A New Dimension for Tom Lynch's Watercolors

In the fall 2004 issue of Watercolor, David Daniels wrote a thoughtful analysis of four watercolor painting surfaces. He compared two treated canvases and two papers mounted to board and concluded that all four painting surfaces expand the size and presentation options available to watercolorists. Once sealed with acrylic medium, the surfaces do not need to be framed under glass or Plexiglas, and Daniels was particularly enthusiastic about the possibility of painting larger images that, like oil paintings, could be hung directly on walls.

In this article, we will explore one such painting surface?Fredrix Watercolor Artist Canvas?in greater depth. Tom Lynch, an internationally known artist, teacher, and author, will explain how the material has provided him with a new dimension in which to exercise his creativity, as well as greater options for displaying and exhibiting his work.

Lynch began using the treated watercolor canvas in the spring of 2004, shortly after it was introduced by its manufacturer, Tara Materials, of Lawrenceville, Georgia. By applying the same procedures he advocates in his workshops, videos, and instructional book to rolls, pads, and boards of Fredrix watercolor canvas, Lynch soon acquired a comfortable facility with the product. "As with any new material, I first wanted to understand its natural characteristics and how those characteristics might accommodate my standard approach to watercolor," Lynch explains. "I read the informative literature provided by the manufacturer, but the experience of actually painting on the canvas was the most helpful to me.

"One of the first things I discovered was that the canvas does not absorb paint in the same way as paper," Lynch continues. "While the fabric is specially treated to be more receptive to watercolor than acrylic-primed canvas, it does not become stained by pigment as paper does, nor does it lock the particle of pigment into the canvas fibers. That means, for example, that strong colors that would permanently stain a sheet of paper can be lightened or removed from the watercolor canvas. However, even though the pigment doesn't stain the canvas, artists can apply one wash over another, and the two will remain distinctly separate, unless the second layer is rubbed vigorously into the first."

Anticipating that some artists might react negatively to the nonabsorbency of the Fredrix product, Lynch urges them to consider the potential of the new material before dismissing it. "Personally, I am thinking more about what I gain from this new product than I am about the techniques that might be harder to employ," he comments. "I don't have to give up paper in order to expand my creative options, any more than I would have to give up a No. 6 brush in order to paint with a No. 8. Different types of surfaces may require slightly different handling. I love having a choice of surfaces, paints, brushes, shapes, sizes, and styles to express my response to what I see and feel.

"One of the biggest advantages to not having the pigment sink into the painting surface is that the colors look as strong and bright when they are dry as they do when they are wet," Lynch continues. "That's something watercolorists usually can't expect to happen. I often tell my students that any color they think looks perfect on the palette will look weak when it dries on the paper. They have to adjust by mixing their colors a little stronger and brighter to compensate for the dulling effect of the pigment being absorbed into the fibers of the paper. That just doesn't happen on watercolor canvas."

The approach Lynch found to be most appropriate for watercolor canvas was one that was direct, deliberate, and bold. "I always try to take advantage of the characteristics of watercolor that really set it apart from any other paint," he explains. "The hallmark of watercolor is transparent color applied with deliberate, calligraphic, fluid strokes, and a consciousness of how the composition of shapes and values is coming together. I love the energy and freshness of watercolor, and the watercolor canvas certainly encourages an artist to strive for that kind of result."

To achieve the look he desires, Lynch prepared strong mixtures of color on his palette and made one deliberate brushstroke, rather than several timid applications. He worked as if he were painting wet-in-wet on a damp sheet of paper, because each application of pigment on the watercolor canvas blended with the colors already resting on the surface. "I learned that if I painted a blue sky, I had to anticipate that when I brushed the sky color over the trees or mountains, the blue shapes would sometimes blend or soften the features of the landscape," Lynch explains.

