All you ever wanted to know about

Watercolor Granulation

​Have you ever noticed how watercolor paints behave differently ? Some colors
produce a smooth even wash, but others seem to have a life of their own,
creating amazing textured patterns.

When you play around with watercolors for a while you’ll soon notice this
interesting aspect of watercolor painting.

Don’t worry, there’s nothing wrong with your paint !

One of the most beautiful characteristics of watercolor is the surprising textures

it can produce. And granulation is one of the traits that adds incredible
texture.

You’ve probably heard watercolor artists discussing granulating paints

(sometimes referred to as flocculating or sedimentary watercolors).

But what is a granulating watercolor ?

Watercolor granulation results from the type of pigments used in the paint
formula. Some pigments tend to cluster together creating uneven mottled
washes. Granulating watercolors produce delicate textures because of the
characteristics of their pigment particles.

Personally I like the expressiveness produced by this effect. The subtle textures
created by granulation is something unique to watercolors !

Some watercolor artists prefer smooth even colors and do all they can to avoid
granulating paints. Others exploit this effect to produce beautiful dappled
effects in their artwork.

Whatever your preference, this is a characteristic worth getting to know !

Granulating pigments
Pigments are the basis of the color appearance in our watercolors.

In the past, artists used organic substances to provide pigments for their paint.
These natural pigments are the origin of some of the poetic paint “names” we
recognize today, (names such as Alizarin, Sepia, Gamboge etc.).

Today the majority of pigments used in paint are man made (known as synthetic
organic pigments).

Many synthetic organic pigments form clumps during manufacturing. These

clumps can be broken down by milling before the pigments are made into paints,
but not all pigments are equally as easy to grind. As a result the size and shape
of pigments varies slightly from one paint to another.

As a general rule, small fine pigment particles will produce less granulation,
and these watercolors produce a flat and smooth painted surface.

Larger, heavier, irregularly sized pigments will cause more granulation and
these can bring about some wonderful mottled textured effects.

Obviously, given the vast range of different paints, the size and shape of
pigments is changeable from one tube of paint to the next. As a result the
degree of granulation differs quite a bit.

Granulation on watercolor paper

When you lay down a wet watercolor wash, at first the color pigments are
suspended in the water of the fluid paint. As the water evaporates, the pigments
settle onto the paper. Granulating pigments are heavier than non-granulating
pigments, and so they sink into the paper under the influence of gravity.

The mottled textures of granulation can be observed on all types of watercolor

paper. On smooth hot-pressed paper the pigments tend to do as they please
and move around randomly until all the water evaporates. On cold-pressed or
rough watercolor paper the dispersion of pigments is slightly more even, and the
pigments tend to fall into the low crevices and valleys of the rough paper
surface.

Remember, you can vary your choice of paper according to the effect you’re
trying to achieve.

Which watercolors granulate ?

As you’ve probably gathered by now, whether or not your watercolors granulate
depends very much on the type of pigments which comprise the paint. But the
brand and grade of paint can also influence the amount of granulation, since the
formula varies a lot between manufacturers.

You will also find that cheaper, student grade watercolors will granulate less
because their paint formula tends to contain less pigment (pigments are
expensive, so lower quality paint uses less of them).

But generally speaking, certain colored pigments have more sedimentary

qualities than others.

For example, finding red and yellow hues that granulate is really hard. Whereas
blues and purples, have a good range of granulating colors.

Below is a list of some common granulating watercolors (non exhaustive).

Granulating blues

Finding blue sedimentary colors is pretty easy. A lot of the generic paint names
of artist quality paint use the same pigment in their paint formula, but it is worth
checking to be sure.

French Ultramarine is probably one of the most commonly used warm blues
and is very granulating. Ultramarine Blue falls into the same category.

Prussian Blue also tends to granulate quite a bit.

Cerulean Blue and Lapis Lazuli are medium-light hued blues which granulate
well.

A medium and warm hued blue would be Cobalt Blue.

