We are happy to introduce Patty Edge, recent Instagram Artist of the Month and a hobbyist watercolorist. A doctor from Australia known as "The Sketching Doc" loves to travel and capture her favorite spots using watercolors, both traditional and digital.
When did you start painting? Do you remember your first artwork?
I started drawing in 2018. I used to take a lot of photos on holiday and one day a friend took out some pencils and started sketching and it struck me as a wonderful way to keep memories of my travels - somehow more personal than a photo. As a doctor, I had never really done art at school so I started watching you tube videos and initially started with marker pens, but I found my work too photo-realistic and it wasn’t what I wanted to achieve. I briefly played with digital programs but had the same problem and it didn’t feel like drawing. I tried gouache for a while and eventually settled on pen and watercolour.
Most of your paintings capture the places from your travels. Is this where you seek inspiration?
Yes, my inspiration is mainly from my travels and/or places I would dearly love to visit.
You use mainly watercolors. What do you find most fascinating about this medium? Are you ever thinking about using different media?
I love the unpredictability of watercolour and the way it is fairly easy to set up, transport, and it works well with mixed media and as already mentioned, is easy to carry when I travel as a small lightweight kit. I think Rebelle does make me want to try out other mediums such as oils, as it makes it possible to easily transport them with me (on my Surface Pro) and to pick up and start and paint wherever and whenever I want to.
Some artists are concerned with approaching watercolors. Do you have any tips on how to easily navigate these waters?
I think watercolour is something you have to let go of your inhibitions and play with it in an abstract way, so that you can understand how it works when used wet in wet and wet on dry. You also need to know a little about how your colours mix so that you don’t end up with muddy colours.
A few months ago, you came across Rebelle. Were you a novice to digital painting? What stood out to you about this software?
Rebelle was an eye-opener for me in the digital world of art. I had tried other programs but they never felt like I was really drawing and the watercolour unpredictability was not there. With Rebelle it felt like real watercolours again. I could do wet on wet or wet on dry. I could alter the amount of water on my brush or on the paper to get those loose effects. The real colour mixing is just delightful, I could play with just that for hours! I love the ease with which I can set up, paint and stop painting wherever and whenever I want to.
Do you have any advice for traditional watercolorists transferring to digital painting?
My advice to traditional watercolour artists would be to definitely try Rebelle, don’t think it is like other digital programs. Like any medium there is a learning curve, but if you relate it to actual watercolour, you will soon learn how much water you need on your brush to get a wet, dry or damp brush and how to wet and dry your paper. It certainly saves heaps of money in the long term for art supplies and very quickly pays for itself. You also don’t mind practicing and trying out new things as you aren’t wasting expensive paper or paint and you aren’t ruining your artwork if you don’t like what you tried. It really is fantastic for progressing your artwork and style.
Thank you, Patty, for taking a moment to introduce yourself and your creative work to our audience. We hope you will find inspiration everywhere you go and continue showcasing your beautiful watercolors.
Escape Motions Team
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Patty Edge's full portfolio: instagram.com/thesketchingdoc