“Washing” is a technique commonly used with watercolors. You start by wetting the area of the paper that will be covered with the wash. Then mix up enough pigment to fill the area and apply the pigment starting at the top and overlapping on any horizontal bands. The wash is then left to dry. Don’t work it as it will even itself out as it dries. The technique called “dropping in color” is a process where an additional color is added to a wet area of the painting which is then allowed to naturally bleed without any interference by the artist. The results are unpredictable with interesting color gradations.

“Glazing” is a technique similar to a wash, but instead of application to a wet surface a thin layer of pigment is applied to a dry surface over washes that already exist. It is used to adjust tone and color on a wash, and it is applied in layers until the desired affect is reached. Just be sure that each layer is dry before applying the next layer. Auroline, cobalt blue and permanent rose are good transparent pigments to glaze with. The “wet in wet” is a technique where you fill your brush with a very wet pigment that is then applied to a wet paper. It can be applied on top of existing washes that have dried. Just dampen these areas with a large brush. This technique provides soft subtle marks that are great for background areas. The “dry brush” is opposite to the “wet in wet” technique. The brush is filled with pigment with the use of minimal water and then it is dragged across the dry paper, producing a very crisp mark with a hard edge. It is an excellent technique for front work and points of interest. “Lifting off” is an interesting technique where the pigment is dissolved and lifted off after it has dried. Just wet the area you want to lift and then use a tissue to blot the pigment off. Reds, yellows, and blues can be more difficult to lift.

Paintings have been framed ever since the portable image was invented, i.e. since imagery ceased being permanently fixed into or unto the wall and became mobile, hung according to the whim of the owner. The frame was a natural substitute for the architectural background of the fresco or secco mural. It is definitely the frame that gives to painting its known window effect, inviting us to peep into a different reality. In fact it is such a natural accompaniment to painting that the sudden absence of framing gave in itself to modern painting an important and surprising new dimension. The success of framing lies in its discretion. A frame well-chosen blends with the painting; it enhances, supports and serves the framed object and doesn’t steal the show. Bear in mind that our perception of the elaborateness of a frame is relative to the epoch; even the most exuberant frames in history were seldom exaggerated; they just adequately framed exuberant paintings. In regard to the object, the frame should always be subdued in design and color.

Period framing is always to prefer and in most cases the one that was initially conceived to go with the art. If your painting has lost its original frame, or if the latter is in an irreparable state, look for period replacement and do not frame against the style. A dark painting takes a dark frame, a light painting a light frame. A large frame should be less elaborated in ornament than a thin frame. The colour is best in some way assorted and will either reflect the basic tonal value or contrast with an appropriate counter-value. Ornament and elaboration is period dependent and should be considered in relation to the plastic contents of the painting. This sounds all simple and evident and yet many paintings are literally obliterated by insensitive framing. As the frame is an inherent part of traditional painting, we should train ourselves to be better aware of its effects on the art it should serve.