Pen Over Watercolor | A Strategy for Sketching for Complex Subjects

Artist James Gurney combines watercolor and pen for a super-detailed sketch of a friend’s woodpile. He draws the lines last with a fountain pen.
WATERCOLOR AND GOUACHE PAINTS
Cadmium yellow light: amzn.to/2CuUtig
Titanium white: amzn.to/2XSOld4
Burnt sienna: amzn.to/2TEoC4D
Ultramarine blue: amzn.to/2Sm4FyB
Naphthol red: amzn.to/3AsnOCA
Liquitex Acrylic White: tinyurl.com/3s...
Fountain Pen: Waterman Phileas: tinyurl.com/29...
Platinum brown fountain pen ink: tinyurl.com/4b...
Pentalic watercolor sketchbook: amzn.to/2L989y2
Richeson travel brush set: amzn.to/2xwq1Rr
1⁄2 inch watercolor synthetic: amzn.to/3CqTZT9
Water cup: amzn.to/2soTw2... easel: sellfy.com/p/L... Brush Set amzn.to/34rnDH9
VIDEO TUTORIALS:
Gouache in the Wild (Download on Gumroad): gumroad.com/l/...
Casein Painting in the Wild (Download on Gumroad): gumroad.com/l/...
Watercolor in the Wild gumroad.com/l/...
Animal Painting: gumroad.com/l/...
Flower Painting in the Wild: gumroad.com/l/...
Portraits in the Wild gurneyjourney....
BLOG POSTS WITH MORE GEAR INFO:
Gouache Materials List: gurneyjourney.b...
Watercolor Materials: gurneyjourney.b...
BOOKS BY JAMES GURNEY:
Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time: amzn.to/3qPzMRt
Dinotopia: The World Beneath: amzn.to/3oiuIUo
Dinotopia: First Flight: amzn.to/3sR6KmE
Dinotopia: Journey to Chandara: amzn.to/2KFGeLy
Color and Light: amzn.to/3od6R8v
Imaginative Realism: amzn.to/3sTeap8
Gurney's official website: jamesgurney.com...
OTHER OFFICIAL SITES
Instagram: / jamesgurneyart
Pinterest: / gurneyjourney
GurneyJourney Blog: gurneyjourney.b...
JamesGurney Website: jamesgurney.com...
Facebook group "Sketch Easel Builders": www.facebook.c...

[@cherilynne1946]

Anytime I want to shut off the chaotic world and invite creativity and its cathartic processes to take over, James Gurney’s videos have become my go-to place to breathe.

[@katarinamor]

I find every video on this channel truly inspiring. I always find myself paralized by all those other channels that use titles like "The list of things you must do as an artist" and "The list of DON'Ts for an artist". While here everything is more like "Hey, look, that's what you can do", and it really speaks to the curious child I once was. Thank you, sir!

[@satexas]

This is Bob Ross's brother

[@valeriekellum6552]

I like your philosophy about watercolor and gouache being “watercolor” until you add white, then it becomes gouache, and your combining of the two so freely.

[@ChristinaTodd1970]

Mr. Gurney, you're a legend and we all are so blessed that you spend time with us and always offer sound advise. Thank you from one artist to another.

[@KitKatWiffleBallBat]

This is why I love KZbin, right here. Just wanna learn a little by watching a fantastic artist paint using whatever they so choose. James always delivers some cozy, enjoyable content. I grab a cup of coffee and usually warm up while I watch these. Thanks, James! 😁🤜💥🤛🙏

[@a.b9893]

Hi James. I've been doing digital art for two years. Yesterday, I graduated from university and bought my first gouache set. Your channel has been a huge inspiration to me for a long time, and I want to thank you for that.

[@MelitaBintoro]

makes it look dreamy, what a great way to incorporate both looseness and detail. and that you can take your time deciding on the focus after the paints do their thing

[@anthonybarsness1462]

You’re as creative with your content as you are with your art work. Always enjoy your videos

[@Shebacca6000]

Life goals for me ngl

[@Netbug]

7:07 If I had skipped his ad I'd have missed out on another one of his signature practical effects.

[@LoveBystroem]

it is always a joy when you get that notification of a new video from James, delivering intrigue and passion straight into my eyeballs.

[@kllokoq]

your paintings look wonderful also when you are zoomed in. This is what truly fascinates me!

