Random Thoughts

Mostly for my own reference, in the hopes that I can still remember these things the next time I try to do art.

For context, I've been teaching myself watercolour off and on for the past year or so, mostly by watching YouTube videos of techniques and never practicing them. I've painted mostly landscapes and wildflowers, presented on greeting cards for family. A lot of my process has been trying to uncover a style I like.

For now, I've landed on the style Hayao Miyazaki describes in his watercolour tips, as presented by James Gurney* (which are distributed with a Holbein watercolour set which I would love to own, but you can only buy at the Studio Ghibli museum in Japan). This is basically bold pencil lines with light, loose transparent watercolour on top. I've seen it a lot in Studio Ghibli art books and the messiness is appealing to me.

( And now, the process of making art. Pictures within. )

Main takeaways for me, in summary:
- Don't be afraid to sketch lots of things, you don't need to put all of them in the final composition (is this 'kill your darlings?').
- Scan your lineart so you're less scared to make permanent changes.
- Either use the 300gsm 100% cotton paper you paid good money for, or be very careful with your paintbrush.
- Use the actual watercolours you paid good money for, and take the time to mix and test colours on scrap paper before painting with them.
- The waterbrush is fine for this style, actually.
- Stippling with white showing through looks prettier than flat smooth washes. Don't be afraid to layer, and mix different shades of colour!
- Soft coloured pencils are inappropriate for outlining.
- Use an eraser shield!