How to colour Koi Fish with Albrecht Dürer Magnus

Adults 

60 min

What you need:

Albrecht Dürer Magnus, Graphite Aquarelle pencil 6B, Castell 9000 graphite pencil HB, Water cup CLIC&GO, Paint brush, Watercolour paper DIN A3, Printer paper DIN A4

Step 1

Print the templates onto two DIN A4 sheets of printer paper. Glue the two pages together on the front. Shade the back of the paper with the Graphite Aquarelle pencil. Place the paper on top of the watercolour paper (the shaded side facing downwards) and trace the outlines of the koi fish with the Castell 9000 graphite pencil. The outlines should now be visible on the watercolour paper.

Step 2

Start colouring the koi fish. In order to make the colours shine particularly brightly, you should layer several colours on top of each other. Shade the red back of the koi fish slightly with cadmium yellow 107, then add a little bit of dark cadmium orange 115. Do not shade the entire area, leave out certain parts. Finally add an intensive layer of pale geranium lake 121. Shade the sides and the head of the koi fish partly with warm grey II 271, then with light ultramarine 140, cadmium yellow and dark cadmium orange. Colour the mouth with dark cadmium orange and pale geranium lake.

Step 3

Work over the coloured areas with your wet paint brush. Make sure to work from light to dark. Pick up a little bit of black pigment directly from the pencil and draw the eyes. For accents and highlights you may also draw onto the wet areas directly with the pencil. (Please do not dip the pencils directly into the watercup.)

Step 4

Shade the red parts of the second koi fish the same way as the first fish. The dark red part consists of warm grey II, pale geranium lake and magenta 133. For the area below the eye use warm grey II, cadmium yellow and dark cadmium orange.

Step 5

Use warm grey II, light ultramarine and helio-blue reddish 151 for the blue area on the back of the second koi fish. Work over the area with a wet paint brush (see step 3).
Shade the red areas of the third koi fish the same way as the first and second. Shade the black area. Colour the rest of the koi fish with light ultramarine and warm grey II. Work over the area with a wet paint brush.

Step 6

Shade the red area in the middle with cadmium yellow, dark cadmium orange and pale geranium lake. Colour the mouth with magenta. Shade the sides with cadmium yellow, dark cadmium orange and a little bit of warm grey V. Work over the area with a wet paint brush.
Pick up a little bit of black pigment directly from the pencil and draw the eyes and the black areas. For accents and highlights you may also draw onto the wet areas directly with the pencil (see final result).