A combination of a gum Arabic binder and pigment, watercolors have been growing in popularity since the 18th century. Both professional and amateur artists enjoy watercolors due to their portability that allows artists to actualize their work as the ideas come to them.
There are numerous brands of watercolors available in the market and narrowing down to one that can take up the claim to be the best watercolor paint may be overkill. However, we have listed some of the excellent watercolor paints that you can consider as an artist regardless of your artistic level.
1. Winsor & Newton Cotman Watercolor Sketchers Pocket Box
Intro:
Made using synthetic fillers, the Cotman is one of the best student grade watercolors you can find in the market. Despite its grade category, the quality of the paint is quite decent. This paint comes with a single brush, and twelve half pans all packed into a paint box. This packaging makes it quite portable and ideal for artists on the go.
Pros:
- It is affordable.
- The lid of the paint box can be used as a mixing palette.
Cons:
- It is made from synthetic fillers which make it difficult to achieve some artistic effects.
2. VAN GOGH WATERCOLOR 12 TUBE POCKET BOX SET
Intro
This 12-tube half pan watercolor set is one of the best and most raved about watercolor paint set in the market. This is because the result achieved by artists is nothing short of exceptional. While they are student grade watercolors, these Van Gogh paints can be used by more experienced artists as the transparency, tinting strength and color intensity are a thing of beauty.
Pros
- All watercolor techniques are achievable with the Van Gogh paint set
- The colors of the paint are extraordinarily vibrant and remain the same even after drying.
- It only takes a short time for the colors to dry off.
Cons
- Users have complained that the package is poorly designed and while the watercolor set is portable, it makes a lot of noise when you move it around.
3. DANIEL SMITH EXTRA FINE ESSENTIALS INTRODUCTORY WATERCOLOR
Intro
If you are looking to transition from amateur watercolors to professional grade watercolors, then the Daniel Smith paint brand is the perfect place to begin. Daniel Smith is known for their astounding color range of more than two hundred color collections, and this 6-tube initial set gives you a brief yet beautiful glimpse into this world before you commit to purchasing more watercolor tubes. It is also ideal for color mixing as the collection comprises of an equal number of warm and cool single-pigment primary colors.
Pros
- It is ideal for color mixing, and you can achieve secondary colors such as oranges, greens, and violets.
Cons
- You are limited to only six colors which means that you have to either buy more tubes or mix the colors of the existing tubes to achieve other colors.
4. DalerRowney
Intro
Another student grade watercolor set, DalerRowney is ideal for novices who are just starting to learn the craft that is water coloring.
Pros
- They work and bind well with watercolor paper.
- They are straightforward to blend.
Cons
- The DalerRowney colors are not as translucent and vibrant which means that you would need to upgrade to their more expensive colors or use multiple layers to achieve your desired look.
5. Sennelier La Petite Aquarelle 24-half pans
Intro
Sennelier, the French watercolor manufacturer, is known for creating watercolor paints that are high quality and vibrant in color. The aquarelle is one of the best student grade watercolors and is ideal for the artist on the go. Sennelier typically incorporates honey in their watercolors, and the aquarelle is no exception. The honey makes the watercolors clear and vibrant with high transparency.
Pros
- It mixes easily with water thanks to the honey present in the paint
- The paints transparency is quite high which means that even as a novice you can achieve a glazing effect on your paintings.
Cons
- For a student grade paint, it falls on the higher end of the price scale.
6. Holbein Set of 24 Artists’ Watercolor Tubes
Intro
- The Holbein set is a professional grade watercolor that claims to be “more finely ground than any other artist watercolor.” This watercolor set made in Japan has an enormous color range of beautifully hued and intense colors.
Pros
- It does not leave a granulated texture on the paintings.
- The paint does not dry out in the tube like most product offering in the market.
Cons
- It is expensive.
Conclusion
When purchasing watercolors, you will typically find them being sold in two different grades, i.e., professional and student. It is therefore essential that you are aware of what your artistic needs are beforehand so that you can choose the right watercolor grade for you. Some of the other things that one should consider when purchasing watercolors include:
The paint quality: the quality and therefore the performance of the watercolor varies for the two grades as there is a difference in the ingredients. Student grade watercolor will typically have a lot of synthetic fillers and binders and less pigment which is not the case for professional grade watercolors.
The permanence or lightfastness of the paint is also something else you should consider as an artist. Good paint should have excellent durability when exposed to light and humidity.
The paint’s transparency or ability to pass light through it should also be considered. If your paint’s transparency is poor, you will not have the ability to create washed out and layered painting effects.
If you are a beginner, you have many more options that you can consider aside from the ones we have listed above. The most important thing to remember as a novice is to buy the colors based on their cost rather than the brand name. That way you can get to practice and grow your craft.
Finally, regardless of your skill level be cautious of watercolor paints that contain cadmium pigments. This is because cadmium pigments are hazardous due to their toxicity.