I don’t know about you, but when I think of water color paintings, I used to think of pink and purple garden landscapes, abstract floral bouquets, and fluffy little bunnies. They weren’t typically my favorite style, can you tell? But that was only until I saw the work of Alvaro Castagnet. His paintings are clean and modern. They make me excited to get to my water colors!
His book, Beyond Technique: Painting With Passion
It’s mostly photos of his paintings that you can look at for inspiration, not a step by step guide to getting his results. There are a few quick guides in the back, showing a few photos of his process from sketch to wash to finished detail to give you an idea of how he works, but if you’re buying this book for step by step instruction you might be disappointed.
While I am quite a fan of the step by step guide, this book still stands high in my review. His style is just so different than any other water color I’ve seen that the photos of his works alone are enough for me to want to have his book on hand. If you’d rather see his whole process check out his water color DVDs that show him paint several pieces from start to finish