Human Involvement as a Variable in Handmade Watercolor Pigment Behavior

In the making, formation, and long-term storage of handmade watercolor paints, materials do not exist in an isolated or fully automated state. From the initial selection of a pigment to its mixing with binder systems, mulling, pan filling, solidification, and long-term storage, human participation and decisions are constantly applied to the material.

Therefore, the human operator is a key variable within the pigment behavior system. This variable is not a mere mechanical tool, but an active observer, selector, controller, and responder who stays involved throughout the entire life cycle of the material.

1. Early Variables: Pigment Selection, Binder Matching, and Material Transfer

Before a pigment enters the making process, the starting point of material behavior already includes human selection and judgment.

• Pigment Selection and Screening: Dry powdered pigments naturally differ in particle structure, density, water compatibility, odor, surface adhesion, and binding ability. Not all powders are naturally suited for a watercolor system. Through initial observation and testing, human judgment determines how different pigments perform in a given system and decides whether they should enter the scope of observation. Without human choice, pigments do not automatically enter a specific paint-making pathway.
• Binder Matching and Adjustment: Pigments alone cannot form a complete watercolor paint. Once in the liquid stage, different pigments interact differently with binder systems:
  • Some combine smoothly;
  • Some tend to form clumps or leave visible dry powder;
  • Some create significant air bubbles or take longer to disperse evenly.
  Human observation guides the matching and ratio adjustments between pigment and binder, continuously controlling the transition from raw materials to a mixed liquid state.
• Physical Participation During Transfer: When transferring pigment powders from original containers into mixing vessels, particle weight and dust movement vary. Light pigments easily float into the air, while heavier particles stay in place. Humans directly face these physical characteristics, and human actions dictate the timing and placement of the material.

2. Mid-stage Variables: Stirring Feedback, Mulling Dynamics, and Filling Control

During processing, a continuous feedback loop forms between human senses and material changes through touch and sight.

• Physical and Sensory Feedback During Stirring and Mulling:
  • Resistance and Tactile Feedback: Tools transfer internal feedback—such as particle feel, clumping, liquid thickness, and friction between tools, table, and containers—directly to the hand. This allows the maker to feel changes in the material's state.
  • Visual Observation and Response: Observing remaining powder, bubbles, foam, or paint clinging to container walls determines whether to continue applying mechanical force.
  • The Optional Nature of Mulling: Mulling is not a mandatory step for every pigment; it is a stage dictated by the pigment's current state. The decision to start, maintain, or stop mulling depends on human perception of resistance and smoothness.
• Pigment Effects on the Body and Direct Contact:
  • Airborne Dust and Avoidance Responses: Light dust floating in the air during stirring or mulling triggers natural human responses (such as stepping back, pausing work, or adjusting breathing).
  • Skin Adhesion and Staining: Some pigments adhere strongly to skin and leave noticeable stains. Human skin contact and subsequent cleanup become part of the material interaction.
• Control of Layers, Timing, and Structure During Pan Filling:
  • Layering and Time Intervals: Different pigments dry at different speeds. Humans control the time interval before pouring a new liquid layer. Fresh liquid may soften and re-activate the semi-dried layer beneath; the time elapsed between pours directly shapes the internal solid structure.
  • Responding to Structural Irregularities: When issues like rapid surface drying, internal cavities, wall detachment, extreme shrinkage, trapped bubbles, or liquid overflow occur, the material cannot correct itself. Human observation spots these changes and decides whether to pause, proceed, or intervene.

3. Late Variables: Solid Form, Storage State, and Environmental Response

Once paint is filled into pans and solidifies, human participation extends into long-term storage and environmental monitoring.

• Solid Formation and Surface Texture Recording: Upon drying completely, pigments reveal varied forms—shrinkage, cracks, bubble marks, internal cavities, surface textures, and sticking to or detaching from pan walls. Humans observe and record these final forms to judge if the structure has reached a stable state.
• Continuous Observation in Liquid and Solid Storage:
  • Liquid Phase Changes: During static liquid storage prior to full solid formation, pigments may experience settling, separation, clumping, rising bubbles, wall adhesion, gas formation, or mold.
  • Environmental Factors: High humidity can re-activate certain dried pigments, while prolonged heat or light exposure can cause secondary surface cracking.
  Humans select the storage environment (temperature, humidity, light) and monitor physical changes to determine if the material remains suitable for further observation.

4. Surrounding Maintenance and the Two-Way Interaction Loop

Beyond handling the pigment directly, humans maintain the continuity of the entire system and its workspace.

• Residue and Cross-Contamination Management: Pigment left on mulling slabs, tools, and containers will not vanish on its own. Residue from a previous color can contaminate the next batch, altering future observations. Cleaning tools and workspace indirectly preserves the independence of each pigment's behavior.
• Asymmetric Interactive Relationship: The entire process operates as a continuous loop: Human action/selection → Material feedback → Human observation and judgment → Updated human action → Further material change. Pigments cannot choose when to be picked, mixed, mulled, poured, stopped, or stored. All material responses occur as reactions to human involvement.

Summary

Throughout the making of handmade watercolors, human involvement spans the full life cycle of the pigment—from dry powder to liquid system, solid structure, and long-term storage. Humans act as selectors, judges, controllers, observers, and maintainers. The final state of any handmade paint is not produced by the pigment alone, but formed through the continuous interaction between pigment properties, binder systems, tools, environment, and human participation.

Over the years, the behavior of different pigments has been observed and recorded through the process of making handmade watercolor paints. Video recordings of part of this content have been archived in the pigment behavior records. The results of these pigment behaviors are organized and presented as art materials on VHaquarell.