About

This intensive watercolor workshop will introduce you to simple yet effective ways to bring boats and water into your watercolor compositions. You'll learn how to draw the curvatures of boats, study how reflections work, and paint a series of studies as well as a composed scene by exploring different combinations of boat types, water surfaces, and lighting. Through exercises and activities, you'll learn the fundamentals of working with the watercolor medium, from paint consistency to brushstrokes and color mixing. Beginners are welcome!

• Day 1: Learn to observe and draw boats at various angles. Practice – shading the boats and painting their reflections to suggest different light sources and water surface types (you only need pencil, eraser, and one neutral color).
• Day 2: Build upon the basic boat shape and draw different types of boats in “mini-scenes” with different backgrounds. Develop one of your mini-scenes and turn it into a larger, composed scene with color. In this process you'll learn how to maintain your tonal range and focal points and not get distracted by too many colors.

Details

• Beginners welcome. No experience in drawing or painting required. However, any experience with watercolor will help enhance the outcome of your final painting. If you're a seasoned watercolor painter, this will help strengthen your fundamentals while deepening your skills.
• Bring a lunch each day for our 45-minute break around noon. There is a microwave and refrigerator on the lower level.

Materials

• A $20 materials fee, included in the price of the class, covers watercolor paper, 100% cotton, cold pressed.
• You should bring:
• • Brushes: 1 large round brush of ~0.5” in diameter for applying wash, 1 small round brush ~0.125” in diameter, or rigger brush for finer details.
  • Palette: number of wells does not matter, as long as it has generous mixing area.
  • 2B or softer pencil, eraser.
  • Watercolor paint set. Only monochromatic colors (blacks or browns) are needed for the first 3 classes. The last class requires color. These basic colors or equivalence will do: Burnt Sienna, French Ultramarine Blue, Alizarin Crimson, Yellow Ochre, Cadmium Yellow.
  • Rag or old towel for soaking up water.
  • Cup or jug for water.
  • (Optional) easel or painting surface.

Class Policies

Ages 14 and up are welcome.