Opacity vs Transparency: Watercolor Techniques (Episode 7)

If you’ve visited our “American Watercolors” exhibition, you likely noticed a dizzying variety of strokes and washes in the works on display. In this ongoing series, conservator Penley Knipe and curator Miriam Stewart demonstrate easy-to-master techniques seen in the exhibition that you can try at home!
At first glance, Fidelia Bridges’ “Daisies in a Meadow” might look like an oil painting, thanks to her precise, opaque brushstrokes. Meanwhile, “The Grand Canal, Venice” demonstrates John Singer Sargent’s use of transparent watercolor. Every layer is visible, from warm-toned buildings to flat blue washes of the water and sky.
See both watercolors in “American Watercolors, 1880-1990: Into the Light” through August 13!
TAKE A CLOSER LOOK:
+ Discover more about exhibition-“American Watercolors, 1880-1990: Into the Light": harvardartmuseums.org/exhibit...
+ Explore the accompanying exhibition catalog: • American Watercolors-P...
+ Watch more about American Watercolors: • American Watercolors, ...
#AmericanWatercolors #FideliaBridges #JohnSingerSargent #Watercolors #harvardartmuseums
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Support for this exhibition is provided by the Alexander S., Robert L., and Bruce A. Beal Exhibition Fund, the William Amory Fund, the Rabb Family Exhibitions Fund, and an anonymous donor. Related programming is supported by the M. Victor Leventritt Lecture Series Endowment Fund. The accompanying catalogue was made possible by the Andrew W. Mellon Publication Funds and the Wyeth Foundation for American Art.
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Image: Fidelia Bridges, “Daisies in a Meadow,” 1870-79. Transparent and opaque watercolor on gray-green wove paper. Fogg Museum, Gift of Theodore E. Stebbins, Jr., 2004.59. hvrd.art/o/49064
John Singer Sargent, The Grand Canal, Venice, c. 1902 Transparent and opaque watercolor and graphite on white wove paper. Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Bequest of Grenville L. Winthrop, 1943.313. hvrd.art/o/307927
Music: "Game Hens" from album "Confectionery." © Blue Dot Sessions. Video: © President and Fellows of Harvard College. Videography: Tara Metal. For questions related to permission for commercial use of this video, please contact the Department of Digital Imaging and Visual Resources at [e-mail].