[@m.rutherford9997]

I love, love the idea of using white acrylic paint to add as a texture, mixed along with the illusion of texture that a watercolor brush makes and the ink pen makes.

[@alex_montoya]

Your videos are fantastic, James. I own two of your books and they have proven invaluable as a deep-layered source to which I return again and again. Thanks a lot for everything!

[@Rollyourown1]

James for 3 years now you are by far my favorite painter / artist here on KZbin and you manage in your friendly way and your talent to inspire me again and again!

[@sanzoy]

This approach is brilliant. It still requires thoughts and skills to lay down the colors. But the process is much more manageable than laying down the lines first. I re-watched the key steps multiple times already.

[@deborahgoodwin3426]

Oh my goodness, there is nothing that makes me happier than seeing a new video posted by James Gurney! And this one is nothing short of fantabulous!! With great pleasure, I have already watched this wonderful rendition of the proverbial wood pile, so very well known to those of us who reside in New England. Warm hugs and mugs of hot chocolate.....I am going back to watch it again. Bless you Mr. Gurney, you have no idea how very much I have learned from you. 👩‍🦳🖌️

[@chrisbockman6771]

so absolutely cool!! We love you at LightBox Expo James!!

[@JeffLafferty]

Awesome piece. I lost track of your channel for a while, glad to see your still making videos!

[@DeadGuye1995]

If u dont pump out new ones per day, KZbin hides ur ass, rip lol

[@StarlordStavanger]

man don't take this the wrong way, i know ur older than me, but i hope ur around for a long long time so we can enjoy your amazing videos for many many years to come! to good health and gouache!

[@MichaelRpdx]

Great to see you back again.

[@user-sb3wh3dd4v]

Totally missed the meditating Buddha statue on the left, positioned at the golden section. Only AFTER watching the whole video and pausing, did that jump out. As always James, AMAZING work. THANK YOU for all your wonderful insights!

[@PleaseNThankYou]

I think I go into some sort of trace when I watch you paint and hear your voice.

[@Albinojackrussel]

That final image is so soothing to look at

[@ladyethyme]

Learn from the ultimate master!!! Thank you!!❤❤

[@boya2monkae]

I love this process video. Every time I see an artist use ink and watercolour it is often ink first then watercolour. So this was really eye opening to see the reverse and how it doesn't limit the artist.

[@randominternetuser2]

James rocking the Land's End jacket, style! i love to see it!

[@grahamnightingale9513]

Thank you James ever helpful and its always appreciated too!

[@jazw4649]

I thought you had on a Canadian Mountie outfit in the thumbnail! 😆 5:10 impasto areas with white acrylic paint! 💡 Great idea

[@t0raneko]

Finally, he's back!

[@ZzDe0]

mr. gurney this is truly exquisite!

[@vicnn1571]

I loooooove how creative and experimental and educational and and clever your videos are!

[@HalfWarrior]

When you mentioned filmmaking, James; my mind jumped to a video done by Aaron Blaise where he mentioned that you did the background painting in some older Disney animated films ,which I thought was really cool and wonderful because I didn’t know that. Thank you sir for your work and instruction; much appreciated!

[@dmcdaniel2009]

AS ALWAYS, SUPERB !!

[@PopTartNeko]

Awesome stuff. Bought a book of yours called Color and Light like 10 years ago. Been a fan since.!

[@fuzzydragons]

great job on the wood detail, and captured the colours of th3e scene perfectly 😀

[@misty-step]

I like your advice about choosing what you want to focus in on, and then spend your time putting detail in that area then let the rest go with paint strokes. I will try to employ this technique/philosophy :) Thank you for sharing!

[@LarsRichterMedia]

I have to try this!

[@CathyJohnson]

What fun and how inspiring, James, as always! Quick question...your pen has a flex nib, but the Waterman pen in the ad doesn't. Where would I find Waterman with a nib like that, please? Or is it what I call a Frankenpen, that you've added a different nib to?

[@faithmorante]

What an amazing composition! I usually dont like ink and paint, but this one is so well done

[@graciousmom4127]

Lovet as always! 🙏👍😍

[@richvanatte3947]

Brilliant!

[@КонстантинРязанов-г8е]

Вы смелый и классный,у вас правдивая...я бы сказал очень честная гуашь,увидел ваши некоторые рисунки!Спасибо.

