Vintage view: Antique watercolour

Kya deLongchamps says condition and quality is vital in a good, antique watercolour buy.

There is a luminous intensity to a well-painted watercolour that’s unmatched by other media. Still, you may have noticed even quite nice 19th century pictures sell for less than similar quality oil paintings, unless executed by a highly desirable artist or master.

Lost like postage stamps, modest watercolours are littered up to the rafters on the walls of big salesrooms. Despite the difficulty in executing them successfully, serious collectors still regard watercolour as easier to handle than oil paint, and they are championed more by illustrators and amateurs than great artists.