How long does a painting take?
One of the most common questions I am asked is, ‘How do you know when to stop painting?’ Not many people ask ‘How long does a painting take?’, but this very question came up recently and is worth giving some thought to. In short, it depends how you paint, what you paint and which medium you choose to use. For the purposes of this article, I am going to concentrate on watercolour, as the question was asked in that context.
Watercolour is a very flexible medium and it can be used to portray carefully executed intricate detail, as well as quick and lively impressionistic work. Some painters take weeks to complete a piece of work, others just a few minutes. The essence of how long it takes is directly proportional to what you are doing; for example, if you are meticulously painting every
