is large enough and soft, so it easily changes its shape and does not dry out, holding water and paint in hairs. Brushes for work can be of various sizes, which vary depending on the technique used.

Paper for drawing in watercolor

The selected paper is also important. Determine its quality is not difficult. If the paper is dense and does not separate, as well as well-glued, you can not doubt its quality. With the right choice of paper for drawing, you can paint with watercolor, without fear that the water will slowly absorb, and the colors - lighten. Pay attention to the graininess of the paper for drawing. Fine-grained paper is suitable for accurate transfer of small parts. For normal jobs, you can select medium-grain paper. And to perform specific drawings you need coarse-grained. It is distinguished by a rough surface and a distinct texture. This type of paper has a high density and is often made by hand. Paper without grain for a picture with watercolor is not suitable, as it will warp.

The right colors are the key to success

Important is also the choice of the right colors for those who are interested in how to learn to paint with watercolor. For beginners, customary school watercolor colors are also suitable . But if an immature artist is still aimed at a good result, it is better to give preference to a professional. To prepare for drawing paints in the baths, it will take some effort. First you need to drop a little water from the brush into the paint, so that it softens a little. The convenience of such colors is that you do not need to search for additional containers. If the artist has some experience in drawing with watercolor, then colors in tubes will do. Then you can create the desired palette yourself.

On the other hand, amateurs can also use these colors if they buy a ready set with a lot of tubes. Although the sets of paints are sold and twelve, and thirty-six pieces, not all colors are used. In any case, there is a need to mix different paints to obtain the desired or unusual shade. In principle, a beginner artist will need no more than ten frequently used tones.

Warm or cold tones

Those who want to learn how to learn how to draw watercolors, you need to understand the warm and cold colors. If the basis of the paint is red or yellow, it will be considered warm. And the blue and violet shades belong to the cold ones. It should be noted that green, purple, gray and black have a unique feature and can refer to both cold type of paint and warm. The initial tone may depend on the specificity of the color and the effect of the surrounding shades. The main colors are blue, yellow and red. All the others that can be obtained by mixing are called derivatives.

Stages of drawing

Learning to draw watercolor in stages is not so difficult as it may seem at first glance. First you need to buy a pencil, preferably with a solid rod, so that the line can be seen only slightly. Then sketch the main details of the drawing. Then you can immediately take on watercolor. There is no need to rush here. First, you need to think carefully about what colors and shades are desirable for the selected picture. Having defined the color scheme, you can start applying the paint. At the first stage, you should draw with translucent colors. After all, adding a tone is easier than removing it. To do this, dilute the paint with water. After the bases are applied, you can add color to make the pattern saturated. To obtain dark tones, the brush is soaked with a tissue after wetting in water. Then the brush is dipped into the paint, and lines are drawn on the paper. It's important to remember the shadows that you need to think about before drawing. It is important to know the future artists who are interested in how to learn how to draw a watercolor for beginners in stages.

Removing borders

In order to get rid of the difference between the shadow and light part, you need to create a smooth transition. This means that all the colors should be mixed. To do this, the brush descends into the water, so that all the remaining paint on the hairs is washed off. Next, the brush should be dried and make sure that there is absolutely no paint on it. Then the bristles of the brush must be immersed in water again. After this, the brush is placed on the line between the light and dark parts. Thus, a clear boundary will spread out, and it will be impossible to determine exactly where the shadow ends and light begins.

Drawing the landscape

Nature lovers who want to learn how to learn to paint landscapes with watercolors should first outline the main compositional lines on paper. When drawing a sky zone, it must be remembered that this area of paper is first wetted with water. Further, while the area of the sky has not yet dried, a diluted light yellow paint is applied to its lower part. The top part is painted in red or orange. The boundaries of the shades are erased with the help of a wet brush.

Experiments with green

How to learn how to paint beautifully in watercolor and easily operate on different colors on paper? This is much easier than it seems. The only difficulty can arise with green. Very often artists have problems with the use of this tone in their works. In order not to make mistakes and correctly choose the right shade, you need to know a few rules. You can not lighten the green with yellow. To muffle the saturated green, it is enough to add a drop of the base red. And to give a greener darker shade is often used cold blue tone. Knowing these basic rules about how to learn to draw with watercolor, you can draw the first time an excellent landscape with a mysterious sky on the background and a bright green foliage in the frontal part of the picture.

The most important thing in teaching the technique of drawing watercolor is not to grasp everything at once. You need to gradually increase your level of ownership of the brush, as well as the ability to correctly handle the color gamut. Some artists prefer to use only soft and warm tones in their works, others, on the contrary, are cold and saturated. It's not so easy to find your way in creating watercolor masterpieces. The main thing is that the figure touches the feelings, then the hand itself will start to display the necessary lines, and the brush - to add exquisite color shades. A very important sequence in the question of how to learn to draw with watercolor. We always have to go from simple things to difficult ones, at each phase of development, acquire new skills and consolidate knowledge through constant practice.