On February 8, 2023, BAG invited one of its members to share their knowledge about painting with watercolours. The group was welcomed by countless watercolours that Kathy had completed with artists online since the pandemic. Some of the artists include Fabio Cembranelli, Cindy Briggs and Kevin Chapman. Many of these artists focus on teaching tint values, such as neutral tints. Each shared their own individual style. Kathy enjoys the watercolour process. She loves architectural realism. She never uses just one colour at a time but rather creates her own colour recipes.

 

Kathy talked about the three main types of watercolour papers; hot, cold and rough press. For beginners, it is suggested to use rough or cold press. These papers are more absorbent and have a nice ridged/textured look and feel. They come in different weights. The 140lb weighted cold paper is the most popular. Kathy also briefly discussed the paints and brushes that are available. In particular, she focussed on her favourite watercolour brushes, that being the rigger and a mop brush made from synthetic fibres. The rigger allows the artists to create fine lines and to sploosh. The mop brush holds lots of water, offers the right amount of stiffness for drawing fine lines and easily snaps back into its shape. It gives the artist the ability to create many different brush strokes. She also discussed with the group the pros and cons of pre-stretching and taping paper, as to using sheetlets.

 

Fabio Cembranelli loves working with synthetic brushes and teaches the art of “Glazing,” a wet and dry technique. He applies one layer of paint on top of another while wiping off excessive paint to create depth and shadowing. Brush strokes are short and organic in nature. Often the brush lightly strokes the paper, and water is applied, which creates movement. It is almost like the paint and brush are free dancing.

 

The group was given the opportunity to practice Fabio’s watercolour “Glazing” technique. Many of the members attending expressed their appreciation to Kathy for rekindling their interest in watercolours.

 

 “A good watercolour brush should do at least one fundamental thing: hold water well. Ones made of synthetic hair do a fine job, but those with natural hairs have much better liquid-holding capacity.” Artnews.com