I love working with watercolours because of their sophisticated results. You can't fuss with them, or fix mistakes. In that sense, they're very Zen. I apply the pigment diluted with water (hence the name) onto special watercolour paper. This paper is highly textured and thick. It is designed to withstand the onslaught of water without tearing; rippling however is a common occurrence; it is, therefore, prudent to know how much water to carry on your brush. Some watercolour artists like to apply shear colour. These paintings are soft and romantic. I prefer to apply heavy amounts of pigment which I then let bleed into the wet paper. For me colour tops form; in fact, my paintings are alive with riotous colour. Depending on my subject matter, I like to inject elements of nature into the paint. For example, if I'm sitting on a beach painting the surrounding shoreline, I will sometimes sprinkle sand onto the wet paper. When it dries, I brush it off. The colour remains, but the areas where the sand granules adhered to the paper are now white. It gives the beach in the painting a lovely sandy texture.