--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I like to work in watercolor, with as…" description: "\"“I like to work in watercolor, with as little under-drawing as I can get away with. I like the unpredictability of a medium which is affected as much b..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/alan-lee-29219_artist_i-like-to-work-in-watercolor-with-as-lit_1949457.png" --- # I like to work in watercolor, with as little under-drawing… ![“I like to work in watercolor, with as little under-drawing as I can get away with. I like the unpredictability of a medium which is affected as much by humidity, gravity, the way that heavier particles in the wash settle into the undulations of the paper surface, as by whatever I wish to do with…” quote by Alan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/alan-lee-29219_artist_i-like-to-work-in-watercolor-with-as-lit_1949457.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/alan-lee-29219_artist_i-like-to-work-in-watercolor-with-as-lit_1949457.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/alan-lee-29219_artist_i-like-to-work-in-watercolor-with-as-lit_1949457.png) > ““I like to work in watercolor, with as little under-drawing as I can get away with. I like the unpredictability of a medium which is affected as much by humidity, gravity, the way that heavier particles in the wash settle into the undulations of the paper surface, as by whatever I wish to do with it. In other mediums you have more control, you are responsible for every mark on the page — but with watercolor you are in a dialogue with the paint, it responds to you and you respond to it in turn. Printmaking is also like this, it has an unpredictable element. This encourages an intuitive response, a spontaneity which allows magic to happen on the page. When I begin an illustration, I usually work up from small sketches — which indicate in a simple way something of the atmosphere or dynamics of an illustration; then I do drawings on a larger scale supported by studies from models — usually friends — if figures play a large part in the picture. When I've reached a stage where the drawing looks good enough I'll transfer it to watercolor paper, but I like to leave as much unresolved as possible before starting to put on washes. This allows for an interaction with the medium itself, a dialogue between me and the paint. Otherwise it is too much like painting by number, or a one-sided conversation.”” [Alan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-lee/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Watercolor demands a partnership with the medium, embracing unpredictability to foster spontaneity and magic. **In simple terms:** Watercolor is a dialogue, not control. Key Takeaway Embrace the medium’s response. Themes art process spontaneity Mood reflective creative Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - illustration creation - fine art practice - teaching art techniques Key Concepts dialogue materiality intuition Questions to Reflect On - What does the medium teach you about letting go? - How do you balance planning with improvisation? A Different Perspective Reliance on chance can frustrate artists seeking precision. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [Good enough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-enough/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) [Watercolor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/watercolor/) ## Related quotes > [“The watercolor people hadn’t moved, hadn’t seen us, were still busy being dead and artistic. 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Better get it right the first time--you don't get a second chance!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergei-bongart/watercolor-is-like-life-better-get-it-right-the-first-time-you-don-t/) [Sergei Bongart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergei-bongart/) > [Perhaps the reason memories of youth are always in watercolor, is because it ends before it can be put in more vivid colors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/perhaps-the-reason-memories-of-youth-are-always-in-watercolor-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A photograph to me is always a reminder of how the person was on a certain day in that certain light fixed. 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As if she were about to dissolve in sound, in tones not yet created.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-h-eg/she-was-transparent-like-a-watercolor-as-if-she-were-about-to/) [Peter Høeg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-h-eg/) > [More often than not, punches underwhelm - too fizzy, too fruity, too sherbet-y, and/or too baroque, the flavors all muddled into the boozy equivalent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-miles/more-often-than-not-punches-underwhelm-too-fizzy-too-fruity-too/) [Jonathan Miles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-miles/) ## More by Alan Lee > [“I’ve had so many influences and sources of inspiration as an illustrator that it is impossible to name just one. I loved Aubrey Beardsley…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-lee/i-ve-had-so-many-influences-and-sources-of-inspiration-as-an/) [Alan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-lee/) > [I spend as much time as I can sketching from nature, Dartmoor contains such a rich variety of landscape, as many boulders, foaming rivers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-lee/i-spend-as-much-time-as-i-can-sketching-from-nature-dartmoor-contains/) [Alan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-lee/) > [“I have a very clear memory of my first encounter with myth, sitting in a mobile library and travelling, at the same time, with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-lee/i-have-a-very-clear-memory-of-my-first-encounter-with-myth-sitting-in/) [Alan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-lee/) > [“When I started to draw, most of my influences were from other painters and illustrators, so I was drawing landscape at second hand, really.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-lee/when-i-started-to-draw-most-of-my-influences-were-from-other-painters/) [Alan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-lee/) > [“I've been strongly influenced, in technique as well as subject matter, by some of the early 20th-century book illustrators — Arthur Rackham and Edmund…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-lee/i-ve-been-strongly-influenced-in-technique-as-well-as-subject-matter/) [Alan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-lee/) > [“A lot of excellent illustrators are working at the moment--especially in fantasy and children's books. 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Not only does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-prophet-who-fails-to-present-a-bearable-alternative-and-yet/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) Taf Teh > [From as long as I can remember, I was always fond of drawing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-lucia/from-as-long-as-i-can-remember-i-was-always-fond-of-drawing/) [St. Lucia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-lucia/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. 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I can't fix a car, sew, knit, cook, etc. Statistically, there is more I don't do than do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-brownstein/i-am-a-horrible-visual-artist-i-can-t-fix-a-car-sew-knit-cook-etc/) [Carrie Brownstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-brownstein/) [Browse all 32,600 Artist quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I like to work in watercolor, with as little under-drawing as I can get away with. I like the unpredictability of a medium which is affected as much by humidity, gravity, the way that heavier particles in the wash settle into the undulations of the paper surface, as by whatever I wish to do with it. In other mediums you have more control, you are responsible for every mark on the page — but with watercolor you are in a dialogue with the paint, it responds to you and you respond to it in turn. 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