BREAKING THE RULES AND HAVING FUN

Mixing media can be lots of fun, and there are many techniques and mediums you can try that will work well with watercolors.

As a general rule, you can layer and mix many different media as long as the water-based media are under the oil-based media. For example, oil pastel on top of acrylic or watercolor will work, but acrylic or watercolor on top of oil pastel will not. Adhesion and drying problems can arise in general when painting with a water-based medium on top of an oil-based medium. The water-based medium can’t adhere properly to the paper because the oil-based medium is acting as a barrier or a resist between the paper and the water-based medium. The layer of water-based medium could peel off the oil-based medium. The paint could also crack when dry.

Another property to consider is water solubility. Does the medium you are using need to be water soluble? For example, if you are drawing designs with markers on top of a painting and then you paint over that with watercolor, the markers, if water soluble, may bleed into the rest of the painting when water is added in the next layer. If you don’t want such bleed through, you will want to use water-resistant markers.

A few general rules and guidelines for working in mixed media and watercolor:

• Oil-based mediums should be applied after water-based mediums.
• Some mediums may require fixative, like dry pastels. This is especially true if the pastels will be a final layer.
• Mediums used in your first layers should be water-resistant if you want to paint over them without bleeding or mixing.
• You can apply workable fixative between layers while painting if you want to keep on working without disturbing the previous layers. Use fixative or spray varnish before brushing varnish onto your finished piece to avoid any smudges and to fix pastels and other dry media.
• Always use archival acid-free materials if longevity is a concern.
• Have fun and experiment!

These drawings added with markers and graphite on top of watercolor and acrylic will need to be covered with fixative before paint is added or the piece is varnished.

TALES OF A LUCKY HAT

Watercolor and mixed media on paper

26" × 15" (66cm × 38cm)

A few drips of gouache mixed with watercolor and water has been allowed to run from the background onto the figure as a way to emphasize the painted nature of the portrait.