Written by My name is Joachim Tusch. I am from Germany and I am a watercolor painter. I am 70 years old. I was born in Düsseldorf and lived there for 50 years. Today, I live in the country in the Münsterland.
I have also learned the profession of graphic artist and printmaker and have been drawing since early childhood. About 1970, I started painting oil paintings. For that birthday I received a watercolor box. Since that time, it’s now been about 45 years, watercolor painting has not let go. It was a difficult time to get into watercolor painting as a self-taught artist. It’s not an easy thing.
Many recurrences and even longer breaks from painting have led to frustration. But, when I was on vacation in the Alps or on the North Sea, I would always be able take my watercolors with me. Since I’ve retired, I have intensified my focus on watercolor painting, and the extensive employment of this medium have led to the results that are visible today.
Watercolor painting is not a beginner’s discipline, or a lightweight bit of blotches with leaves and flowers. Watercolor is not a beginning, but a coronation.
“You have to think a lot because you cannot correct anything in the picture… you have to let it happen.”
A good watercolor is supposed to be light and airy, without any effect. The light plays the leading role; motif structure and depth, and the quality of the paper also plays a role.
Painting with watercolors requires courage and determination. Anxiety in dealing with the material (because it is expensive) only inhibits the flow of work and the creativity. Before you begin you should practice drawing. Perspective is very important. The painting of watercolors also requires criticism, including self-criticism.
My painting process is somewhat spontaneous. With me, the picture is on the paper. Mostly I paint from photos, and paint what I like. This can be cities, but also landscapes portraits or still life. I am not a plein air painter. Everything is in the studio.
I paint on individual sheets of paper. I pull the paper with egg white, and add some water on a lime wood plate. You can paint immediately without the paper curling. After drying, it can be easily removed with a spatula. I sketch the motif with pencil on the paper. Exactly how I draw, depends on the motif.
Papers I use are Fabriano, Arches, Hahnemühle and Saunders Waterford mostly in 300 g m2. Which paper I use depends on the subject. For colors, I use tube colors of Schmincke Horadam as well as Winsor & Newton. In addition to colors and paper, a good quality of the brush is important. So I use the French “Petit Gris.” They are soft and absorb a lot of liquid.
For more than 40 years, I’ve been working with watercolor, practicing through my self-taught studies, and have also learned a lot from other artists just by looking at their work.
I am of the opinion that the perfect watercolor is not out there, but there are many excellent watercolor artists who are very close to perfection. To paint watercolors you also need a lot of patience. My pictures have been shown in different exhibitions in Germany (to see more of my artwork, please see the links below).
I paint daily now, and take great pleasure in it.
Beautiful work! I esp. love the harbor scene. Very inspirational, thanks Charilie for finding wonderful artists.
Sehr schöne Arbeit, Joachim! I love the reflections in your first painting, at the top of the post, and especially the water-soaked ambience of the street scene (New York?). Thank you for sharing your art with us — you are an inspiration!
Incredible work – so happy to see you here. Beautiful.
Beautiful work, I too like the harbour scenes. Thank you for sharing Joachim’s works and story Charlie.
Very impressive! 🎨
Joachim, da bist Du ja. 🙂 Ich freue mich sehr, Deinen Artikel hier zu lesen. Sehr interessant und ich habe wieder etwas gelernt, dass ich gerne ausprobieren werde: die Eiweiß-Methode. Eine wunderbare Bildauswahl!
i love this !!
Joachim, your artwork is gorgeous, so detailed and sumptuous. You are an inspiration as you continue to practice and learn, tackling many subjects with rigor.
Thanks, Charlie, for portraying Joachim! Wonderful pictures, I especially like the one with the snow. It´s beautiful!!!
Hello Joachim! You are very talented! Your paintings are so bright and vivid and colorful. I like the advice you give, especially about drawing, that’s one of my drawbacks, I’m constantly struggling to get the perspective right, but I have gotten better with practice. Germany is beautiful. My mother was from Germany and I’ve been there only twice, and loved it each time – especially the good German bread. Thank you Joachim for sharing your beautiful artwork.
Your work is fabulous!