Last year I reviewed this
author’s first Take Three Colors book on Watercolor
Landscapes (also reviewed on this site) and was impressed
with it. Now here is a second book on seascapes and like the
first one, is aimed squarely at the total beginner who wants
to give painting a go but doesn’t want to buy up the
art shop.
The caption below the title on the cover reads “start
to paint with 3 colors, 3 brushes and 9 easy projects”.
Add in some paper and a cheap plastic palette plus a few other
household basics (cocktail stick, ruler, pencil etc) and you
are good to go. This author has not forgotten what it is like
to be a beginner with a budget, or just anybody who does not
want to buy a lot of materials only to find that art is not
for them. You get started with the painting fairly immediately
too, after a very brief and essential introduction explaining
about mixing colors, adding water and using brushes. There
are nine projects in here each of which teaches a basic watercolor
skill, and these are listed under the title with each project.
Each of these is illustrated with plenty of good-sized photographic
steps together with short helpful captions and “Jargon
Buster” points explaining terms. There are handy tips
and a nice touch is the photo of a palette showing the mixed
colors so you can get the shades right. The pictures get more
complex as you progress, from very basic beginnings showing
boats with reflections through to scenes of dunes, two lighthouses,
an estuary, and Bamburgh Castle. At the back is a page about
transferring the outlines of the full-sized paintings using
tracing paper, or you can draw them freehand plus how to add
a boat to one of the scenes. I have reviewed a lot of books
on painting for beginners but this series is the best to date.
Very highly recommended for anybody who wants to learn watercolor
painting.
Reviews of other titles by Geoff Kersey
Watercolour
Landscapes (Take
Three Colours)
Mediterranean
Landscapes in Watercolour (Take Three Colours)
Watercolour
Seascapes (Take Three Colours)
Bluebell
Wood in Watercolour (Paint it)
New
York in Watercolor (Ready to Paint)
Trace
and Paint Watercolour (Ready to Paint)
Trees
and Woodlands In Watercolour (Ready to Paint)
Trees,
Woodlands and Forests in Watercolor (What to Paint)
More Watercolour studies by Geoff Kersey at AmazonUS
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If you cannot find a good range of watercolor painting materials
locally try www.searchpress.com for a list of suppliers.
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