Watercolor painting

Watercolor painting is a painting method that uses pigments suspended in a water-based solution. The term refers both to the medium and to the artwork made with it. Paper is the usual support, and transparency is its main characteristic, shaped by the paper, the binder, and the amount of water used.

The page traces watercolor from early traditions in Europe and East Asia to its later development in England, the United States, and other regions. It also describes the medium’s materials, commercial forms, conservation concerns, and techniques such as washes, wet-on-wet, glazing, dry brush, lifting, and masking.

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• Watercolor is a painting method made with pigments suspended in a water-based solution, and the word names both the medium and the finished artwork.
• Paper is the usual support, though other materials are listed, and watercolor paper is often cotton-based to improve texture and reduce distortion when wet.
• Transparency is presented as the main characteristic of watercolor, linked to how the binder is absorbed by the paper and how pigment remains on the surface.
• The page says watercolor can also be made opaque with Chinese white, and that this was once disputed in the English tradition.
• It describes watercolor as ancient, with traditions in East Asia, India, Ethiopia, and other countries.
• Western artists often used watercolor for sketches before finished oil or engraving works, while botanical and wildlife illustration are presented as especially important traditions.
• In England, the medium grew through education, travel, publishing, collecting, and the work of artists such as Sandby, Girtin, and Turner.
• English watercolor societies formed in the 19th century and supported exhibitions, buyers, and debates about transparent watercolor and gouache.
• The page says watercolor declined in status after concerns about pigment permanence, but artists such as Signac and Cézanne continued to develop it.
• In the 20th and 21st centuries, watercolor remained active in Europe, the United States, Spain, Mexico, and the Canary Islands.
• Watercolor paint is described as a mixture of pigment, gum arabic, additives such as glycerin or honey, and water; modern commercial paints come in tubes, pans, and liquids.
• The page explains common techniques such as wash, wet-on-wet, wet-on-dry, glazing, dry brush, lifting, masking, and the use of salt for texture.