Watercolor: Painting Smart

by Al Stine

As an artist, you see the world a little differently. And learning to translate your visions, the smart way, into exciting watercolor paintings is what this book is all about. The idea of painting smart is based on asking yourself some important questions before putting paint on paper. Once you’ve answered these questions, you begin painting smart, making conscious decisions based on the principles of design, color theory, and sound technique. You don’t let luck answer the questions. Whether you’re a beginner, an advanced painter, or somewhere in between, you’ll find ways to grow as an artist in the pages of this book.

160 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1990

Reviews

[Melissa]

This is an excellent book! I want to read straight through it because I'm learning so many new and exciting things to use in my paintings. I love his style of paintings.

[Tandava Graham · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like his painting style well enough, though you had better really be into barns because there are a lot of ’em in here. My favorite bit was actually the chapter called “Playing Around,” where things get a bit more loose and lively. There’s also a good example of an abstract, value-based underpainting in there, which is something I keep trying to find more of. I liked his suggestion of taking a couple L-shaped pieces of paper to make a frame and hunting down good abstract value patterns embedded in other images, e.g. in a magazine.