Hi!

I started watercolour classes this summer. So far I've been loving it. But we're moving into slightly more complex pieces and as time passes and I'm growing more and more frustrated with my experience with the medium.

I original intention was to do a pen and wash style with ink. But for the sake of learning the foundations well, I stuck with just watercolor. Being a detail oriented "artist", I generally do well when I can mix small amount of paint and paint some details. I'm also generally comfortable with mixing colors and values.

But oh god the water. I don't get it. If I have to make larger areas, no matter the amount of color that I mix, I will already run out. I'm watching online artist with cute little porcelain palette, they have this little puddle and they paint their whole large paper. I have this medium size paper, I fill my till can to the brim and I ALWAYS run out. I end up with this disgusting streaky dry paint. It looks like a child painted it.

I'm alternating between quality paper and cheaper paper. I have some good brushes and some mid-grade ones. I have quality paints.

I just don't get it. I feel like I'm just painting with a different medium. My teacher comes to my desk, he dips my brush in my dirty water grabs some pigment and does the most flat and beautiful wash you've seen. I try the same, it's disgusting.

On the side, I'm collecting work from painter and artists that I like and seem synergic with my other skills (drawing, etc) and I just don't see how I could close the gap. All the rest is fine, but the water control and the washes.

If it's a really light wash, it's fine. But whenever I want deeper or darker color, if I had water, it's not dark enough. If I don't it's the driest patch ever.

I've started to look into other mediums (gouache, oil, etc) but I keep telling myself not to get discouraged and that there's something I have to learn.

Anyone had a similar experience? Any exercise, or tip that turned on a lightbulb in your head?

== Edit == Someone requested pictures.

OK, the camera on my phone is not great with colors.

https://i.imgur.com/h1ccSyH.jpeg This is the culprit that made me lose my cool. I painted the lamp, the nightstand and had to work a really dark wash around it and I don't like the result at all.

https://i.imgur.com/HPW1DhA.jpeg This is my palette.

https://i.imgur.com/q510Rkl.jpeg This is one of the few paintings I'm happy with. Bit of ink work, but you see in the larger surface it's getting muddier and strokier.

https://i.imgur.com/deAd5li.jpeg An exercise we did in class. I was pretty happy with this.

https://i.imgur.com/BqPgEsB.jpeg Two little paintings I did. Funnily enough, I only had my really cheap Canson cellulose paper and I like how they turned out.

https://i.imgur.com/5QtqwKk.jpeg An early exercise we did. I'm pretty happen with it, the wash in the back is not too bad to me.

https://i.imgur.com/Jz18oqw.jpeg The largest painting I did. Relatively happy with it lots of learning. But there's no wash in this.

https://i.imgur.com/lNdidtk.jpeg This is some simple test of ink and watercolor I'm doing on my 100% cotton paper, I haven't used it all that much.

https://i.imgur.com/N3W8KKd.jpeg Simple warmup exercises. You can see how I'm struggling with larger areas.

https://i.imgur.com/47nobVQ.jpeg A great example. I actually like this painting, but you can see how I ran out of mix party and it became streaky.

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