old trick, new to me: drawing with clear water

We were in the Toronto area on a business trip the other week, had a half day free, and thus: The Soldier’s Tower at the University of Toronto Queens Park campus. 

The watercolor continues to reveal new properties to me. I had a
small breakthrough on this one, finally seeing the advantages of
wetting the paper with clear water. In this case, the trick is
mostly visible in the sky and the foreground.

I cut around the
silhouette of the tower with clear water, and floated in areas of color to make the sky and the pavement. It really does allow
the first wash to bloom organically, without leaving the
sharp edges of your wet area. Glad I finally experimented with that.
It’s a useful addition to the arsenal.