Watercolor Syllabus
1: Introduction & Materials
Overview of watercolor materials (papers, brushes, paints), water control, palettes. Importance of value vs color.
Suggested Materials:
https://www.dickblick.com/lists/blicku/H2CXPHG7BBWXP
Exercises:
– Swatch every pigment.
– Create a 5–step value scale with one pigment.
Overview:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tP8Z-n0ppBM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3YSKH_-nZSI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0yJioQF9Zyc
2: Brushwork & Edges
Wet-on-wet vs wet-on-dry, strokes, edges (hard, soft, lost).
Exercises:
– Practice straight lines, curves, dots, dry brush, graded washes.
– Edge chart: hard, soft, lifted, blended.
Assignment: Small study of simple geometric shapes with varied edges.
Video: 5 Easy & Essential Watercolor Techniques
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOSaQ50xeAM
3: Color Mixing & Theory
Warm vs cool primaries, complementary contrast, optical mixing, limited palette.
Exercises:
– Create color wheel from primaries.
– Mix neutrals using complementary colors.
Assignment: Still life with 3–color limited palette.
Color mixing lesson for beginners – the Watercolor Color Wheel
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FI2OYh9cn3Q
4: Value & Light/Shadow
Light logic, highlights, cast shadows, reflected light.
Exercises:
– Paint sphere or cube using one color.
Assignment: Monochrome still life study.
Values – light to dark
5: Washes & Glazing
Flat wash, graded wash, variegated wash, glazing for depth.
Exercises:
– Paint 3 types of washes.
– Practice layering transparent colors.
Assignment: Landscape sky with layered foreground shapes.
Video: 6 Steps to Successful Watercolour Painting
6: Still Life Painting
Lecture Notes: Observing form, light on objects, reflective surfaces.
Exercises: Paint a simple still life
7: Still Life Painting 2
Lecture Notes: Painting transparent objects
Exercises:
– Transparency practice (glass, fruit, jars).
Assignment: Still life painting from direct observation.
Video: How to paint glass in Watercolor
8: Landscape Painting
Aerial perspective, layering distance, skies & foreground.
Exercises:
– Paint a sky with cloud variations.
– Layer background, middleground, foreground.
Assignment: Full landscape study.
Video: Beginning Watercolor Landscape Tutorial
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3fakTpwr1Xw
(Values in landscape painting)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YrUUDBWh8wI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nGc8RhP-OZc
9: Composition & Design
Rule of thirds, balance, focal point, negative space.
Exercises:
– 3 thumbnail sketches from reference photo.
Assignment: Paint one thumbnail as a finished study.
Video:
Videos:
10: More Color
Split Primary colors
Color Bias
Create Split primary color wheel
Identify colors in a painting
Videos:
Colour Mixing Basics with Gouache
11: Expressive Painting
Looseness vs control, wet-in-wet freedom, expressive strokes.
Exercises:
– Quick expressive studies of reference images.
Assignment: Freer interpretation of a landscape or floral.
12: Expressive Techniques
Video:
13: Master Study
Do a study of a master painting
Confer with me about the painting you want to study