Granulating red and yellows

Granulating reds and yellows are pretty rare. The only one which seems to come
close is Perylene Scarlet which is a medium semi-transparent paint.

About the only way to get granulation in reds, is by using the Granulation
Medium (see below). It takes some experimentation, but you can achieve some
dramatic granulating texture effects this way.

Depending on the kind of red you need, you can also try mixing a non-
granulating red with another granulating color such as purple or an earth hues.
Colors such as Cobalt Violet, Ultramarine Red (actually a purple hue) or
Burgundy Red Ochre and Quinacridone Burnt Orange could do the job.

Yellows are similarly difficult to find. Again the only yellow hue I know of is Nickel
Titanate Yellow which is a light hue and does not really granulate a lot.

If you’re mixing a more neutral yellow you could try French Ochre or Yellow
Ochre. Also Buff titanium mixed with a non-granulating yellow paint may do the
trick !

Granulating earth tones

Earthy browns are also among the paint colors which have good granulating
properties. Some of my favorites include Raw Sienna, ​Burnt Sienna and B
​ urnt
Umber.

Granulating black watercolor

You can find some quite good black sedimentary paints. Payne's Gray and
Ivory Black granulate. But the most dramatic granulating black I’ve found is
Hematite Genuine from the Primatek series by Daniel Smith.

List of Daniel Smith granulating watercolors

Like a lot of artists, I’m a fan of Daniel Smith watercolors. They have a huge
range of colors to choose from and have a particularly good choice of
granulating paints. At the time of writing I counted 111 granulating paints in their
“Extra Fine Watercolor” range.

That’s a huge choice !

​Here they are:

​Buff Titanium

Nickel Titanate

Perylene Scarlet

Mayan Red

Opera-Pink

Potter’s Pink

Mayan Violet

Cobalt Violet

Cobalt Violet Deep

Ultramarine Red

Rose of Ultramarine

Imperial Purple

Purpurite Genuine

Ultramarine Violet

Amethyst Genuine

Cobalt Blue Violet

Moonglow

Shadow Violet

Sugilite Genuine

Kyanite Genuine

​Sodalite Genuine
Lapis Lazuli Genuine
Ultramarine Blue
French Ultramarine
Cobalt Blue
Lavender
Verditer Blue
Prussian Blue
Mayan Blue Genuine
Cerulean Blue
Cerulean Blue Chromium
Manganese Blue Hue
Cobalt Teal Blue
Kingman Green Turquoise Genuine
Ultramarine Turquoise
Sleeping Beauty Turquoise Genuine
Cobalt Turquoise
Blue Apatite Genuine
Lunar Blue
Cobalt Green Pale
Viridian

​Diopside Genuine
Cascade Green
Jadeite Genuine
Cobalt Green
Sap Green
Serpentine Genuine
Chromium Green Oxide
Green Apatite Genuine
Terre Verte
Prussian Green
Rare Green Earth
Undersea Green
Zoisite Genuine
Olive Green
Bronzite Genuine
Verona Gold Ochre
Burnt Bronzite Genuine
French Ochre
Burgundy Yellow Ochre
Yellow Ochre
Mars Yellow

​Yavapai Genuine
Raw Sienna
Transparent Yellow Oxide
Monte Amiata Natural Sienna
Enviro-Friendly Yellow Iron Oxide
Goethite – Brown Ochre
Italian Deep Ochre
Lunar Earth
Burnt Yellow Ochre
Garnet Genuine
Roasted French Ochre
Burgundy Red Ochre
Indian Red
Venetian Red
Italian Burnt Sienna
Quinacridone Burnt Orange
Quinacridone Sienna
Pompeii Red
Red Fuchsite Genuine
Terre Ercolano
Minnesota Pipestone Genuine

