Painting water surfaces is a great challenge for many watercolor painters. Perhaps it has already happened to you that your painted landscape has been successful, but the deficient representation of water, waves and reflections spoils the mood of the picture.The artist Joe Dowden promises in his overall work on the representation of water that after reading and reworking his numerous exercises, you will be able to create realistic landscapes. They learn the correct painting of light reflections, convey the illusion of depth and represent movements of the water. But the reproduction of architecture, people and nature will also be easier with the presented techniques.As usual in any extensive textbook, Joe Dowden presents his favorite material (brush, paper, media, and less common tools). This chapter should not be skipped when working through, but it also contains unusual, hardly known applications, which are indispensable for the exact reworking.The following chapters deal with composition, selection of the pictorial material, color perspective and short exercises on the respective topic. The list of used watercolor paints is very extensive, as the painter likes to experiment with new shades and their mixtures. Joe Dowden recommends the purchase of these colors if you want to follow the painting instructions exactly. Numerous pictorial examples from the painter's extensive work deepen what has been learned. In accompanying texts the respective technique is briefly and concisely explained.The main part of the book is seven step-by-step instructions. The spectrum of the examples covers the whole range of possible water caves. The presentation of children on the beach, swans on moving water, waterfall, sailing boats on the sea, lakes, mountains and much more can be worked out in detailed exercises of different difficulty levels. Very helpful is the extensive picture material. Up to 79 individual work steps simplify true-to-nature painting. In addition to the presented topics, pictures of the artist are shown. They show the most diverse variations of what has been learned, and also the comprehensive description of painting techniques.Conclusion:The presented book can be described as an indispensable standard work for the representation of water scenes. Painters with advanced knowledge will, after careful reading and reworking the pictorial examples, be able to create impressive landscapes in a more realistic wayOriginally published in German: http://kreativreview.blogspot.co.uk/2017/01/joe-dowdens-complete-guide-to-painting.html
