How to Make a Watercolor Paint Itself: Experimental Techniques for Achieving Realistic Effects

I found this book to be very inspirational. I love the artist's work and she takes you through all the steps to learn her technique. I highly recommend this book for anyone striving to be a serious artist who wants to broaden their horizons.

This has become one of my favorite art books, it is different and it is inspirational. Nita has succeeded describing a more experimental/bold/chaotic/natural way of splashing water and color onto paper, observing what happens and then bring order out of that chaos, but also succeeding in not to drown in technique but inspiring the reader to try it! There are many books succeeding either in describing technique or showing of fantastic imagery, few books transfers the authors inspiration or forces the reader to put the book away to go on trying the technique immediately!

It is a fantastic book, it may transform your way of seeing and doing the next painting, and the next... I have returned to this book more times than almost any other in my now quite extensive collection, well worth buying!

Have you ever tried to achieve the ever changing glistening sun-reflection in your painting and not quite make it? This book has it all but tradition. Great book for those who desire to think outside of the box.Engle has put the excitement of her classroom in a book,but I sure would like to be in HER classroom!
This book isn't for the timid or faint-hearted.She seems to attack her canvases with a fury & desires to be the victor.I appreciate the honest sharing of successes & failures. This book is for those who are looking to put excitement in their dry worn-out traditional watercolor & want to explore innovative techniques to go outside the comfort zone to implement new & fresh methods into their own style of painting.

This book could be better, but I don't know how! From the gorgeous pics of the author's own work to all the wonderful techniques she exposes, this book is a delight. I would highly recommend this for intermediate to advanced painters, & as an inspiration to beginners. Buy it, you won't be disappointed.

This book is definitely not for a beginning watercolorist and I don't think the author and publishers intended it to be. If you are just beginning to paint in watercolor in a realistic style I recommend starting with books aimed for beginners first. That said, for high-intermediate to advanced watercolorists who want to learn new ways to add life to their paintings this is one of the best books out there using the pouring process as the primary means vs. painting with a brush. That doesn't mean Ms. Engle doesn't use brushes, it's just that they are only one of several techniques at her disposal.

I got this book after having read Creative Discoveries in Watermedia. So I understand why the title says 'Experimental Techniques for Achieving Realistic Effects'. Many of the same techniques from the Creative Discoveries book are used here as well. Everything from squirt bottles to pouring the paints and tipping the board to let the paint run where it will to textural techniqes for added interest. All the chapters introduce fun methods for paiting but I'm glad design (aka composition) has a chapter of its own. All the techniques in the world won't save a painting with a poor design (that's when you just crop it and make it a mixed media experimental painting!) :)

My favorite chapter is the last one. It discusses experimental techiques, mediums, methods, etc. This is the only watercolor book I've ever seen that mentions W&N's Aquapasto medium, a product I love for adding texture elements to some of my more experimental paintings. If you're an intermediate to advanced watercolorist looking for new ideas you'll find plenty of them here.