Painting the Sea in Watercolor

Paint a watercolor sea with a variety of wet and dry techniques.

Considering the sea is made up of water, there’s no medium better suited to capture the turbulence of waves, the cool, effervescent spray of foam, or the shadowy depths of the ocean’s floor, than watercolor paints. There are many different watercolor techniques that can be used to paint the sea. A keen eye, a willingness to experiment, and a day at the beach can help you chose the method that’s right for you.

Paints

Paints are broken down into student and professional grade. Student-grade paints are less expensive, but they are less pigmented, making you need to use more; professional-grade paints may be more economical in the long run. Watercolor paints needed to make the sea come to life include a couple of different values of blue, such as cerulean, ultramarine and cobalt, sap green, China white and cadmium yellow.

Brushes

Use the best quality brushes you can afford. Watercolor brushes have short, light handles and are either made from natural hair or synthetic fibers. Natural hair brushes are the best quality and the most costly. Buy a variety of sizes and shapes, as you’ll need different brushes to render various techniques. A large flat fan or wash brush, a medium-size round brush, a very small pointed brush for detail, and a number one or two brush are the basic tools that will help you paint the nuances of waves, shadow and foam.

Paper

Cold press paper is most often used with watercolors, although hot press, which is more toothy and has a rough texture, can sometimes be the right choice for various effects. Watercolor paper is sold in pads, or in blocks, wherein each sheet needs to be separated with a butter knife before use.

Techniques

Make a value sketch first, to place where light and shadow will be affecting your subject.
Paint calm water on wet paper using large wet washes. Make sure to always use clean water and wash your brush often when switching colors. Add ripples by mixing several colors and creating a soft edge with small strokes. When the paint is dry, add reflected shapes over parts of the wash. Rough water can be painted on dry paper, leaving white canvas or adding white paint for waves. Crashing seas combine wet washes with shapes of foam. Sponges, tissue paper and paper towels can be used to dab wet paint for effects that simulate movement and sprays.

References

• Practical Painting: Ron Hazell, Watercolor Artist
• The Artist Daily: Lessons on Depth and Luminosity
• Becky Kelly: Watercolor 101

Resources

• Watercolor Painting: Watercolor Tutorials
• Dick Blick: Watercolors