Using Watercolour Granulation Medium with salt

Discover how to create stunning textures in watercolour with Granulation Medium. Watch this masterclass to see how table salt, rock salt, and masking fluid can also transform your washes with beautiful, granulated effects.

Granulation Medium for watercolours can create unique effects, as we will show here, but you may not know that common table salt can also be used for stunning effects. First, we show how Granulation Medium works with Alizarin Crimson, a colour which does not have a naturally granulating quality. It separates the colour and allows the pigment to settle into the surface of the paper with a textural quality. When used with a naturally granulating paint, this impact is even more obvious. Next we show how common table salt, when sprinkled on a wet watercolour surface, can create beautiful speckled effects as the salt sucks in the water and leaves the pigment to settle into the surface of the paper. Then we show how rock salt works in the same way but creates more extreme textured effects. Finally, masking fluid is flicked off of a brush, allowed to dry and covered over with a wash. When the paint is dry, the salt is brushed off and the masking fluid rubbed away to reveal the textured, starry effects left behind by the salt and the sharper, distinct shapes revealed by the masking fluid.

Contents
00:20 Creating texture with Granulation Medium
00:53 Using table and rock salt to create granulation
01:21 Combining Masking Fluid with salts
01:42 Comparing final results

Video transcript

00: 10 Hi there, today I want to show you Winsor & Newton’s Granulation medium for watercolour but also three additional effects you can create using salt.

00:20 First I’m going to mix some professional watercolour using W&N Granulation Medium.

00:30 I will use Alizarin Crimson, a paint which does not have a naturally granulating quality - but the medium will cause the pigment to separate and settle in to the texture of the paper.

00:42 When used with a naturally granulating paint the results are even more extreme.

00:53 Now let me show you what happens to a wash of ordinary water diluted paint when I sprinkle on some table salt here and below some larger rock salt.

01:10 Look how the different salts react with the wash - the table salt gives us fine speckles.

01:17 The larger granules have pulled in even more paint

01:21 Now I’m going to flick some W&N Masking Fluid on this area and let it dry

01:31 ...paint a wash on top and finally sprinkle both salts onto the wet wash.

01:42 Once all three areas are dry I can clear the salt and rub away the dry masking fluid.

01:54 Look how the granulation medium has made this lovely textured wash.

02:00 Now see how the table salt has caused this lovely speckling and rock salt these dramatic star effects.

02:08 Lastly, the masking fluid and both salts. The masking fluid has left these clean specks amount the speckles and starring texture caused by the salt. These are all quite lovely.

02:21 I hope you enjoy experimenting with with these textures.