Paper
Paper is the canvas of a watercolor.
In fact, paper plays a more prominent role in watercolor than canvas does in oil. This is because the paper is not hidden by the paint. In a watercolor, light passes through the transparent colored layers down to the white paper, then reflects off the paper back through the layers. The paper becomes the reflective backdrop for this effect. The higher the quality of the paper, the greater the reflection, and the more luminous the colors will appear.
Luminous watercolors on high-quality paper
After painting on every brand available, I found two ideal papers.
The first comes from a paper mill outside the village of Tarihal near Hubli in Karnataka, South India. There the Khadi Mill makes a very special cotton paper that is superb for painting as well as drawing. Each sheet is handmade, resulting in a unique surface texture, and beautiful deckled edges. No two sheets of this paper are exactly alike.
The second paper I use is found in the countryside of Somerset, England. There the St. Cuthberts Mill has been quietly making artist papers at the same location since 1736, using old-world methods and one of the few remaining cylinder mould machines left in the world.
Both papers are made from archival 100% cotton, so the paper will not change over centuries.
(Top) Khadi handmade paper, (Bottom) Saunders Waterford Block - both come in a variety of sizes
The two papers have different surface textures: the Khadi paper has a velvety texture while the Saunders Waterford paper has a raked texture.
Surface texture matters because the pigments in the paints settle into the low spots of the paper creating a granulated pattern. I find that both of these papers produce particularly beautiful granulated patterns (zoom into different artworks on this website to see examples).
(Left) velvety surface texture of the Khadi paper, (Right) raked surface texture of Saunders Waterford Paper
When I first painted on these papers, I felt like a musician stepping into a perfectly designed concert hall. Every note of color was so true and radiant.
I purchase the Khadi Paper from Blue Rooster Art Supplies, Hiromi Paper, and Amazon.
I purchase the Saunders Waterford Paper from my favorite online art supply merchant.
