You just bought a new beautiful watercolor, now what? There are just a few important things to know about watercolor painting in order to keep it bright, vibrant, and flawless.

1. Get your painting framed with a protective glass plate. This is important, an ordinary frame without glass will leave your watercolors vulnerable to dust, smudges, water damage, etc. Did you know that watercolors can reconstitute themselves when water is added? This means that the paint can shift, lift, drip, etc. Glass front protects against water damage. It will also keep dust away. You can’t just dust a watercolor because paper is sensitive to marks and is a delicate surface. A well framed piece will also help keep out bugs that can damage the paper. It is very difficult to repair a damaged watercolor, so keep it protected.

2. Avoid direct sunlight. Watercolor paintings are sensitive to sunlight. Colors can fade and the paper can become brittle. I remember when I was working as an exhibition designer for the Halle Ford Museum. I went to pick up a collection of Hudson River School paintings from a private collector’s home. The owner had a number of beautiful oil paintings, but his pride and joy were his vibrant watercolors. He kept a sheet of paper rolled over the painting at all times and only lifted it when people wanted to see the piece. Well, this is a bit exaggerated, but you have to be careful of the light. The recommended light level for displaying watercolors in museums is 50 lux, recommended only for short exposure times. You can measure light levels with a simple camera meter. However, I would simply recommend keeping the painting out of direct sunlight and avoiding spotlight work. Remember, you bought the piece to enjoy it, so don’t worry too much. Just be careful.

3. Hang the painting away from household pollutants and high humidity areas. Do not hang watercolors over the stove, near the stove, or in the bathroom. Soot from stoves can damage artwork. Also, changes in humidity that occur in a bathroom or near a stove can cause moisture to build up inside the structure. Eventually, you may have a mold problem and have to do the work to have it professionally cleaned. Try to find a location with more consistent humidity levels.

4. If the business needs repair, find a professional. Keepers are trained to repair artwork and know how to do so scientifically. You can usually find a good ranger by contacting your local museum for recommendations. If you purchased your work directly from the artist, you can also try contacting that person and asking if they’d mind trying to repair the damage themselves.

That’s it. Beyond that, just relax and enjoy your watercolor painting!