History of the Watercolor Industry
The birth of the modern watercolor industry has it's roots in the 17th
century, when the first manufacturers set up shop in major european cities. They not
only provided the basic pigments, resins and oils but found a market for ready made
color pastes and other artist equipment. A famous example is an "herbal extract" shop
in Paris that prepared the colors for Jean Baptiste Chardin when the artist's
failing eyesight prohibited him from making his own.
The artist's "colourmen," produced paints, mediums and related materials
of consistent quality and reasonable price. Freed of this responsibility, art makers had
a new found freedom that helped unleash the creativity that drove the beginnings of
the era of modern art.
The chemical and dye makers during the Industrial Revolution in Britain
made great strides in producing brighter and more permanent colors for the textile
trades. These discoveries readily carried over to the fine arts. By the late 18th and early
19th century, newly developed intense colors inspired the Pre-Raphaelites, while the
new tube paints allowed the impressionists to work readily in plein air to capture
natural light and color.
This new availability of artist's materials gave even those with a casual interest
in art the means and tools to explore their creative talents. Art had the means to come
to the masses, giving birth to many "sunday painters" and amateur "dabblers."
Artists searching their creative roots today will find the old formulas
and techniques in an effort to revive the "craft" of being an artist. But for ease of use
and consistent quality, the rest of us can gladly leave the craft to the professionals,
some with centuries of experience, so we can concentrate on the creation of art.
History of Watercolor 101
...Coming Soon!
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