Transparent Watercolor Wheel

Rating:
Summary: Great book.
Review: Helpful for anyone interested in transparent watercolor - worth the investment!

Rating:
Summary: No more mud when painting
Review: James Kosvanec is a wizard. His understanding of transparent color is wondrous. Before this book I struggled with inconsistent results. My first painting after reading this book was clean and every color sparkled. If you want consistent results get this book.

Rating:
Summary: Some work, others don't, this one exceeds expectations
Review: Kosvanec's book title may not capture your attention, but his book certainly caught mine. He is thorough, clear in his presentation and has a firm grasp on watercolour. His watercolour wheel could become a standard and the one issue I have with the book is that this wheel is not a perforated pull-out. This would have made the book better than 5 stars because you could have a wheel hung up for reference and keep the book intact.

Rating:
Summary: Transparency vs Staining Power
Review: Ohhh, so that's why that color mix only went to a gray scale instead of black! Kosvanec gives great tips on the juicy wash; now my $300 worth of paints actually have color. Well worth the price. Be sure to read this book; don't just look at the pretty pictures. I'm still laughing about the quote, "If tube greens were people, I'd beat them up."

Rating:
Summary: Sparkling Watercolor
Review: This is a great book if you really want to understand why some color combinations work and others don't. Mr. Kosvanec has developed a color wheel that goes beyond the standard color wheel. The book's color wheel is a fold out and is perforated so it may be torn out and used easily. This new wheel deals with the actual pigments and their characteristics used in the majority of watercolor paints.

He divides the paint into nonstaining:transparant & semitransparant - staining:transparant - opaque & semiopaque and finally whitened & blackened colors. The book then shows in detail the results of mixing these different types of pigments to achieve luminous paintings or why some mixed together usually result in "mud".

There is a chapter that analyzes both some of his own and guest artists' paintings for their color mixing & pigment choices and why they worked. There is a chapter on water-to-pigment ratio and keeping colors clean. There is a chapter on achieving luminous grays and another discussing various types of paper from different manufacturers and how this too can change the results of a watercolor. He shows in one chapter the difference student-grade paints make compared to artist quality.

Throughout the book there is a wealth of detail and illustrations for the book to be a joy to read simply for generating ideas. This book is not really geared to be a beginning watercolor book. But if you are ready to go beyond the many beginning watercolor books available then this book will not disappoint.

Rating:
Summary: Sparkling Watercolor
Review: This is a great book if you really want to understand why some color combinations work and others don't. Mr. Kosvanec has developed a color wheel that goes beyond the standard color wheel. The book's color wheel is a fold out and is perforated so it may be torn out and used easily. This new wheel deals with the actual pigments and their characteristics used in the majority of watercolor paints.

He divides the paint into nonstaining:transparant & semitransparant - staining:transparant - opaque & semiopaque and finally whitened & blackened colors. The book then shows in detail the results of mixing these different types of pigments to achieve luminous paintings or why some mixed together usually result in "mud".

There is a chapter that analyzes both some of his own and guest artists' paintings for their color mixing & pigment choices and why they worked. There is a chapter on water-to-pigment ratio and keeping colors clean. There is a chapter on achieving luminous grays and another discussing various types of paper from different manufacturers and how this too can change the results of a watercolor. He shows in one chapter the difference student-grade paints make compared to artist quality.

Throughout the book there is a wealth of detail and illustrations for the book to be a joy to read simply for generating ideas. This book is not really geared to be a beginning watercolor book. But if you are ready to go beyond the many beginning watercolor books available then this book will not disappoint.

Rating:
Summary: A must-have for every watercolorist
Review: This is a wonderful book! And an absolute must-read for all who are truly interested in turning out great watercolors. Before this book, some of watercolors would turn out so great, and others just dull, and I thought it was due to experience and practice. He revealed the secret. And now I have a lot more confidence in what colors to use on my paintings and control over its results.

Jim Kosvanec also has a great writing style that will keep you reading on. After each section, you will be aching to go out there and try it out.

This book is definitely staying in my library.

Rating:
Summary: Mud or magic--Kosvanec steers you safely through
Review: Watercolor is notoriously tricky. One moment, colors gleam from the paper like jewels. The next moment, a touch of the brush to a color yields nothing but muddy results. The mixing of the pigments is a true science mixed with art because the colors are actually chemicals that interact not only by reflecting light on their own, but also by interacting with other pigments, and reacting with the paper as well.

What to do when you want a particular color effect? Well, you can refer to this book. It has a color wheel organizing the pigments according to how they mix with each other to form secondary tints. Kosvanec gives examples of mixing greys, browns, intermediate tints that are guaranteed NOT to result in a blob of disaster on your painting. He gives quotes from famous artists who reaffirm the problem; one dab of just the wrong color and disaster results. He also includes some fabulous paintings, not only his portraits of native Americans, but those of other well-known artists.

I can't wait to try out Kosvanec's mixtures and suggestions on my next painting. I know I will be referring to this book over and over again.