Sargent - The Watercolours: How Dulwich Picture Gallery's new exhibition captures a much-loved artform

John Singer Sargent isn’t famous for his watercolours, but he made a lot of them.

When he travelled around the world, he often captured what he saw via the medium of watercolour painting, and this week Dulwich Picture Gallery opened the first major UK exhibition of them in over a hundred years.

Sargent: The Watercolours features 80 paintings from the artist, known more widely as a portraitist. Described as “absorbing and pleasurable” by our critic Matthew Collings in his four star review, it features en plein air paintings of sights from Venice to the Alps.

The exhibition has been pieced together with works from over 30 lenders, suggesting that even if his watercolours were dismissed as frivolities by critics, they are much-loved by art lovers across the world.

In fact, it unites Sargent with painters across the world who love to paint watercolours as a hobby. The ever popular artform is adaptable enough to be done anywhere, whether in a London park or at a kitchen table, hence why it’s so popular with amateur art groups.

Jill Leman, recently elected to be the first female president of the Royal Watercolour Society which Sargent himself was once a member of, thinks part of its popularity comes down to the fact it’s the first paint we encounter as children, “watching colours spread and mix on wet paper, creating wonderful patterns and imaginary worlds,” she says.

As we get older, and a hobby becomes something you do outside of your everyday work, painting becomes a way of expressing your creative side, lowering stress and enjoying yourself.”

“Through painting, you can go to a class or on holiday to meet other enthusiasts, visit exhibitions and always have an interest which is challenging and creative,” she says.

Sargent himself developed his watercolour technique over a number of painting expeditions in Europe, where he could go outside and be free from the constraints of the studio. Leman’s advice is also read books and magazines on watercolour painting, visit exhibitions and museums, attend workshops, and then, of course, get painting.

The Royal Watercolour Society has an archive of past and present member’s work, including Sargent’s Bed of a Glacier Torrent, which is on display in Dulwich Picture Gallery’s exhibition. Sargent was a member from 1904 to 1925, but the society has also counted Peter Blake, Charles Ginner and David Jones amongst previous members.

“Many contemporary artists today - David Hockney, for example - use watercolour in exciting and innovative ways, but would not label themselves ‘watercolour artists’,” Leman explains. “They are artists who use watercolour as part of their professional practice.”

There are plenty of ways to unleash your passion for the watercolour paintbrush in London. The Royal Watercolour Society holds a number of courses, talks, competitions and demonstrations.

If you’d rather just gaze on other people’s handiwork, the society’s home is the Bankside Gallery (next door to Tate Modern), and hosts a number of exhibitions.

Sargent: The Watercolours runs until October 8 at Dulwich Picture Gallery; dulwichpicturegallery.org.uk

Find out more about the Royal Watercolour Society at royalwatercoloursociety.co.uk