More Messing and Mixing with Watercolor Markers

 

2/24/22 Faber-Castell Durer watercolor markers and Caran d'Ache Museum Aquarelle pencils in Stillman & Birn Beta sketchbook

Here’s another experiment with Faber-Castell Albrecht Dürer watercolor markers combined with Caran d’Ache Museum Aquarelle pencils. I picked out a triad including a garish Middle Purple Pink (125) and Cadmium Yellow (107) knocked back by a subdued Indanthrene Blue (247).

For the sky, I tried a wet-in-wet technique that I often use with watercolor pencils: After generously wetting the paper, I “licked” ink from the marker tip with a waterbrush and swiped the color onto the wet paper. For the three little trees behind the pink house, I wet the paper with a brush, then quickly tapped the blue and yellow markers directly into the wet; they blended nicely just like watercolors. (Those three trees are probably the only bit about this sketch that I like.) But I have to ask: If a wet-in-wet approach is desired, why not use conventional watercolor paints? I can’t see any advantage to using these markers.

The foreground foliage started similarly to the three background trees – markers applied directly to the wet page. I didn’t like the result at all (see below), so after the paper dried completely, I went over it with a couple of watercolor pencils to regain the texture and activated them lightly. I like this result better (top of post), but not better than watercolor pencils alone.

The foreground foliage (Durer markers only) before applying colored pencil.

I’m not really feeling it with these markers; to keep using them, I have to find a way in which the markers uniquely enhance watercolor pencils. However, as far as markers go, I will say one positive thing about these Dürer markers compared to their waterproof sisters, Faber-Castell Pitt Big Brush Artist Pens (which are no longer available but have been reincarnated as a two-headed creature): If you work quickly, the juicy Dürer watercolor markers remain wet long enough that the typical marker-y streak marks mostly disappear. This is almost impossible to do with Pitt ink, which must dry faster. The blue swatch below is a watercolor marker that I swiped repeatedly and quickly. Below it is a swatch of a Pitt Big Brush pen, which leaves behind more telltale streaks.

The Durer watercolor marker streaks disappear better than Pitt Artist Pens.

It’s easiest to swipe quickly in small areas, of course. In the details from two sketches below, I swiped solid areas of color on the rooftops and was pleased that no marker-y marks were visible.

The solid rooftop areas here and below show no marker streaks.

I didn’t need to rewet the color to blend out the marks as I had to do in the first sketch I did with these markers a few weeks ago (detail below). I think I was swiping more slowly that time, so the ink had dried more.

I didn't work fast enough in this sketch, so more of the marker streaks are visible.

The upshot is that if I wanted to make areas of flat, solid color, I would choose the Dürers over the Pitts. I used to use a dark gray Pitt marker routinely as a grisaille and for large areas of shadow because it was faster than applying the same amount of gray with a colored pencil. However, in that case, it was important for the grisaille marker to be waterproof so that the gray wouldn’t muddy the colored pencil color when I activated the latter. Once again, I’m not seeing an advantage to using a watercolor marker for this application, either.

Hmmm. Why am I using these Dürers again? At least I’m having fun experimenting and mixing them up with watercolor pencils, but maybe these markers need to be mixed with something else. Stay tuned.

Not feeling it yet with these markers but having fun!