Look at this Winslow Homer boat on a stormy sea. Observe closely, this is watercolor…

… and then imagine it in oils. There’s no comparison. 

If you want to calm yourself and create something of beauty or even release bittersweet pain, watercolor might just be your medium.

 If you want to lash out and fling medium, you’ll get much stronger results (and more physical satisfaction) with almost anything other than watercolor. Grab a big blobby brushful of oil paint or acrylics. Slash away with charcoal or pastels. Grab a chisel and hammer and attack that block of maple or marble.

But if your aim is to touch the softest part of the hand of God, take a deep breath and give watercolor a try. Water is inherently gentle. So are many of us artists.  You may be too.

This is not to say that painting with watercolor is always a pastoral experience, far from it. I’m just saying for me it has felt quieter, more reflective, more nuanced than any other medium I have tried. With all the frustration and puzzlement, it still leaves me feeling more grounded, satisfied, and grateful at the end of a session than I was when I sat down to begin.

The watercolor experience is simply…fluid. Naturally.

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 As always, thanks for spending some time “aloft.” Happy sketching!