Mastering Atmosphere & Mood in Watercolor: The Critical Ingredients That Turn Paintings Into Art [Hardcover]

Joseph Zbukvic (Author), Robert A. Wade (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 2002

As Joseph Zbukvic explains, in order to set the mood in a composition, artists need to set their clocks--their watercolor clocks, that is. The watercolor clock is a simple, but ingenious teaching device Zbukvic created to show artists how to manipulate watercolor materials for dazzling, atmospheric effects.

The "clock" accompanies every visual example in this book, helping artists anticipate how the condition of the paper (wet, dry, moderate, etc.) will react to various watercolor mixes. Based on this teaching principle, Zbukvic guides artists through step-by-step demonstrations that clearly illustrate how to: identify a subject; plan a painting; control color and value; manipulate edges; add the right finishing touches.

With this book, artists can achieve a greater level of mastery with watercolor and deeper, richer paintings.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Joseph Zbukvic began painting professionally in 1979 and is regarded as one of Australia's best watercolor artists. His work is represented in many private and public collections and has been exhibited in leading galleries across Australia as well as in London, England. His work appears regularly in International Artist magazine. He lives in Melbourne, Australia.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 128 pages
• Publisher: International Artist Publishing; illustrated edition edition (July 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1929834179
• ISBN-13: 978-1929834174
• Product Dimensions: 11.6 x 8.7 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.9 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,269,101 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

39 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars buy this book, December 29, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Mastering Atmosphere & Mood in Watercolor: The Critical Ingredients That Turn Paintings Into Art (Hardcover)

The approach that Mr. Joseph Zbukvic uses in his book is fascinating. For me, he takes the mystery out of painting watercolor and breaks it down into a more understandable approach. What I like about it is that he explains the different consistencies that paint should be when applied to the paper. His consistency of paint is described as: tea, coffee, milk, cream and butter. The dampness of paper is described as: dry, damp, moist, and wet. He ties these ideas together by using a concept of a clock. The concept of a clock is used to explain when and how paper and paint should be used together. An example of one of his demonstrations: laying in the first background wash to paper, the paper is dry and the paint is in the consistency of tea. His demonstrations in the book are clear and easy to understand especially with this "clock" method. He also writes very well and it is an enjoyable read. I love the way he paints and the price of the book alone is worth just looking at his paintings.

37 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Stunning effects by manipulating the amount of moisture, November 21, 2002

By 

Joanna Daneman (Middletown, DE USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Mastering Atmosphere & Mood in Watercolor: The Critical Ingredients That Turn Paintings Into Art (Hardcover)

The example paintings in Joseph Zbukvic's "Mastering Atmosphere and Mood" are stunning. By manipulating the amount of moisture ON the paper and IN the wash of paint, Zbuvic creates strong contrast between ethereal washes and densely painting architectural or landscape elements.

Zbuvic uses a device he calls a clock, which consists of a circle divided into wedges; the left side gauging the amount of water on the paper (from shiny wet to bone dry) and the right side gauging the amount of water mixed into the paint, from weak "tea" to "butter" or thick paint. This is rather original, but it does communicate an awareness of the moisture levels in both paint and paper to the artist. One example painting that really stands out is a rainy scene of downtown Melbourne, Australia. The street is lightly washed to allow the paper beneath to create the white shine of a wet street; the buildings and headlight reflections are painted more densely to provide either solidity (the building) or glow (the headlights.)

Most books on watercolor demonstrate a layered method of washes followed by glazes (paint over paint.) The end result can often be muddy for beginners in watercolor. This method is quite different in how it describes laying down washes and glazes, and can help the watercolorist achieve transparent atmosphere effects by paying attention to the water. If you've run into a brick wall with your current method of painting, this might be a great book to give a boost to your technique.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Art of this calibre can't be taught, July 21, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Mastering Atmosphere & Mood in Watercolor: The Critical Ingredients That Turn Paintings Into Art (Hardcover)

Great paintings. I feel the paintings in this book are almost too great, and too difficult to emulte. That being said there are a few step by step demos that unveil the mystery a bit. The book is great because of the calibre of the art. However, the teaching idea of the book is a watercolor clock that is pure gimmick and conveys nothing. The revolutionary "clock" is merely a list of possible paper wetnesses and paint consistencies with no aid to tell you when to use what. The hands of the clock serve no purpose and take them away and the fancy looking tool is nothing more than a list arranged as clock. In other words it loos like it is telling you something useful but it actually isn't. Utterly useless. 5 stars because of the quality of painting. 1 star for instruction.