Yupo is not an emotive, YUPO is for watercolor

Urban dictionary will tell you that Yupo means ‘yes’ in an excited way. Today, we will use YUPO in a different form. For a few months now, I have heard about this amazing new watercolor paper call “YUPO”. For my creative practice, I decided to try this very expensive synthetic paper.
 

YUPO paper is different from other watercolor paper. It has a wax feel to it. When we apply the watercolor to the paper, the water gets absorbed into the atmosphere rather than into the paper like most watercolor paper. This means it takes a while to dry. Be forewarned, it has a mind of its own, but the results can be a nice surprise. Just knowing that I cannot be in a hurry with YUPO paper was forcing me to enjoy the process.

 

What You’ll Need:

 

·         YUPO Watercolor Paper

 

·         Koi Watercolors with Reusable Waterbrush

 

·         Pencil

 

·         Ink Pen

 

·         Your Imagination

 

·         Patience

 

·         Time (at least an hour)

 

At first, I tried to control the painting by drawing the flowers and the tree branch with a pencil. The pencil on YUPO paper feels like gliding on rich melted chocolate. It feels so smooth and good. Embarrassing to admit it, but it is true! I love how the pencil skates on the paper!

 
 

Starting with a reusable waterbrush, I added the various colors in small areas, but when the reusable waterbrush started leaking more what than desired, the colors ran together. Holding the papers up and down, trying to help the flow of the water made me forget for a minute.  I then realized I enjoyed watching the colors mixed and how they flowed on their own. I found myself having fun and accepting whatever the outcome maybe.

 
 

As I stated before, it takes a while for the paper to dry, and you have to be patient. After over an hour of waiting, the end result looks different from what I am used to.  I then used an ink pen to add final touches. Next time, I will try watercolor ink with alcohol and salt.

 



Close-up of Final Piece