Too Much of a Good Thing?

I want to go back and talk some more about my journey eliminating framing from watercolor. For my next challenge, I wanted to use a glossy finish that is applied as a liquid. This is a challenge since watercolor is water soluble even once dried on the paper. Previously, I applied a wax finish which was drier at application. In both cases, tried it first on some paintings I was not pleased with, so I would not be upset if my experiments failed.
I learned a few exciting things:

1. I could put a gloss finish over my watercolor paintings. (YAY!)
2. It brought back some of the brilliance the paint had when it was wet. (even better!)
3. There were wrong ways to do this...
4. Sometimes it actually takes away from the painting

Watercolor has a value shift when it dries (in art lingo, value is a measurement of light to dark). The colors are lighter and less brilliant when they dry. I think of this as finding a beautiful stone in a stream bed. I pull it out of the water and it is full of beautiful color. I put it in my pocket to take it home. Later, when I pull it out of my pocket, I wonder what I saw in it. Once it dries it looks duller and less colorful. Watercolor paint will also be less brilliant when it dries.
I wanted to see if I could get some of that brilliance back in my watercolor paintings by applying a glossy finish. And yes, I could!

One problem – even though I apply an initial layer of spray varnish to set the pigments, they occasionally smear. I have to move carefully and strategically to avoid ruining a painting.
Finally, I learned that sometimes the gloss finish actually detracts from the painting. I used a glossy finish on a fragmented piece painted exclusively with an amethyst pigment (pictured below). The pigment is made up of ground up amethyst and has a natural sparkle. Unfortunately, I find that the gloss finish interrupts the sparkle of the pigment.

Overall, I am over the moon about cracking the code on how to make my paintings brilliant and well protected by applying varnish whether it be matte or gloss.

Below is a photo of Amethyst Anemone. It is a fragmented piece that would have been better served with a matte finish that would have better highlighted the pigment's natural sparkle. We live and learn.

See this painting and 10 more original works at Ruckus Coffee Gallery from June 9 through June 29.