​Italian Venetian Red

English Red Earth
Hematite Burnt Scarlet Genuine
Sedona Genuine (Natural Iron Oxide)
Lunar Red Rock
Piemontite Genuine
Tiger’s Eye Genuine
Burnt Tiger’s Eye Genuine
Hematite Genuine
German Greenish Raw Umber
Hematite Violet Genuine
Mummy Bauxite (Natural Iron Oxides)
Quinacridone Gold
Raw Umber Violet
Transparent Brown Oxide
Transparent Red Oxide
Fired Gold Ochre
Enviro-Friendly Red Iron Oxide
Burnt Sienna
English Red Ochre
Burnt Umber

​Enviro-Friendy Brown Iron Oxide

Raw Umber
Sepia
Sicklerite Genuine
Van Dyck Brown
Bloodstone Genuine
Lunar Violet
Payne’s Gray
Black Tourmaline Genuine
Ivory Black
Lunar Black

​This list does not include the Daniel Smith Primatek series which contains an
additional 32 interesting granulating watercolors.

Watercolor granulation medium

Some of you may be wondering how to make your watercolors granulate even if
they aren’t sedimentary ?

To achieve the textured effect of granulation you can use granulation medium.

This is a liquid solution which you can add to your watercolors, either by diluting
your tube paints directly with the medium, or by mixing on the paper, by
brushing medium onto fresh washes.

The most dramatic result are obtained by using this neat from the bottle. You
might find the results too strong.

Instead you can try laying down a very, thin wash of a granulating medium first
then put on washes of color layered on top of the granulation medium. This
usually retains the granulating effect without sacrificing the color you want or
producing excessive textures.

Take care when using granulation medium not to mix it with your normal palette,
or you may end up contaminating all your colors with granulating fluid. The best
idea is probably to keep your color mixing separate when you want to use this
product.

This product also seems to increase the drying time of your paintings, so you'll
need to be patient!

How to get granulation effects with watercolor

So how do you make your watercolors granulate.

Personally I get the impression that granulation is better on cold press or rough
paper, and also it shows more if the paper is dampened. I often brush a little
water on the paper, then add the watercolor mixed with more water. This allows
the particles to float until the heavier particles clump and do their thing on the
paper.

One method to force granulation is to add a lot of water to your pigment, then go
back and charge your wash with more pigment.

Another tip is to keep your paper flat and horizontal. If your paper is tilted the
pigments run downward under gravity and the granulation effect is lost.

Often, when you get backruns and blooms the granulation effect is even more
exaggerated.

If you don’t have many sedimentary watercolors and as an alternative to

granulating medium, my best advice is to try creating your own textures. Try
splattering water onto your paint using a hard bristled brush or a spray bottle
filled with water. You can also scatter salt or rice onto your paint, although I
would be careful with salt in time the paper will degrade,

Just get some scrap paper and give it a try !

Are your watercolors granulating ?

Why not check you own colors to see which ones granulate !

Depending on which brand of paint you use, identifying which of your watercolor
paints have granulating characteristics is more or less simple. Sometimes you’ll
find this kind of information on the labels of the paint tubes. Alternatively you
can download the color chart of your chosen brand where you’ll find all the
properties of each paint. Here for example is what this looks like on the Daniel
Smith watercolor chart:

The granulation element is generally indicated Yes or No (Y or N). Some brands

such as M. Graham use a “G” to indicate granulation.

You can download their color chart here...

​The same for Schmincke whose color chart you’ll find here...

For Winsor & Newton, finding this information is slightly tricky. You have to
consult the individual paints on their website to find out whether they granulate:
see this page​ ...

For Sennelier, I wish you the best of luck - I couldn’t find this information
anywhere !

If you can’t find this information for your own set of watercolors, you can use
observation to help you determine their characteristics. If you examine your
mixing palette after your paints have dried, you should be able to see clear
granulation patterns from colors that are sedimentary. Try observing your
palette occasionally to judge which of your colors fall into this category.

Conclusion
Granulating paints can be more difficult to control...

After all they seem to have a life of their own !

Beginners may find this kind of paint more of a challenge, but if you’re looking
for amazing textures in your artwork, then it is certainly worth investing some
time playing around with granulation...