Written by The first of July marks the first day of the official annual celebration of watercolor! July is World Watercolor Month and I hope everyone who loves watercolor will join me and artists around the globe as we celebrate this fabulous medium. The prompts are totally optional, but I often like to use them. I’m not yet sure if I’ll be using them all month long or not (Artist Ambassador Denise Soden provided fun animals prompts I might try at some point!). All you really need to do to participate is simply add #WorldWatercolorMonth when you post ANY art that features watercolors or gouache and have fun! To be clear, it doesn’t have to be only watercolor as the medium, but it should play a featured role in the art. I love my fountain pens, for example, so they’ll be accompanying me all month long as usual! The first official prompt is “Primary Palette,” so this is a quick little watercolor sketch of my favorite palette along with my crumpled, well-loved tubes of watercolor paint and brush. It’s painted in just the the three primary colors shown here, Cobalt Blue, Quinacridone Red, and Aureolin (Yellow). I’m always one of the last ones to show up to this celebration, given my location and the time that I normally post, so my friends in Australia have already moved on to the next day. Yay! Happy World Watercolor Month to all!
I actually took the day off work today so I could catch up on things and be available as the month kicks off. I prepared a special Sketching Stuff podcast that launches in the morning and kicked off a couple of new awesome international giveaways. Then, well, I got beautifully lost and inspired by all of the watercolors popping up in the World Watercolor Month Gallery. It’s so incredible to see all of the beautiful work that’s appearing! (Facebook doesn’t let me pull in hashtags, so for that network, head over to our Facebook World Watercolor Group!). As many of you know, this particular month and challenge is unique is that it’s a non-profit event to raise awareness for arts education. And, better yet, raise money for underprivileged kids who need art supplies via my charitable partner, The Dreaming Zebra Foundation. A HUGE thanks to everyone who’s purchased something from the World Watercolor Month Shop, as 100% of proceeds goes to Dreaming Zebra. I really wanted this month to be something special and make a real difference in the world, so thank you so much for helping me make that dream come true!
For those of you who show up for the usual daily Charlie rambles, don’t worry, they’ll be back in the next post. It’s quite a thing to launch an international event like this and so many things bear repeating. And, in truth, I’m always just a bit stunned into silence when this month begins. I still remember the very moment back in July of 2015 when I very first picked up a brush to paint with watercolor. And, I vividly remember July of 2016 when we all first celebrated World Watercolor Month. It was truly amazing and it gets more and more amazing each and every year. And, after all, I’m just your host. It’s all of you that make the month so incredible. I’ve managed to paint with watercolor each and every day from the moment I first began, so if anyone is worried whether or not they can make it through the entire month, don’t be concerned. It’s SO much easier than you think! For my part, I just focus on the fun! It’s fun to color things! Yeah, I’m a total kid at heart, but I think that kid has a lot of good ideas. And I’m ready and excited to see what he comes up with as he boldly takes out his paints and begins happily splashing around with the lovely colors in his primary palette.
Want To Sketch Stuff With Me? Check Out My New Activity Book!
About the DoodlewashDa Vinci Paint Co.: Aureolin, Quinacridone Red and Cobalt Blue. Lamy Al-Star Safari Fountain Pen with black ink in an A5 Hahnemühle Watercolour Book. Want to purchase a print of this doodlewash? Send me a note with a link to this post, and I’ll add it to my shop! |
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Great palette Charlie. I have not tried the Da Vinci paints yet but I will. It is exciting to see all the great posts.
Thanks so much, Karen! 😃💕 You should definitely try them! Awesome paints! And glad you’re enjoying the month’s posts! I am as well!
I will join here and there.
Yay! Happy to hear it, Mireya! 😃💕
Yay for WWM! I’ve already been seeing some amazing work!
Yay!! It’s here! 😃💕 Yeah, I’m always so amazed and perfectly humbled to see all of the beautiful watercolors this month!
Happy World Watercolor Month weeeeeeeee!!! Here is to lots of fun and awesome creativity 🙂 great palette 🙂
Thanks, Lisa! 😃💕 And yay to that! It’s going to be an awesome month of lovely watercolor! Yay!
Off to a good start! (K)
Thanks so much, Kerfe! 😃💕I’m always late to the party and rushed on the first day, but SO excited to be here! hehe
I did my first one at two in the morning. I hope that’s not a habit!
Wow
hehe! 😃💕 That’s called commitment! Love it!
Yay to WWM!
YAY!! Happy World Watercolor Month, Sharon! 😃💕
Always fun to splash some watercolor on paper with you, Charlie! 🎨😃 So love what YOU do to create this month and encourage us all to give to the Zebra Foundation so all kids can enjoy art! 😍🌈🦋 Cheers!
Thanks so much, Jill! 😃💕Much love to you my friend! We’ve been friends from like the beginning…. how cool is that?? hehe And I love it! ❤️
I didn’t get to it until midnight, so technically the day was already over by the time I posted. Nice lines here, I wasn’t expecting inked on this for some reason.
Thanks so much! 😃💕 Yeah, I always use ink and World Watercolor Month is just about the medium in use… no rules on HOW to use it as long it’s the featured player! Mixed media is fine! This is just a month of celebration of the medium itself in whatever way people choose to use it! 😉 I love my fountain pen… never leave home without it! hehe
Great 👍
Thanks so much, Krati! 😃💕
Welcome 😊😊
Beautiful palette of colors. Love the arrangement.
Thanks so much, June! 😃💕 Glad you liked this!
I must have a thing for pallettes, because I love this. I have the one I purchased from you last year hanging on my wall and love looking at it all the time. Day one is in the books and on the web! We’ve got this!
Thanks, Lori! 😃💕 And yay! So cool you have a print of mine! I don’t actually sell very many so it will probably be a collector’s item when I die. lol And yes!! We’ve got this!! just 30 days to go!
Love your palette! And hooray for World Watercolor Month!!! Followed your link to the gallery and just sort of got lost in all of the amazing art!! It’s exciting to see so many people sharing their beautiful work. This is going to be a FUN month!
Thanks, Mary! 😃💕I know right? Okay, so I’m not alone… it’s mesmerizing! I always run behind all month long because I’m so distracted by everyone’s art. But it’s SO much fun!
Celebrate!!!
Yay to that, Jodi! Happy World Watercolor Month my friend! 😃💕
Success already, Charlie, you have captured the interest and unity in our world community. Your art is perfect for today. I think it should be manitory for world leaders to be given watercolor sets at meetings, outcomes would be so much better.
That’s such a wonderful thing to say! Thanks, Sharon! 😃💕And yeah… you’re also totally right. I think world leaders would be much better at their job if they took the time to paint the world with watercolor a bit first.
Thank you Charlie, have a very creative day!
Charlie says, “The first of July marks the first day of the official annual celebration of watercolor! July is World Watercolor Month”
I raise my glass to all who DO at Doodlewash. This blog that Charlie built is a haven for artists and consumers alike.
Aww thanks, Sarah! 😃💕I just hope those consumers this month check out the World Watercolor Month Shop! hehe… My whole heart wants this month to be something special that makes a real difference in the world! I can’t imagine being a kid without art supplies… it’s what made all of this happen today!
I’m in! First two days were all about tone: full of whitewash and shades of grey perceived through impenetrable thickets black against the white. Lettuce sea what the third days brings. I’m in. I’m in.
Beautiful! So happy to hear you’re IN, Melissa! 😃💕Happy World Watercolor Month!