Statement by Lee Anne Miller: I came to do this workshop after considerable experience as a painter and printmaker. My determination to experiment with the range of capabilities of the aquarelle medium coincided with Mr. Howell's long standing interest in a test of handmade papers for watercolor painting. This research workshop collaboration represented a rare opportunity to work from the purest base imaginable as far as the raw materials of the watercolor medium.
The importance for the artist from these studies is the examination of the varying optical effects, those perceived by the naked eye. A very observable difference can be found, for example, when a pigment with egg yolk as a binder is applied by brush to a sheet of paper sized with egg white as compared to pigment bound in gum arabic applied to gum arabic sized paper. In addition, the range, the resonance, the contribution to optical quality, the tone, and the nuances are superior with the Howell handmades. The kind of extraordinary aesthetic choices that can be made due to the range of technical decisions about variations and combinations of handmade paper, binder, and pigment is enormous.
Statement by Douglass Morse Howell: This study at first glance may appear complicated. It is not so if one studies it with care. It is simple, in that this workshop represented a first experience for Professor Miller. This study is a basic reference for a future careful and well- ordered study, using also all the aids of pure Science as to 'optical effects'. There is an analogy here with music, as to timbre.
The Study I. Papermaking:(1) Number Raw Linen Material Beating Time ------ ------------------ ------------ 1. #060877 Table damask, worn 6 hrs. 00 min. 2. #061377 Table damask, worn 4 hrs. 00 min. 3. #061577 New linens, strong 6 hrs. 00 min. 4. #062177 Table damask, worn 5 hrs. 10 min. 5. #062177 Table damask, worn 5 hrs. 10 min. 6. #061377 Table damask, worn 5 hrs. 10 min. 7. #061977 Table damask, worn 4 hrs. 15 min. 8. #061977 Table damask, worn 4 hrs. 15 min. 9. various handmades, similar to above 10. #050877 Old linen 4 hrs. 40 min.
II. Brushwork Studies: 1. 6/14/77 #060877 A. Colors: Yellow, sienna, burnt umber B. Paper: Waterleaf (2) Dry - No. 1, 4, 5, 6, 8 Wet - No. 2, 3, 7 C. Binder: None, raw pigment and water D. Brush Techniques: (3) Mixed Techniques - No. 1 Full Brush - No. 2, 3 Two Colors, opposite sides of brush - No. 5, 6 Wet-in-Wet - No. 7
2. 6/15/77 #061377 A. Colors: Yellow, sienna, blue, umber B. Paper: Waterleaf Dry - No. 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 8 Wet - No. 4 (Wet-in-Wet) Damp - No. 3 (Blotted) C. Binder: None, raw pigment and water D. Brush Techniques: Full Brush - No. 1, 2 Wet-in-Wet - No. 3, 4 Two Colors, opposite sides of brush - No. 5, 6 Dry Brush - No. 7 (water added) Loaded Brush - No. 8
3. 6/20/77 #061577 A. Colors: Yellow, red, blue, umber B. Paper: Waterleaf - Cartridge (parchment-membrane) Dry - No. 1, 2, 6, 7 Damp - No. 3 Wet - No. 4, 5, 8 C. Binder: Rice Starch (4) D. Brush Techniques: Full Brush - No. 1, 2 Dry Brush on Damp Paper - No. 3 Wet-in-Wet - No. 4, 5, 8 Full and Dry Brush Marks - No. 6, 7
4. 6/27/77 #062177 A. Colors: Yellow, red, blue, umber B. Paper: Waterleaf Dry - No. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8 Wet - No. 6 C. Binder: Egg yolk (5) D. Brush Techniques: Full Brush - No. 1, 2, 3, 7 -darks first Curvilinear line overlapping - No. 4 Color on one side of brush - No. 5 Wet-in-Wet - No. 6 Brush filled at end - bleed effect - No. 8
5. 6/28/77 #062177 A. Colors: Yellow, red, blue, umber B. Paper: Waterleaf Dry - No. 1 through 8 C. Binder: Gum arabic (6) D. Brush Techniques: Full Brush Wash - No. 1, 2, 3 Curvilinear Brush Work - No. 4, 5 Brush Loaded with Two Colors - No. 6, 7, 8
6. 7/1/77 #061377 A. Colors: Yellow, red, blue, umber B. Paper: Egg White Sized (5) Dry - No. 1, 2, 3, 4, 6 Wet - No. 5, 7, 8 C. Binder: Egg Yolk D. Brush Techniques: Washes - No. 1, 2, 6 Dry Brush with overlay - No. 3, 4 Wet-in-Wet - No. 5, 7, 8
7. 7/6/77 #061977 A. Colors: Yellow, red, blue, umber B. Paper: Gum Arabic Sized Dry - No. 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 Wet - No. 3 C. Binder: Gum Arabic D. Brush Techniques: Full Brush, darks first and overlay - No. 1 Washes - No. 2 Wet-in-Wet (by area) - No. 3 Rolling of Brush Loaded with two colors - No. 4 Color on one side - No. 5 Full Brush Washes - No. 6, 7 Dry Brush - No. 8
8. 7/7/77 #061977 A. Colors: Yellow, red, blue, umber B. Paper: Waterleaf Dry - No. 1 through 8 C. Binder: Gum Arabic D. Brush Techniques: All works started from back, pigment allowed to bleed to front, then image worked from front. Brush heavily loaded - No. 1, 2 Dry Brush (heavily loaded from back) - No. 3 Brush strokes dampened to facilitate bleeding - No. 4, 5, 7 Front edges offset - No. 6 Washes from back and front - No. 8
9. 7/12/77 (various handmades) A. Colors: Black (sumi ink) B. Paper: Waterleaf Dry - No. 1 through 8 C. Binder: None D. Brush Techniques: Japanese brushes employed using sumi ink full strength and gradually diluting. Variation from full wet brush to dryer marks - No. 1 through 8
10. 8/2/77 #050877 A. Colors: Yellow, red, blue, umber B. Paper: Gelatin sized (4) Dry - No. 1 through 8 C. Binder: Gelatin D. Brush Techniques: Dry Brush - No. 1 Overlay (dry) - No. 2 Overlay (wet) - No. 3 Washes, Wet-in-wet, blending - No. 4, 5 Wet-in-Wet (by area) - No. 6 Linear blends (Soft-Graded Washes) - No. 7, 8 Notes:
1. In the hand papermaking absolutely no chemicals were used. All papers were loft dried with natural air for natural shrinkage. Those papers which are not waterleaf were tub sized. 2. Using waterleaf (unsized) handmade papers with a brush that is very wet with water and pigments, the capillary effect will carry the pigments even to the opposite side. 3. Good quality red sable brushes were used to provide maximum control. 4. Rice starch and gelatin were edible. 5. Egg yolks and whites were from fresh eggs. 6. Gum acacia is the same as gum arabic.
