Sennelier Artists' Watercolors

Sennelier have been making watercolors in France since the end of the 19th century. These French watercolors are characterized by their luminosity and clarity of color. Sennelier uses a unique process to allow the pigments to retain their color intensity through the transparency of watercolors. They start with a base of raw gum arabic from Kordofan, Sudan. Unlike powedered gum arabic, these large intact chunks are dissolved in cold water slowly and gently in order to preserve the gum’s maximum binding strength, producing a solution very rich in resin. Honey is then added to this solution to provide luster. This extremely rich mixture, possessing high binding properties, is then given plasticity by the addition of glycerin.

The creamy binding solution is then mixed with pigments and finely ground. Sennelier’s special process involves soaking the pigments in purified water for 24 hours before mixing and grinding the pigments with the binding solution. This preliminary soaking allows the pigment and the binder to fuse more completely and lets the color’s hue fully develop. Sennelier Artists’ quality Watercolors are ground in the traditional fashion on granite grindstones that revolve slowly so that the color paste does not become heated, which would alter the purity of the color’s shade. The paste is also ground repeatedly until it achieves maximum fineness, facilitating smooth, even washes. After the paste passes stringent quality controls, the ground color is left to sit for several days before it is finally placed in a tube, ready for the artist to use.

Please note: The colors below are electronic approximations of the actual colors and may not match exactly. Please use for reference only.

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