In this beginner-friendly guide, Jack Reid will show you the hows of watercolor painting. He covers it all in clear, easy-to-understand terms - beginning with what tools and materials you should buy to get off to a good, affordable start. You'll find simple, step-by-step exercises to help you: control your brush with easemaster the four basic watercolor techniques - the flat wash, the graded wash, the wet-in-wet and the dry-brushTake the "Five Steps to a Painting" - step-by-step demonstrations guide you from one color to five, to make your paintings "sing" with coloruse photography and photocopying to create paintings inspired by lifeThen put everything you've learned into action by following along with seven painting projects. Before you know it, you'll be creating your own beautiful watercolor paintings!

自童年开始,杰克·里德就对图画影像深深着迷,十岁时购买了第一套水彩绘画工具。在经济大萧条时期,对于生长在多伦多的孩子来说,钱一直是个大问题,不过年少的里德总能设法弄到一点钱来购买自己需要的颜料、画笔和纸张。虽然那个时期的商品和服务要价高昂,但个人观点和自然风景仍然是免费的,将来亦是如此。他对水彩画情有独钟,63年后依然如此。

1970年,里德辞去了美术设计员的日常工作,开始了专职水彩绘画的生涯。事实证明他做了个绝对正确的决定。他的获奖画作在国际上得到了广泛认可,被陈列在许多地方,诸如英国女王的温莎城堡和伦敦的五星级萨伏伊酒店。通过室内外的讲习会和电视,他向各个年龄层次的一万多名学生灌输了对水彩画的激情和热爱。在自己最最享有盛誉的基本技法方面,他一直谆谆教导着众多业余和职业画家。

1992年,加拿大政府为奖励他对艺术的出色贡献,授予他纪念奖章。1997年,他成为美国蒙大拿州瓦尔顿湖国家公园的常驻画家。1998年他还当选了加拿大水彩艺术家协会的终身会员。