The author of this superb guide was not only a renowned watercolor painter but also a brilliant teacher with an unmatched talent for conveying to his students the techniques and aesthetic philosophy underlying great paintings. Years after becoming award-winning painters themselves, his students still quote his "Whitneyisms" to remind themselves of all that is most important in creating art. This fine guide, the distillation of Edgar Whitney's teaching, is one of the most useful, comprehensive, and popular watercolor painting books every published ? almost a cult classic. Starting with the nuts-and-bolts basics ? including choice of paper, colors, palette, and brushes ? and with exercises to give the beginner experience in using washes on both dry and wet paper, the book presents a full course of watercolor painting. The author gives specific, detailed instructions for creating landscapes and for painting portraits and figures ? instructions that come vividly to life in two 16-page full-color sections showing the steps involved in creatiang seven of his own watercolors. Other chapters focus on drawing; the principles and elements of design; and matting, framing, and selling completed works of art. Beautifully designed and illustrated, this invaluable book will be treasured by all watercolorists ? from complete beginners to experienced painters looking for ways to improve their own paintings.

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Introduction

Tools for Watercolor
THE VIRTUES OF WATERCOLOR
WATERCOLOR'S NATURE
THE TOOLS
PAPER AND COLORS
STRETCHING PAPER
COLOR PRESS PAPER
SMOOTH PAPER
PALETTE
BRUSHES
COLOR PALETTE
WATER CAN
KNIFE
OTHER TOOLS
CARRYING THE TOOLS
The Drills
FLAT WASH ON DRY PAPER
FLAT WASH ON WET PAPER
GRADED WASH ON DRY PAPER
GRANULATED WASH
"THE "LIFT"
WET IN WET DIFFUSIONS
COLOR DRILL
Painting the Picture
THE CREATIVE CONCEPT
EMOTIONAL INVOLVEMENT
BEING SELECTIVE
SUBJECT MATTER
SYMBOLS
SIGNIFICANT DESIGN
SHAPES
PATTERS
SIX PATTERN SCHEMES
CONTRIVING THE DESIGN
THE SMALL ROUGH
DESIGNING WITH A LARGE BRUSH
"SEEING" A VALID DESIGN"
DESIGNING WITH THE PENCIL
NOTATED SKETCHES
QUICKIES
CHOOSING THE TECHNIQUE
ORGANIZING YOUR PICTURE
EXPRESSION IN LOWEST POSSIBLE TERMS
RESTRICTING YOUR VALUES
SEEING VALUE DIFFERENCES
BEST VALUE SEQUENCE
"KEYING"
VISUAL STRENGTH OF WHITE
MIX COLOR ON THE PAPER
WATERCOLOR METHODS
WETTING THE PAPER
KEEPING THE PAPER WET
RE-WETTING
DRYING
DRY BRUSH
CORRECTIONS
RECLAIMING LOST WHITES
USING UNSUCCESSFUL PAINTINGS
DEMONSTRATION PAINTINGS
Landscape Painting
SUN ON PAPER?
TREES
WOOD INTERIOR
BIRCHES
SAND DUNES
MOONLIGHT
THE OCEAN
SURF
ROCKS
SNOW
REFLECTIONS IN WATER
SKIES
CLOUDS
FOG
OUTDOOR LIGHT
GRAY DAYS
INTERIORS
OTHER LAWS OF THREE DIMENSIONS
DESIGN CHARACTER
GRADATION
FOREGROUNDS
RELATED FIGURES
EDGES
DEMONSTRATION PAINTINGS
Figure and Portrait Painting
"FRESHNESS, ESSENTIAL"
"THE "PUDDLE" METHOD"
DRY METHOD A
DRY METHOD B
DRY METHOD C
DRY METHOD D
WET METHOD A
WET METHOD B
BACKGROUNDS
SEEING YOUR MODEL
USING THE LAWS OF LIGHT
PAINTING MEANS WORK
Principles of Design
UNITY
CONFLICT
DOMINANCE
REPETITION
ALTERNATION
BALANCE
HARMONY
GRADATION
A NECESSARY TOOL
EIGHT WORDS: DESIGN PRINCIPLES
FIFTEEN WORDS: PRINCIPLES AND ELEMENTS OF DESIGN
PAINTINGS IN COLOR
Elements of Design
LINE
VALUE
COLOR
HUE
VALUE
INTENSITY
MONOCHROMATIC HARMONY
COMPLEMENTARY HARMONY
ANALOGOUS HARMONY
SPLIT COMPLEMENTARY
TRIADIC HARMONY
TEXTURE
SHAPE
SIZE
DIRECTION
USING THESE ELEMENTS
BOTH ARTIST AND CRITIC
Drawing
DRAWING IS THE FOUNDATION
UNDERSTANDING THE FIGURE
USING PRINCIPLES
DRAWING EVERYWHERE
VARY YOUR DRAWINGS
VARY YOUR TOOLS
SEEING VOLUME
VARY THE LINES
DRAWING WITH ALL THE SENSES
CONTOUR DRAWING
GESTURE DRAWING
THE EXPERIENCE
STUDY THE LIGHTING
CAST SHADOWS
DRAPERY
SOLID FORMS
SHADE AND SHADOW
PERSPECTIVE
LOCAL COLOR VALUE
FRESHNESS
STRUCTURE
DRAUGHTSMAN'S MISCELLANY
BE BOLD
DRAW CONTINUOUSLY
"Matting, Framing, and Selling"
MATTING
FRAMING
PRICING
A Craft Philosophy and Art Today
YOUR EMOTIONS
A CRAFT PHILOSOPHY
PAINTING TODAY
WHAT IS ART?
Color Demonstrations
Notes
Conclusion
Epilogue
Bibliography
Index