My classes usually run weekly for 6 weeks over zoom. We’ll complete a full painting each week of a variety of subjects. We’ll also practice various watercolor techniques in preparation such as values, washes, edges and texture effects like dry brush and splattering. All classes are recorded in HD and will be available for you to rewatch. There will also be an online comments forum to share our work and thoughts.
Subjects will be varied and examples can be seen in the product gallery for each class.
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Why Watercolor Classes Online?
In years gone by I learned an enormous amount by watching the experts paint. Back then it was through watching DVDs but now we can stream live and people can see the whole process as it unfolds. I firmly believe that watching and listening to someone paint in real time can show us things that can’t be conveyed by step-by-step methods or edited, sped up footage. I may not be an expert (yet!) but being able to watch how I mix paint, use the brushes and water to create paintings can show you things that are almost impossible to describe in words.
What Will We Paint? And Why?
I paint a variety of subjects but we’ll focus on watercolor landscapes, still life, and birds. I mainly paint realistic watercolor but with a loose style with simplified detail and lost edges. In my journey to become a better painter I have found that focusing on realistic watercolor paintings has allowed me to see the world around me better and, maybe counter-intuitively, allowed me to become more expressive. Concentrating on truly seeing what is in front of me has allowed me to make expressive choices that I couldn’t have made otherwise.
Learning to paint is hugely rewarding but I won’t lie and say it’s easy. However, each of the lessons will push us slowly towards our goal. Each small win will take us closer to being a successful watercolor artist. There will be frustrations along the way but every piece of work we put in helps.
What are the Video Lessons Like?
I take a measured, step-by-step approach when teaching. I take care to go through identifying values, color, and compositional choices. If you would like to see an example please have a look at my video lessons on youtube. A list of my free online videos is also available on this site here.
What Materials Will I Need?
You will need at a minimum some good 100% cotton watercolor paper, a pointed round watercolor brush and some paint. Trying to learn watercolor is hard at the best of times and doubly hard with cheap materials. Having said that you don’t need to spend 100s of dollars to get going. A couple of sheets of good watercolor paper, a good quality synthetic watercolor brush and some watercolor paints and you’re ready to go.
My full list of recommend materials is here
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