Introduction
Chapter 1: Tools - Essential art equipment you'll need and advice on how to use them before you start
Chapter 2: Techniques - Basic watercolour techniques
Chapter 3: Implementing Techniques - How to use the techniques in the previous chapter to paint your chosen subject, from painting landscapes and skies to individual subjects such as flowers and people
Chapter 4: Take It Further - With the techniques from the previous chapters under your belt, learn more advanced skills and theory to take your paintings to the next level; from capturing movement and exploring artistic license to understanding colour swatches and what other materials you can use, in conjunction with watercolour, to add depth and interest
Key Elements - Bitesize chapter summarising basic art theory, from perspective to essential shapes
Index
Acknowledgements
Samantha Nielsen has a strong following on Instagram with her whimsical and appealing watercolour paintings. Based in in Duluth, Minnesota USA, her main medium is watercolour and ink, and she is an active member of the Urban Sketching community. She is a successful seller of watercolour paintings and prints on Etsy and also has her own podcast on Anchor FM radio. In addition, she produces easy-to-follow watercolour tutorial videos on Facebook.
Check out her Instagram via @sj_nielsen, her Facebook page via @artbysjnielsen, and her Etsy shop via https://www.etsy.com/shop/artbysjnielsen
Samantha will show you how to capture warm and cool colours and use
washes and blending. In 60 bite size exercises, subjects range from
landscapes and seascapes to people and busy urban streets. There's
no jargon or fiddling and everything is explained in simple,
concise terms. Even watercolour's best-kept secrets and key
techniques become easy to understand and you'll find it impossible
not to get your paints out and start working the moment you open
the pages.
*The SAA Catalogue 19/20*
This isn't silk painting, I know - but try pre-treating silk to
inhibit dye flow, ironing on to freezer paper and experiment. I
find loose sketches hard to achieve, however, this book does give
lots of tips on how to achieve them. Often an idea pops into ones
head and clarity disappears before painting, a quick sketch in
paint or dye can keep the best details ready for the final
painting. This book, in bite size exercises, encourages the painter
to loosen up whilst keeping the details clear. Most watercolour
techniques are adaptable to silk painting, the use of painters'
tape and masking fluid are very effective to preserve elusive
'white' areas. The book quickly covers: Create a basic sketch,
finding a subject, five minute skies, trees, water, in fact, every
subject in five minutes. Most of us lead busy lives, more knowledge
of painting in five minutes is amongst my most wanted! This is a
good book to pick up when inspiration fails us, giving a different
slant on many subject.
*Guild of Silk Painters*
'There’s a wealth of ideas, subjects and techniques here and plenty
to pick up and run with. The illustrations are attractive
(essential given what’s being presented) and, although Samantha
analyses them, they’re not demonstrations and you’re not intended
to copy them. You should instead go out and find your own ideas,
but what’s here will give you plenty of inspiration and jumping-off
points.' Read the full review here.
*Artbookreview.net*
A tempting cover with the glorious qualities of watercolour for all
to see and a mastery of the ever-difficult green. This book offers
learners 'Super-quick Techniques For Amazing Paintings' claims the
cover. Its small size belies the fact that this book contains 55
exercises to enhance your familiarity with watercolour. Practice is
the key states the artist in her introduction and that is true of
everything. As painters we tend to want to create a masterpiece
straight away. Often with watercolour, we quickly become
discouraged. It does not behave how we want it to. Will this book
help? It begins with tools - you'll find suggestions for choosing
the right tools. The next chapter is about techniques. This is all
about washes, blending colour, lifting colour, glazing, edges,
blooms and brushwork. The book moves on to applying those
techniques. I liked the pages on skies best in this section,
especially the image of Pamela Harmois' Beach Walkers, which is
very inspiring. This section includes the essence of the book in
that it gives five-minute chosen themes for skies, rocks, trees,
water and waves, landscapes, cityscapes, seascapes, floral. There
are more ideas for quick ways to paint night scenes, the four
seasons, people. The final section is Take it Further, which gives
suggestions for improving on your new-found skills. If you wish to
make watercolour part of your everyday activities, this book might
well show you the way. Interesting and worth a read. Any artist
will improve if he paints daily, given he understands the
techniques and how to apply them.
*www.karenplatt.co.uk*
Aimed at artists who are just starting out and busy painters short
on time, Five-Minute Watercolour by Samantha Nielsen will help
you explore the medium through 55 bite-size exercises. Starting
with tools and basic techniques, Samantha then shows you how to
implement those techniques, including sections on painting
landscapes and skies, flowers and people. The final section deals
with more advanced skills, such as understanding colour,
watercolour mediums and adding impact. The instruction is
accessible, jargon free and concise so there's no excuse for not
finding time to practise every day.
*Leisure Painter, November 2018*
This is much more than a book for the time-poor and is a rather
delightful treasure house of ideas for sketching and note-taking.
Here, working quickly is something to aim for. Get it down before
it moves, the light changes or you simply forget what it was that
caught your eye and your imagination in the first place. It's
quick-fire and brimming with hints and tips, and it's really rather
fun.
*Paint magazine (November 2018)*
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