[@dfinchermd]

Glad I stumbled on to your site. I have a hard time with limiting detail and over drawing. This technique should be helpful. I also like the gouache and WC combination and your minimalist pallette.

[@susankrzywicki]

Beautiful and inspiring

[@garthok6224]

Looking our hero getting old. I was worried after 2 months. I hope James stay healthy for many years.

[@ingidraws]

... when you said "Pen and Ink" > I was reminded of its meaning in Cockney rhyme-slang as > Stink :) Your videos have taught me so much -- and I honestly think that it's not only down to the techniques used, but the delivery, editing and humour 💪❤

[@osks]

Vert nicely done!

[@kapildebnath386]

I watch each and every video of yours and try to learn, please make more art videos, we are waiting🙏

[@OatActivity]

i miss your job painting. James

[@patmcdonagh8939]

Wonderful video, thank you so much

[@BlancaVarguesArt]

Wonderful painting as always, your technique is so attractive that it encourages me to try painting😍😍

[@dorisdavidson7849]

Thanks that was interesting

[@mato579]

insanely beautiful technique :)

[@sugaryxegnirys]

I look forward to trying this!!

[@Patxi__]

Great video, I love your channel and your work, it is so inspiring and informative.

[@j.pearce3981]

i love love this method. so much fun i gotta ask about the buddha statue on the woodpile though...?

[@endzon26]

Missed you!

[@jesuscarmelorodriguezlem-id2vu]

Genial 👍👍👍👍

[@randalllaue4042]

Hero!

[@aliceprofitt8506]

Very helpful! Thank You.

[@sky0kast0]

Me and my brother love dinotopia and would be interested in a general setting book for roleplaying

[@catoblepag]

Nice work! I see you've used some kind of brown ink, right? That might be another reason for doing watercolour first and ink later, 'cause most color inks aren't waterproof.

[@DeadGuye1995]

And explains the meticulous way of older european artists painting around their ink, aka using delicate light washes. Aka making the paint colour fade and not looking so good later. Im sure wet ink into wet colour aint good. But Gurney knows what up lol

[@mikedameron602]

Not familiar with your videos, yet. I've been doing ink and watercolor for quite a while (decades) and found the video interesting. I even took a "Great Courses" class and a formal class, years ago; both included the technique. It's a useful tool en plein aire to speed a painting. I was wondering why you use a fountain pen instead of a felt tip. I like the variety of felt tip sizes that are readily available and readily give the drawing a "textured" quality with the various line sizes. It can be easily overdone, but it has worked. I did a series of drawings based on some by Henri Matisse, and used the technique to add my "take" to several drawings. I also noticed the ink added into wet paper. I wondered if you use water-based ink or not. I'll have to do some tests on that, I have both in the studio. I get a similar effect from water soluble graphite that I use for sketching before adding paint. The graphite diffuses for shadow, etc. I'll look over your videos. Your presentation looks to be easy to follow without a lot of chatter that I see in many "how to" presentations.

[@steztoyz]

Mr. Gurney, What pens and nibs are you using in this? Also what inks? It looks like one of the pens is a fountain pen and the other is a dip pen, but I can't see the specific pens or nibs. Also, what type of watercolor paper are you using?

[@queeniegreengrass3513]

What's in the woodpile?

[@cindycrass8175]

Waterman no longer makes Phileas. Is there a different pen you would recommend?

[@jaredlindsay5823]

I spy a Filson hat!

[@MminaMaclang]

He really said green screen

[@carlschnier4089]

Why not use a Sharpie ?

[@DeadGuye1995]

Sharpie is merely ink, in a plastic tube, and the tip is a sponge with a pen tube stabbing into it, if u have an old one crack it open and see

[@kaas2597]

Too much camera movement in this video, it was difficult to watch

[@tobymdev]

the video is great, dont ruin it with fake audio recordings of the pen or brush rubbing against the paper

[@victor_on_cartooning]

Let’s gooo! Another video!

[@ChristinaMandy_art]

So happy you still make new videos for us here on KZbin. I really enjoy watching you work, but also listen to some of your tips while I work on my illustrations. Your work is inspiring! 👩🏻‍🎨

[@DeadGuye1995]

While others may rise and fall. Gurney is immutable haha xD

[@DannySabraArt]

So cool to learn about some of those painters from history James! And the trick with the acrylic paint was a cool idea! I’ll have to try that. Does the acrylic resist watercolor?

