“Watercolor batik” is a wonderful technique that combines melted wax and watercolors on rice paper to create an exciting-looking painting.
I start by drawing an outline with a black felt tip pen. Then deciding on my lights and darks, I apply wax first to the lightest color using the wax as a resist. Next, the second to the lightest shade is painted on, dried, then waxed.
Color mixing is done by painting on the dry paint on the paper. For example, if I want to paint orange I first paint the area yellow, let that dry then come back with a magenta painted on the dry yellow paint. I hardly ever put a wet paint on wet paint that is on the paper. The paint gets muddy and doesn't have that pop!
After using watercolor for some shading I applied wax to all of the areas I want to protect from further applications of paint. (Watercolors tend to run outside the ink lines on the rice paper, so to keep a sharp edge you must apply wax.)
The last step is to paint melted wax all over the background, let it harden, and then wad up the entire painting to crack the wax—this is the scary part! I then smooth it out and paint a dark color over the entire piece.
The darker color settles in the cracks which will give it that authentic “batik” look
The final step is to use some newspaper and an iron to remove all of the wax. As you do, the lighter areas you’ve protected will emerge. It is always a wonderful surprise to see the beautiful and unique results of this process!
Batking isn’t an exact science, so mistakes such as unintentional drips of wax and bleeding color, believe it or not, these accidents actually add to the look of the piece!
I start by drawing an outline with a black felt tip pen. Then deciding on my lights and darks, I apply wax first to the lightest color using the wax as a resist. Next, the second to the lightest shade is painted on, dried, then waxed.
Color mixing is done by painting on the dry paint on the paper. For example, if I want to paint orange I first paint the area yellow, let that dry then come back with a magenta painted on the dry yellow paint. I hardly ever put a wet paint on wet paint that is on the paper. The paint gets muddy and doesn't have that pop!
After using watercolor for some shading I applied wax to all of the areas I want to protect from further applications of paint. (Watercolors tend to run outside the ink lines on the rice paper, so to keep a sharp edge you must apply wax.)
The last step is to paint melted wax all over the background, let it harden, and then wad up the entire painting to crack the wax—this is the scary part! I then smooth it out and paint a dark color over the entire piece.
The darker color settles in the cracks which will give it that authentic “batik” look
The final step is to use some newspaper and an iron to remove all of the wax. As you do, the lighter areas you’ve protected will emerge. It is always a wonderful surprise to see the beautiful and unique results of this process!
Batking isn’t an exact science, so mistakes such as unintentional drips of wax and bleeding color, believe it or not, these accidents actually add to the look of the piece!