THE CORAL REEF - Waterbased Textas (Markers) as Watercolour

This is such an easy artwork to create and have always had success with this simple media technique.

 

 

 

INSTRUCTIONS: (the long version)
1. Students are issued with a RESOURCE IMAGE which is a free to use image I found on the net.

2. Each student then gets given a sheet of A3 watercolour paper and a fine line black Artline pen 0.6 or 0.8 nib. No lead pencils and no erasers.
3. Discussion is had about taking only a section of the Resource Image or even mixing up parts of it to create a complete new image. Reference is made to the sample artwork where one particular section was used, with the background including two fish from elsewhere.
4. Students are to create a drawing on the watercolour paper using the CONTINUOUS LINE DRAWING method. They are encouraged to draw BIG as this makes the technique easier to achieve. It does not matter if the objects become distorted. In fact, I think the element of distortion adds to the overall effect.

 

 



5. With a clear wax, draw lines within parts of the drawing. Press hard with the wax. I use clear wax household candles as they are cheap and their thickness makes it easy for little hands to hold and work with.
6. Encourage students to add some BUBBLES using a circular motion in one spot. Bubbles look good in this artwork.
7. Students need to look at their drawing and decide on which colours they will use - cool colours, warm colours, combinations, etc.
8.  With water-based textas (markers), colour the ENTIRE DRAWING. Colouring does not have to be super neat but scribbling should be avoided. Tiny white spaces are OK but not too many.
9. Water is added to the coloured texta in small amounts with a paintbrush. The paintbrush used should have soft bristles but not too soft as a degree of rubbing the texta colour is required. Do not add too much water as it will cause excess amounts of colour bleeding. The black lines from the Artline will bleed a little.
10. Every time the student changes a colour, they MUST WASH their brush. If they don't, the colours lose their brightness and become muddy or dirty looking. Students should be told the take their time when applying the water as how it is done has a huge impact on the end appearance of the artwork.

I think I may have used too much wax....

 



11. When the artwork is dry (using a hair dyer really speeds things up), use black markers of different sizes to re-establish the original continuous line drawing. Students should be encouraged NOT to make corrections to their drawing as they will probably be tempted to fix "mistakes".
12. With watercolour pencils or coloured pencils, add some tonal shading into parts of the drawing. This will help to create some depth and add a little bit of realism.
13. OPTIONAL: With glitter gel pens, add some extra lines into the sea anemones and fish. You could also use Posca pens but they don't work very well on watercolour paper or coloured markers like Sharpies.

These two artworks by Yellena James were the original inspiration. My artwork doesn't show much resemblance to these artworks, but....