Marie-Pierre Salé’s Watercolor: A History was published in 2020, translated from the French edition (L’Aquarelle). The publisher, Abbeville, described it in superlative terms: “The most comprehensive and best-illustrated history of watercolour painting ever published.” It’s certainly the best-illustrated history of the subject, and it was printed on premium Munken paper from Switzerland to showcase its 300 watercolour reproductions.
Prior to Salé’s Watercolor, the most recent book on the topic was A History of Watercolor, by Bernard Brett, published more than thirty years earlier in 1984. Brett’s book was nowhere near as lavish as Salé’s, though it was more international in scope, with chapters such as Watercolor Painting in the Far East and Islamic and Indian Miniatures. Salé, on the other hand, covers “the development of watercolor in the West”. (The first book on the topic, A Concise History of Watercolours by Graham Reynolds, was published in 1971.)
Salé, chief curator of prints and drawings at the Louvre in Paris, has written a beautiful and monumental history of European and American watercolours. Abbeville have also published an equally stunning history of pastel painting, The Art of the Pastel (L’art du pastel).
Prior to Salé’s Watercolor, the most recent book on the topic was A History of Watercolor, by Bernard Brett, published more than thirty years earlier in 1984. Brett’s book was nowhere near as lavish as Salé’s, though it was more international in scope, with chapters such as Watercolor Painting in the Far East and Islamic and Indian Miniatures. Salé, on the other hand, covers “the development of watercolor in the West”. (The first book on the topic, A Concise History of Watercolours by Graham Reynolds, was published in 1971.)
Salé, chief curator of prints and drawings at the Louvre in Paris, has written a beautiful and monumental history of European and American watercolours. Abbeville have also published an equally stunning history of pastel painting, The Art of the Pastel (L’art du pastel).