Find out how much enjoyment there is to be had from painting in watercolour with artist Alison Drake. Watercolour is the favoured medium of many leisure painters and this workshop will take you step by step through the process of painting a landscape in watercolour.
Relax and learn all the skills needed – from selecting materials and equipment, to mixing and working with paint and using a variety of techniques to achieve different effects. Get a feel for painting with Alison Drake who will guide through developing a landscape as you build your skills and confidence.
What to expect
Time at ArtisOn is designed to take you away from it all and provide the environment, the time and the guidance you need to create. You can expect a warm welcome, skilled and friendly tutors plus the chance to meet like-minded people keen to share ideas and experiences. You can even leave us to clear up the mess! There will usually be two workshops going on and we encourage everyone to mingle and be nosey about what the other workshop is up to.
Arrive in time to meet other participants over a cup of tea or coffee and biscuits before beginning your session at the appointed time. There will be a mid-morning break for refreshments and a chance to talk over progress with others. Lunch is usually around 12:45 for about 45 mins – you can expect a homemade 2 course lunch. The main course will be delicious but don’t overdo it as the puds are usually worth waiting for! There will be a further afternoon break with the most wonderful cakes from Roots & Fruits Home Bakery, a North Yorkshire micro-bakery producing handmade bread and cakes. All food and refreshments are included in the price of the workshop.
Finish time is given as a target – there are occasions when the session may overrun so do let us know if you need to be away promptly.
We aim for your day to be a real treat… of course you could always learn a new skill in a shed or a draughty village hall with a curly sandwich, but we want you to have more fun than that! So we make it a day being looked after, with good food, good company and great inspiration!
What you’ll need to bring with you
You are about to enter the world of watercolour painting. It can involve a lot of gear!
If you have them or can get hold of them, the following summarises what you will need. If there is anything you can’t get hold of, don’t panic, we will usually have some available to borrow.
We have boards available to use but if you have a support that you normally use, bring it along.
The following list is Alison’s list of recommended equipment and paints to bring along:
- Masking fluid and an old brush with which to apply it.
- Masking tape or Scotch tape 2 inch thick
- Watercolour paper – preferably “Arches” or Saunders Waterford minimum 140lbs weight, NOT surface is best for flower painting.
Paper below 200lb will need to be pre-stretched to prevent “cockling” when wet. This means submerging in water for 5-10 mins before laying out on a drawing board and fastening with tape to dry.
Thicker papers (200-300lb) do not require stretching but are more expensive. We will have some pre-stretched paper available if you are not confident with this process.
A selection of brushes – key brushes that Alison recommends are:
No: 16, 10 8, 6, 4, 2
Round brushes
Filbert wash brush
½” flat brush
No.2 Rigger brush
If you are short of a few of these brushes, there will be some that you can borrow.
N.B. Alison also sells a complete Starter set of brushes consisting of six brushes in various sizes and uses and it comes with its own brush case. The cost is £34.00. Please pre-order the brush set before the class if you would like one.
- If you have a roll of kitchen paper plus an old rag or a thin flat sponge, these are also very useful.
- A paint palette with a lid to hold the fresh paint and mixing palettes for mixing colours. Alison recommends daisy shaped palettes for mixing colours as they are deeper and hold more paint
- 2 x Water pots - 1 for holding clean water and 1 for washing out your brushes. We have plenty of water jars available if you don’t have your own.
- Paint - use artist quality paints in tubes – good quality paint may be bit more expensive but it will make a big difference to your painting.
Alison’s recommended colour palette for this floral Workshop:
Aureolin (Yellow), Opera Rose or Permanent Rose, Phthalo Turquoise (Winsor & Newton) or Helio Turquoise (Shcminke). Quinacridone Gold. Burnt Sienna or Burnt Umber, French Ultra Marine, Cobalt Blue.
- Plastic eraser or putty rubber.
- Drawing pencils HB, 6B or a Graphite stick.
Please give us a call if you have any worries about any of the above.
