I asked my community on Instagram for questions to answer over here on my blog and they did not disappoint. One of the questions asked was “Why choose watercolor over other mediums?” I have always been drawn to the whimsy and otherworldliness of the look of watercolor. It would look not quite tangible and frozen in time, like a dream, to me.
It also looked super difficult and challenging. Something, I thought, only master artists can achieve. It didn’t help that when I asked others about it, the responses were discouraging. I often heard it was the hardest of all of the mediums to learn.
What I later discovered is that watercolor has a mind of its’ own. I like to say that watercolor has “an attitude” because it really does. After spending a long time fearing the unknown and then getting clapped back on when I tried to just dive into watercolor without respecting the way it acts in certain situations (wet into wet, muddy situations, blurry messes, water to paint ratios, basic color theory, etc), I learned to take a step back for a moment.
I knew that I loved the uniqueness of watercolor. No other medium can layer in transparent layers like it can. Also, *white is the color of the paper and not (usually) its’ own paint color like it is for other mediums. So I eventually had to ask myself if I wanted to be in fear with my curiosity about watercolor or did I want to start learning the language of watercolor for myself. I still get nervous and I have so much to learn but I also know I have come a long way in facing my fears and growing in my art.
Watercolor has taught me a lot about patience as well as letting go and continues to do so daily. Confidence is contagious and that’s why part of my mission is to get everyone painting with me (especially women and moms)! I teach live and virtually via Zoom, digital courses and group calls too. Learn more about how we can paint together at www.fluximagery.com/courses.
Interested in painting too? I have a watercolor guide and video here! I share tips, tricks I wish I knew when I started painting.
xo,
Erika
*You can buy white watercolor or gouache, but usually the white of the paper itself is reserved for that color. But this is art we are talking about, the possibilities are endless. 🙂