Hello Curious One!
Today I am sharing some photos of using liquid watercolor in my altered atlas art journal. This is just the type of colorful, abstract, mixed media technique I will be demonstrating this weekend in the Big A** Altered Atlas Workshop, happening in Minneapolis, Minnesota. If you are local, it's not too late to grab your seat!
The liquid watercolor I use is from Discount School Supply. (I used to teach preschool, and we ordered a lot of great supplies from them for the classroom!)
Liquid watercolor is . . . well . . . liquid; like water, it gets your paper wet. That means it soaks through thin paper, like the atlas paper. However, it is vibrant in color and that color can be really awesome to see on the neighboring pages in your atlas.
Note: If you gesso the paper first, that does create a buffer. However, I found this paint still often soaks through to the other side. You'd need many layers of gesso to prevent any seep through.
Let me show you some photos from start to finish, including pictures of how the liquid watercolor soaks through to the other side.
Below is my initial set up on my work table (aka the dining room table).
I am using a plastic placemat from Target to protect the pages underneath.
The paint does seep through to the other side of the page.
At first this might seem alarming and unwanted, but before you let yourself feel upset, consider the following:
One of the things I love about the book The Diary of Frida Kahlo: An Intimate Self-Portrait is that you can see her drawings and writing through to the next page! It looks so interesting!!
Here's a look at the liquid watercolor on the opposite side of the painted pages.
All of these lines, marks, and layers is what makes an art journal so intriguing to page through. It makes the curious mind ask, "How did she do that?"
Since this is a journal, I decided to do a little writing.
I asked the question, "How are you going to make it through?"
I listened to my intuition, and painted the answers on the right-hand page.
The answers read:
listen
have hope
believe
envision
ask for help
step-by-step
move forward
take positive action
pray
love yourself and others
I could not end my painting session without creating a page spread with some drips.
I used warm colors on the right, and cool colors on the left.
That's all for this Watercolor Wednesday. What ideas or questions do you have for me? Feel free to add a comment below.
I hope to see you local Twin Cities creative types in class this weekend for the Big A** Altered Atlas Workshop!
If you liked the question and answer process I shared here, you might like the Vision Board E-Course I have available. The Vision Board E-Course walks you through some big questions to help you gain clarity about where you are and where you want to go. There are several videos and resources galore included in the self-paced online class. You have unlimited access to the content.
