Saturday Apr. 11th

2-5pm

Members: $35 Non-Members: $45

Materials list for watercolour on gessoed paper workshop with Lianne Todd 

Note: the PRE-WORKSHOP Preparation should be done at least 24 hours before the workshop, as the gesso takes a while to dry. 

1. A 22x30" sheet of Strathmore Aquarius II 80 lb. watercolour paper. This is the paper I have always used for this technique, as I learned with it and it does not buckle when you coat it with gesso. I cannot say how any other paper will respond. 

2. Liquitex acrylic gesso or equivalent (other brands have been troublesome for me). Do not thin your gesso with water, it may crack when dry. 

3. A 1-inch household paintbrush. 

PRE- WORKSHOP Preparation: -Divide your paper into the size(s) you want, either by folding and tearing or cutting. I would suggest dividing into half sheets. Or quarter sheets. Caution: this paper creases easily and stays creased. -Lay your paper onto a surface you don't care about getting paint on. If you just want to do one sheet at this point, that's fine, but it takes a while to dry so if you want more than one to work on at the workshop, do more. -Pour an egg-sized amount of gesso per half-sheet of paper onto the middle of each piece. -Use the dampened household brush first to quickly spread the gesso over the entire paper, then to create an artistically pleasing texture using crossing strokes about 2 inches in length. Be sure to cover the entire paper evenly - check against light to look for missed spots while it is still wet. Make sure your paper is not going to be painted on (stuck) to the surface it's on. -if you have any extra gesso on your brush, you may want to paint a few small scraps of ordinary paper or scrap matboard for testing staining pigments on -Let dry completely - until all shininess is gone. Be careful not to let the paper get bent after this. 

4. Any non-staining watercolour pigments you already have or know of and would like to buy. The non-staining part is important. My favourites are Winsor & Newton Ultramarine blue and Sepia and New Gamboge, Shmincke Ruby Red or Daniel Smith Quinacridone Red, D.S. Quinacridone Gold and Quinacridone Burnt Orange, American Journey Spring Green. I'm sure there are many others that work well, you can test on a small piece of ordinary paper coated with gesso. Paint a stroke then after it's dry see if you can remove it back to the white. 

5. Paper towels. 

6. Your usual watercolour brushes and materials. 

7. A stiffer bristle brush, not too large. This is for removing paint. Gesso will be hard on your brushes if you are scrubbing it so choose sturdy ones for this. 

8. A high-contrast image or two you would like to paint. 

Optional - watercolour crayons. Useful for drawing on the gessoed surface with, but a small brush will work. No pencils - they damage the gessoed surface.