Revisiting the Hake Brush

As with any watercolor technique, success depends on timing and water to pigment to paper management. My major problem using the hake brush was getting the paper too wet initially and then painting with washes that were way too thin.

 

Here are some on my early efforts. “Forest Stream” is completely made up. No source image. I just painted where the paint wanted to go. After some initial success with the Ron Ranson hake (pronounced hay-k) brush, I found myself frustrated and floundering. So much so, that I committed the cardinal sin of tearing up unsuccessful pieces and throwing them away. I decided recently to give it another try. First I binge watched videos offered on YouTube by one of the current day masters of the technique, Steve Cronin. They are very informative and he is truly a gifted artist. I especially like his instructional videos on painting from photos.