[@DeadGuye1995]

They have water soluble and non, They even have water soulable oil? I guess so,i bought it, and it works but im no chemist, and it was only invented recently.

[@hippopotamusbosch]

I was expecting Jeanette Gurney to be teaching us pen and wash lesson today.

[@garydrawsandpaints7745]

Great video so far James. I was showing my students a couple of gouache layout video a couple of days ago. They said to say hello!

[@cgsales559]

Amazing, as always! I truly appreciate Mr. Gurney's work and work ethic. (And in case you're wondering, his gumroad videos are absolutely worth checking out!)

[@mihailkondratyev8435]

Nice trick with the green screen in the beginning!

[@christophedevos3760]

Stunning. The approach reminds me off cell coloring of animation or in comic strips, very interesting. Thank you for sharing.

[@stephaniegrehan9084]

I love your cheeky use of greenscreen in your editing. Your videos are so nice to listen to, so calm and confident.

[@DeadGuye1995]

Half a mil lets frickin go! Just noticdd i wasnt subbed on this account Feelsbadman

[@ZER0--]

This guy is one of my favourite artists. You know someone is good when they make you think "I could do that. Looks easy". It ain't.

[@Shebacca6000]

Yayyyyy what a nice treat on my break at work ❤

[@tanagreen6571]

All your videos have such a warm feeling to them, enjoying absolutely every second of it. Thank so much for the tips!!

[@tomhoward8304]

You're inspiring to watch James. I take notes and try to implement them in my work, thank you.

[@Surai00]

James has taught me that there is no restriction on how many kinds of paint and ink you can use in one painting. Fantastic, as always!

[@roeyfitzpatrick5899]

I love this technique. You are using a fountain pen but the ink appears to be waterproof when dry. What type of ink dries waterproof but doesn't clog up the pen? Thanks.

[@JamesGurney]

A lot of artists use Noodler ink, which is at least water resistant. I use a watersoluble ink to keep my pen from clogging. If you put a wash over those ink lines, they will blur or dissolve, so I only rewet them if I want to soften the lines.

[@UCG7]

​@@JamesGurney , I am using a same Pilot 912 pen with yama-guri ink, but it appears much bolder on the painted surface than on the plain paper. Even the back of the tip is too bold for a finer lines. How did you solve this?

[@uppercutgrandma4425]

"It's a small world but, I'd hate to have to paint it"- Steven Wright

[@victor1804]

Amazing as always! Thanks from Chile for all the knowlege you're sharing with us in these videos.

[@PeopleLovesDiamond]

Royal Canadian Mounted Police, thank you for your service.

[@13noman1]

Oh, I LIKE that approach. I'm pretty new to art (upon retirement), tackled drawing/sketching first (pencil, charcoal and pen and ink) and rather like pen and ink. I'm now adding watercolor to my repertoire and was debating using a mixed media approach like this - it solves a host of (detail) problems!

[@donmarchini43]

Mr. Gurney, thank you for these vids. I still have a copy of your Artist’s Guide to Sketching…so to get to see you work and hear your commentary is some good stuff!

[@Taka_Takata]

Title is misleading. Personally, I just can't stand any kind of impasto, so the acrylic ruins it for me.

[@briangraham6843]

Best way to fix a mistake with watercolors… Mr. Clean Magic Eraser.

[@sujanithtottempudi2991]

.do you think is it possible anybody to paint in watercolour in 30 minutes? I have only 30 minutes in the evening. But if i do i feel tremendous pressure of time not fun. Also most of the 30 minutes go in planning and preparing

[@DB-zo5ng]

I don't comment much, but would like to say thank you for the years of producing videos and making the time to discuss not just techniques, but a little art history, a little philosophy, talking to passersby. It makes the world a little bit better place. Much appreciated.

[@Lauli55]

I really like going wet in wet with a fountain pen! More like "damp in wet" I guess, but you get the idea haha.

[@vonjess9]

Thank you for sharing your talent!

[@timsimmons7916]

Please explain why you use the White Acrylic. Why acrylic?

[@aeastman59]

I didnt see the star of the videos in this one (smooth)... the colors in this are beautiful!