The Artist

"I perceive the world around me through a type of mental watercolor filter. I see a wet reflection on a street, the fractured glint of sunlight on water, sunlight off the surface of a peacock's neck or grasses in a field and I instantly try to visualize how I would recreate that effect on paper… with the fewest possible strokes. If you study my paintings closely you will see that what may appear as complex detail from a distance, is in fact created from very simple brushstrokes using the natural impressionistic roughness of the painting surface to create the illusion of detail and form. "
Portrait of artist | Member of Artists for Conservation

David Rankin is a professional watercolor painter. He is a graduate of the Cleveland Institute of Art and a successful author and lecturer. His watercolors have been featured in numerous watercolor books & magazines and in many one-man exhibitions and over 60 museum exhibitions across North America as well as in Japan and Sweden.

David is one of the true modern-day masters of transparent watercolor and he exudes a dynamic passion for the medium in his lectures, demos, and class instruction as well as in his own studio or field work.

He is one of the most effective watercolor teachers in the world today. When teaching, his main emphasis is to get watercolor painters to pay more attention to developing good sound watercolor technique in order to rapidly upgrade their skills.

Recent Artwork

Edit Artwork | Wallhanging by David Rankin | Artists for Conservation

Soaring on Thermals

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Yellowstone Mid-Winter Melt

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Morning on the Chagrin

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Warp Speed

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On the Way to the Camel Fair

Edit Artwork | Wallhanging by David Rankin | Artists for Conservation

River Ice Abstractions