10th November, watercolour workshop, James Merriott

​Jim is a watercolour artist of the old school - using just pencil, paper, brushes and watercolour paints.  A thought that one might use the edge of a credit card for rigging and masts was dismissed out of hand!  Jim’s first demonstration was a seascape with sailing barge.  The way he flooded the whole sheet of paper with water, then applied strong, single colours was a bit alarming, but leaving it to dry then painting wet-on-dry for the boat and details produced a stunning picture.  The second demo of a church and cottages followed a similar pattern, except that the area where the walls of the cottages were to be was left untouched until the second stage.
It was an enjoyable day as we tried to emulate Jim’s style and produce a number of paintings - not all finished of course in the time available.