My real breakthrough with Sketchbook watercolours came during our first trip to to the region of Umbria in Italy. It was was in the spring of 2002. We stayed at the Relais il Canalicchio which boasts commanding views over the Umbrian countryside. In fact the owners of the hotel commissioned me to do a painting of the Relais which is available as a limited edition print.
Fabriano
On one of our trips out to explore the region we ventured further afield and visited the Fabriano paper factory in Le Marche. I couldn’t resist purchasing several leather bound sketchbooks containing their beautiful hand made paper. It’s a delight to paint on. You initially feel a little scared to paint in these books in case you mess up!
I did pluck up the courage though and one evening I painted the view from out window, a simple composition of a small farm building silhouetted against the warmth of the spring evening light.
These are the kind of subjects that I would be encouraging guests on our painting holidays in Italy to paint. I would be leading by example painting in my own sketchbook. But also overseeing their work, deciding on the right composition, advising on choice of colours and sequence of washes. And of course making sure that they don’t spoil the painting by overworking it.
Nowadays there are some excellent sketchbooks available in the UK and online containing good quality paper to paint on. I also recommend the Arches watercolour blocks for slightly larger paintings. A 14″ x 10″ or 12″ x 9″ containing rough paper which is small enough to pop into a bag with the rest of your painting gear.
I usually have a range of materials available from my Studio & Gallery in Ponteland, Northumberland. To find out more about our painting holidays in Italy visit reedartholidays.com