82 Beginner | TECHNIQUES
Lifting out
REMOVING PIGMENT
You can control the level of denition in
a painting by taking pigment away, rather
than adding more and more. Lifting out lets
you decide on the amount of looseness you
want in a more considered way, giving you
control to dene edges and shapes; it is
ideal for portraying patterns of light.
Ways to lift out pigment
There are several options available for removing a
colored wash and manipulating it to leave shapes or
edges in the paint. A sponge will leave a textured effect
(see pp.84–85), or try a cotton swab for small details, or
a paper towel to absorb larger areas. Apply a brush to
absorb pigment; it is easy to control and can be used
to soften wet edges, or leave a more dened dried edge.
Use a medium such as gum arabic to assist lifting out;
it binds pigment so you can lift off all the color.
You will need
Ultramarine
blue
Viridian
Cadmium
yellow
Phthalo blue
Burnt sienna
Lemon yellow
Permanent
rose
Indigo
1
Underpainting
Lay the background color around the horse’s body,
using colors that will form highlights when lifted out
later. Mop up any runs with a clean, dry brush.
Horse in dappled light
PUTTING IT INTO PRACTICE
Gum arabic has been used in this painting to slowly
allow denition to appear out of a mist, by lifting out
the highlights that create a dappled pattern of light
on the horse’s body.
No. 20 and no. 10 synthetic
round brushes
Gum arabic
Paper towel
Fine mist spray
10
1
⁄2 x 14 in (26 x 36 cm)
rough 140 lb (300 gsm)
watercolor paper
2
Add a wash of gum arabic
When dry, apply a 50:50 mix of gum arabic and
water over the entire painting. Add pigment to the
background wet-in-wet to soften shadow edges.
Using a brush
To lift off an area of
wash, use a clean, dry
brush, pressing quite
hard with every
brushstroke to avoid
replacing the pigment.
Soft and hard edges
For soft edges, use a dry
brush to lift off when your
wash is still wet, leaving a
diffused mark. For a hard
edge, apply a clean, damp
brush when the wash is
drying, or completely dry.
Stroke a dry brush to
absorb the wash and
soften edges. White
paper is revealed where
pigment is removed
Soft edges
Hard edges
US_082_083_Lifting_out.indd 82 02/04/2020 3:34pm
83 Lifting out
3
Apply light markings
Start applying the rough areas of dappled
light and shade on the horse’s body with a
smaller, drier brush. Detail is not necessary at
this stage; let the wash ow and run naturally
to dene the form. Lift off soft edges.
5
Mottled texture
Create texture by pressing a paper towel
onto damp paper, either by spraying a dried
area, or before a wash has completely dried.
Try spraying then tilting your painting and
allowing the droplets to run in rivulets.
4
Lift off edges
Continue to add pigment to the wet
surface so the wash maintains a soft edge.
When dry, lift out hard edges of the pools of
light,so the lines of pigment that are left read
correctly as shadows, not random marks.
US_082_083_Lifting_out.indd 83 02/04/2020 3:34pm
..................Content has been hidden....................
You can't read the all page of ebook, please click here login for view all page.