PAINTING (3): UNDER THE SEA
NAME:______________________
LESSON FOCUS:
This lesson focuses on creating an underwater painting using liquid watercolor,
traditional watercolor and markers.
VOCABULARY:
Continuous-line: Continuous-line in this regard means to draw continuously without
lifting your drawing medium from the paper. Drawing in a continuous line is a drawing
method and sometimes also a teaching technique when drawing from the figure.
Cool Colors: Colors often associated with water, sky, spring, and foliage and suggest
coolness. These are colors which contain blue and green and appear on one side of the
color wheel opposite the warm colors.
Distort: To deform or stretch an object or figure out of its normal shape to exaggerate its
proportions.
Movement: A principle of art, it is a way of combining elements to produce the look of
action or to cause the viewer’s eye to sweep over the work in a certain manner.
Texture: Element of art that refers to how things feel, or look as if they might feel if
touched. Texture is perceived by touch and sight. Objects can have rough or smooth
textures and matte or shiny surfaces.
Watercolor: Any paint that uses water as a medium. Paintings done with this medium are
known as watercolors.
PROCEDURE:
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Prepare the paper by using a combination of wet on wet watercolor washes and
liquid watercolor until you achieve a surface with many layers, a variety of
texture and no white paper showing through. Use cool colors, those associated
with the ocean.
Look at a variety of underwater pictures, fish and other sea creatures and plants to
get some ideas. On scrap paper, practice drawing some of these images using the
continuous line technique.
Once your paper is dry and you feel ready, begin drawing your underwater scene
using a permanent black marker and the continuous line technique. Be sure to fill
the entire page and keep your lines loose and free. Don’t think too hard, just try to
let the movement take over to create an interesting image.
Once you have a strong composition, look at your drawing/painting and decide
which areas to develop further.
Using traditional watercolor paints and a brush, begin filling in areas to
emphasize some elements. Not all sea creatures need to be painted but be sure to
repeat colors throughout the image to create a sense of unity.
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See me if and when you think your painting is complete.
MATERIALS:
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18”x 24” watercolor paper
Watercolor paints (traditional and liquid)
Assorted brushes
Permanent black marker