Introduction 6
Where to get help 8
Equipment 10
Techniques and composition 32
Colour mixing and water control 46
Achieving realism...
... in nature 62
... in buildings and structures 100
Endgame 122
Index 128
Charles Evans is one of the UK's leading painters, well-known from
his long-running TV series and for his art classes, which are held
all over the UK. Charles has made over two hundred television
programmes on art for the Tyne Tees television company and later
for the Discovery Channel.
Charles has written several books for Search Press, and now also
represents Daler-Rowney as their main demonstrator. His exuberant
personality is reflected in his paintings, which have a lightness
and simplicity to which many artists aspire.
Charles lives in Morpeth, Northumberland, UK.
Experienced watercolourist, Charles Evans brings us a first-aid kit
with his new book, Charles Evans' Watercolour Rescue. Building on
his wealth of experience, and answering frequently asked questions
from his students, Charles offers tips and techniques on how to fix
common watercolour problems and offers how to avoid them in the
first place. Whether it's correcting muddy watercolour, removing
'cauliflowers' or preventing colours from bleeding into one
another, Charles has the answer and a short demonstration to show
how to prevent the problem occurring in future.
*Leisure Painter*
The history of art publishing is littered with hints and tips
books, Q&A guides and troubleshooters. This is not dissimilar
to all those approaches, but comes with a reassuring title and the
provenance of a popular and established tutor. Charles’ reputation
rightly precedes him. The first thing to say is that this is much
more than just a lazy rehash of what has been done before, which my
earlier description might have suggested. The implication in the
title that things can and do go wrong is an honest one and we’re
starting from a point which doesn’t pretend the opposite. What
really marks the book out as different, though, is that the
“mistakes” aren’t just cartoon versions painted deliberately badly
to make a point. In fact, just glancing through, you might wonder
what exactly the problem is. This is because not everything is
wrong at once. That inharmonious landscape looks relatively
acceptable until Charles points out that the blue used for the
water is too deep. The revised version, using slightly less pigment
is better, but not the game changer you’ll usually find in this
kind of book. There are 75 suggestions in this pocket-sized book,
which has a nicely soft cover that makes reading without breaking
the spine easy. None occupies more than 4 pages, and frequently
less. It’s succinct – identify, analyse, get out. Where the
sections are longer, a little more work is required and there may
be half a dozen or so stages. For the most part, it’s a simple fix,
largely because the error (if we can call it that) is relatively
minor. You could, I suppose, pack this with your painting kit and
take it on location with you. Whether you really pull out a
portable library on your travels, I doubt. I think the best
approach would be to keep it by your chair or bed and dip into it.
You’ll have plenty of “oh, that’s where I’m going wrong” moments
and simply not make that mistake again. You might even get some
ideas for new approaches as well. It’s fun, and there’s nothing
wrong with that.
*Artbookreview.net*
With all books on troubleshooting, the elephant in the room is the
'wrong' image. Too often, it's a caricature that no-one, even a
complete beginner picking up a brush for the first time, would
produce. In this compact guide, Charles has hit the sweet spot so
perfectly that it's sometimes hard to figure out what's actually
wrong and you need to look, rather, for what's not quite right.
Does that sound familiar? Welcome to the real world. Charles is an
experienced author and demonstrator and knows how to talk up,
rather than down, to both aspiring and experienced artists. Here,
he analyses many common problem areas, such as unconvincing trees,
working from photographs, getting water to look like water and
simply creating form and depth. This is a book that's entirely
relatable and works with real-world areas of difficulty rather than
problems manufactured for a convenient appearance on the page.
*The Artist, February 2023*
Each one of Charles’s tips and tricks are so useful to know and
help us through painting with watercolour. Having been a fan of
Charles for many years, it is great to have his problem solving and
help in a book. This is such a great book that I will be returning
to again and again to find a solution to a watercolour problem and
look for tips and tricks for watercolour painting. It is so clearly
laid out and explained in such a good, clear way that the advice
can be applied easily. Colour mixing, composition, reflections,
painting clouds, shapes are but a few of the subjects of his 70
tips and tricks. Simplifying a painting is one of Charles’s
recommendations that really resonates with me as I can often over
paint a subject! I will be reading his book again and again, and
will definitely be recommending it to my arty friends. Thanks for
this, what a gem!
*Customer Review*
I love this book, great quality, it has a strong wipe clean cover
for any of those little mishaps. The book is easy to follow, it
addresses the problem and gives a good explanation of how it can be
fixed as well as alternative options too. Ideal book if you are
struggling with a certain area or just want to give your picture
that extra lift. Highly recommended.
*Customer Review*
This is an extremely useful book. I took up watercolour painting
when covid first kicked off and found it to be a rewarding and, at
times, frustrating hobby. I wish I'd had this book from the start
to help me through some of the problems. It is written in a
straightforward, no-nonsense way with plenty of step-by-step
illustrations. If you are about to try watercolour painting for the
first time the information on which, and how many, brushes and
paints to buy will most probably save you more than the cost of the
book. Charles Evans also has some instructional videos to paint
along with on YouTube which are very good and full of sound advice.
I can't recommend this book highly enough.
*Customer Review*
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