The artist quickly found that this kind of painting worked better with natural-hair, rather than synthetic brushes. "Synthetic hairs don't absorb enough paint to allow for the kind of bold brush marks needed, and they sometimes skip across the surface of the canvas rather than move smoothly as they release the paint. The canvas just doesn't pull paint off a brush in the same way that paper does."

In selecting appropriate paints for watercolor canvas, Lynch found that staining and nonstaining performed much the same way, with both being easy to wash or rub off the surface of the woven fabric. "I could trigger any color with a spray bottle of water and lift it completely off the canvas," he explains. "I was able to open up a sunlight area, lift off shapes I wanted to change, or redefine important edges. After washing off a color, I could quickly go back and repaint the area with a new color. Lifting off paint and revising the composition has always been a part of my painting process on canvas or paper."

The only exception to this procedure had to do with opaque colors. "Dense, opaque colors are a little different, in that they don't sink into the painting surface as they might in a water-soaked section of paper," Lynch says. "For example, a heavy brushstroke of yellow ochre will sit on the canvas and appear pastelike when it's dry, so it's better to thin it down or lightly spray it with a mist of water before it dries."

Upon completing a painting, Lynch sprays the surface with three separate applications of matte-finish acrylic medium. The medium locks the paint onto the surface of the watercolor canvas so that it won't wash or rub off. That permanency makes it unnecessary to frame the painting under glass or Plexiglas.

"In the end, I have a relatively lightweight painting that can be framed and hung on a wall," Lynch explains. "Being able to present a watercolor without the distracting glare of glass is a benefit of inestimable value. Collectors are distracted by the glare on a sheet of glass, especially when there are dark areas in a watercolor that cause a mirrorlike reflection. Now collectors can see the entire painted image from anywhere in a room, regardless of how large the canvas might be."

The change in Lynch's watercolors is exciting, both to the artist and to those who market and collect his work. Tom Hilligoss, the owner of Hilligoss Galleries, in Long Grove, Illinois, and on Michigan Avenue in Chicago, was so enthusiastic about the possibility of presenting large-scale, unframed watercolors to his clients that he invited Lynch to have a solo exhibition of his new paintings November 5 and 6, 2004. The show included 40 paintings on watercolor canvas, the smallest of which was 24" x 36", while the largest was 30" x 60". "Up until now, I have never been able to sell watercolors to individual collectors," Hilligoss explains. "While Tom is well known in the Chicago area, I've never been able to interest my clients in his watercolors because they are interested in larger paintings that aren't framed under glass. The simple reason is that when a watercolor is painted on a large sheet of paper, the weight that results from the backing and the glass makes it difficult for someone to move the picture around in their home. Moreover, there is always the problem of the distracting glare from the glass. Now people can enjoy Tom's work without having to deal with those problems."

Hilligoss goes on to point out that his clients responded immediately to Lynch's new watercolors on canvas, even before the opening of the solo exhibition. "I was enthusiastic about the paintings as soon as I saw them, and I appreciated that Tom was excited about the new direction, but I needed to gauge my clients' reactions," the dealer explains. "I previewed the show with several important collectors and sold paintings immediately. I knew we were going to see a whole new attitude toward the
medium."

Lynch is also finding that his workshop students are equally enthusiastic about watercolor canvas. "Trying anything new always makes people a little nervous, so I encourage students to practice painting on small pieces of the canvas so that they feel comfortable with the way it handles the paint. I also suggest that they make compositional sketches or color studies before they tackle a large canvas. That way they can work from a pre-established plan and feel more confident about heading in a new direction. This product will produce a turning point in my career. I hope the same for my students."

For more information about Fredrix Watercolor Artist Canvas, write: Fredrix Artist Canvas, P.O. Box 646, Lawrence-ville, GA 30046; or visit the Fredrix website: www.fredrixartistcanvas.com. For more information about Tom Lynch, write: 25111 W. Ramm Drive, Suite 10, Naperville, IL 60564; or visit his website: www.tom
lynch.com.