How to Use Watercolors to Paint Pansies

Pansies can be a fun subject for a watercolorist.

Painting in watercolors can prove to be a challenge for any artist, but with practice and patience, you can create delicately beautiful paintings. The dainty petals of pansy flowers lend themselves well to the watercolor medium.

Things You'll Need

• F pencil
• White watercolor paper of desired size
• Palette
• Watercolor paints in Zinc White, Cadmium Yellow, Ultramarine Violet, and Ivory Black
• Watercolor brushes in sizes 00, 0, and 1
• Bowl or glass of water

Instructions

1. 

   A purple-on-purple pansy blooms.

   Decide how large you would like your painting to be. Choose watercolor paper that will accommodate the pansies with at least a 2-inch margin on all four sides. Place the pansies or a photo of the pansies above or beside the watercolor paper for easy reference while painting.

2. Sketch the pansies using an F pencil on your watercolor paper. Draw the outlines of the flowers as well as their stamens.

3. 

   Use tubes of watercolor paint.

   Squirt a dime-sized amount of the following watercolor paints onto your palette: Zinc White, Cadmium Yellow, Ultramarine Violet and Ivory Black.

4. Paint the middles of the flowers first using a size 00 brush. Dampen the brush by dipping it in the water before coating it in paint. Paint the flowers' stamens Zinc White and then paint a small circle of Cadmium Yellow below the stamens to create each flower's yellow center.

5. Use a wet size1 brush coated in Ultramarine Violet to paint a light layer (or wash) of color on the pansies' petals. Outline the petals first and then fill them in.

6. Mix a pea-sized amount of Ivory Black with the same amount of Ultramarine Violet on your palette. Dampen a size 00 brush, then coat it in the mixed paint. Use this color to paint the dark, fan-shaped inner portions of the flowers' petals.

7. Add depth to the flowers' petals and centers by painting in any shadows that appear on them. Wet a size 1 brush and then coat it in the Ultramarine Violet paint. Use a light stroke to add shading to the shadowed portions of the flowers. Create more realistic shadows by using a damp brush to blend the edges of the shaded portions into the non-shaded portions.

8. Allow your painting to dry for at least 24 hours.

Tips & Warnings

• Good watercolor technique involves mixing a small amount of water with each paint before using. The watered-down paint should appear translucent, yet rich in color when applied to the watercolor paper. Use more water for lighter portions of the painting and less water for darker portions.

• Pansies come in many different color combinations. These instructions explain how to paint a standard purple-on-purple pansy with a yellow center. You can use the same techniques described in the instructions when trying other color combinations.

References

• Artist's Network: Painting Flowers Step by Step: Pansy Power
• Lisa Hill Watercolorist: Wearing Purple - Pansy Watercolor Demonstration
• Elfwood: Watercolor Technique