Lesson 3
WET WASH
Paint wet on wet
Watercolor is often painted wet on wet, meaning a wet wash is applied to paper that is already wet. The effect is soft and blurred, creating smooth edges. To do this, dip the mop brush in clear water and apply it to an area of the paper. The mop brush holds lots of water, like a mop! If you do not have a mop brush, the flat brush is a good substitute. Wet the flat brush and pick up some pigment. Apply this watery wash of color to the paper while it is still damp. The more water used, the lighter the value will be. The more pigment used, the more intense the color will be. Apply as many colors as desired to the wet area and they will bleed into each other with blurred edges. A wash is often used as the first layer, over which other techniques are applied.
Use the mop brush to apply water to the paper. Brush across the entire sheet.
Before the wash dries, apply pigments with the flat brush onto wet paper to create a wash. Colors will bleed into
each other creating a blurry edge.
GRADED WASH
A graded wash is a wet on wet technique, beginning with a dark wash and gradually proceeding to a lighter one. This effect is often used in skies, but can be used where a smooth blend is needed as in this cup. TO DO: Make graded washes working in small areas on good paper. Then make a wash from an observation of the sky.
To make a graded wash, apply a brush loaded with pigment to the top of the wet paper. Dilute the pigment with water as you brush back and forth across the entire sheet of paper, pulling the pigment down. Add more water to dilute the pigment further as you get near the bottom of the page.
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