Watercolour Paper: Can it make or break your painting?

Hey guys! In this post, I’ll be discussing how watercolour paper can make or break your painting! I’ll be discussing the effects of paper density (GSM), cellulose vs cotton, affordability and finally will be comparing how the same painting can look different on varying qualities of paper.

All about “GSM”

GSM or Grams per Square Meter is basically how thick or dense your sheet of paper is. A normal A4 size sheet of paper is around 50gsm, a sketchbook will tend to be around 150gsm and a good quality watercolour paper will be around 300gsm. But what is all the fuss about GSM? Watercolour paintings are created by layering colours or shades one on top of the other. The medium of activation for watercolour is always water. Hence, the more layers of paint you add in, the more layers of water you add in. If your sheet is not thick enough, the water will tear your sheet or your colours will flow into each other. If you pick a watercolour paper of about 200gsm to 250gsm, you can add about 2 layers of colour. If you pick up a sheet that is 300gsm and more, you can go for 3 to 4 layers of colour. For any good painting, adding depth is what is most important. Depth is created only when your layer colours while using watercolour and hence I always recommend anything more than 300gsm when picking your sheets.

Cellulose vs Cotton

Whenever you look at the packaging of a watercolour pad, sheets or book; you will find a percentage of cotton mentioned. If there is nothing about the quantity of cotton mentioned, your sheet is made using cellulose. If there is a number such as 25% cotton mentioned then your sheet is made using a mix of cotton and cellulose at the percentage given. Cellulose is commonly used in creating watercolour paper as it is affordable but it does have its drawbacks. Colours tend to look less vibrant, blending becomes a little harder and layering of colours becomes slightly difficult. Cellulose paper also tends to hold lesser water. Cotton paper on the other hand holds up water beautifully, colours look rich, blending and layering is extremely easy. The only drawback of cotton paper is how expensive they are. If you can afford a 100% cotton watercolor sheets then I would definitely recommend the same! Affordability

A watercolour sheet will cost you less if you go for a lower gsm and a lower percentage of cotton. But should you spend less? Some artists can afford to spend a lot more on materials than others. But if you are selling or marketing your paintings, the best quality is what you need and hence definitely spend that extra bit. If you are a beginner, you can start off with cheaper papers but as you progress in your skill, definitely move to a better paper quality as it will teach you a lot more. If you can afford to spend and don’t mind ruining a few sheets as you learn, go for those expensive papers.

Let’s Compare

Right at the start of this blog post, you must have noticed a picture containing the same painting but on two different sheets. Which one is better? The right or the left? On the right, I have a lower quality paper (250gsm and 100% cellulose). On the left, is the same painting created on a higher quality paper (440gsm and 100% cotton). When I created this piece on the lower grade paper, I was able to manage only 3 layers of colour after which I could not add in the darker shadows. The colour was already looking patchy and the paint from the previous layer was lifting as I added in the darker tones. The higher grade paper has a total of 6 layers of paint on it. Through each of the layers I faced no issues while blending and didn’t experience any lifting either. Though the darker tones are missing in the lower grade painting, the lighter tones of green look more vibrant in the higher grade paper. In all, I would say that the higher grade paper brings this piece to life whereas the lower grade paper looks relatively dull. So what do you think? Can the quality of your paper make or break your piece?

Note: Except for the change in paper, there are no differences in the materials used to create the painting. I have used the same brushes and paints to create both the pieces.

If this post was helpful or have other topics related to art you want me to discuss, comment below and let me know!

Happy Arting!