Watercolours Summer Term 2024
with Sophie Newnham
Watercolours are a pleasure to work with, whether adding a wash of colour to a drawing, layering to find new colours and shades or as a way to create delicate textures and form.
This medium has subtlety, translucency and an element of surprise. Over the course, we will also be looking at a handful of artists who have found new and interesting ways to use watercolours.
Open to all levels
Summer Term 2024 Course Programme
Outside in Nature: Woods & Grasslands
inspired by the work of Per Adolfson: working with watercolour, inks, coloured pencils and gouache
Monday evenings: 22, 29 April; 6, 13 May
Tuesday mornings: 23, 30 April; 7, 14 May
Per Adolfsen Forest: A Winters’ Tale
Adolfsen’s use of precise and unconventional colours in impressionistic contexts opens up a world of heightened sensitivity and otherworldy landscapes.
Week 1 Monochrome watercolour/ gouache washes and shadow. Drawing a landscape with perspective. Graphite and inks.
Week 2 Watercolour/ gouache washes over landscapes, mark-making, layering coloured pencil and chalks.
Week 3 Watercolour backgrounds landscapes- coloured pencils. Directional marks and details vs loose softer colours.
Week 4 Fine-tuning landscapes or option to start tree/ lawn image.
Old Master Drawings: Flowers & Landscapes
Inspired by the work of Leonardo da Vinci and Rembrandt Van Rijn
Monday evenings: 20, 27 May; 10, 17 June
Tuesday mornings: 21, 28 May; 11, 18 June
Leonardo da Vinci Lily (detail)
Week 5 Rembrandt. Drawing landscapes. Watercolour and inks
Week 6 Rembrandt. Watercolour/ gouache washes over landscapes, mark-making
Week 7 Leonardo. Watercolour backgrounds, muted tones, ink work
Week 8 Leonardo. Watercolour backgrounds, muted tones, ink work. Detailing
Flat Perpectives
Inspired by the work of Wendy Jacob
Monday evenings: 24 June; 1, 8, 15 July
Tuesday mornings: 25 June; 2, 9, 16 July
Wendy Jacob Yellow Table with Peach Cloth
Evoking Morandi in her focus on unassuming objects painted with meditative care in soft, harmonious colours, Wendy Jacob’s palette also extends into vibrant hues. Selective flattening animates her compositions, adding to a sense of joyful discovery in the everyday.
Week 9 Mixing the palette, soft tones, subtlety. Painting simplified objects
Week 10 Giving contrast to objects.
Week 11 Playing with colour harmonies, colour opposites.
Week 12 Painting a still-life composition.
Skills covered: From drawing to watercolour painting. Painting with washes vs detailing; Fine-tuning our watercolours with pencils and fine-liner pens; Adding depth, seeing a range of tones; highlighting.
All necessary materials will be provided for your first session.
Materials provided throughout the course: Pencils- Hs to Bs; rubbers; basic paint, palettes and water holders.
Materials to bring with you: a range of watercolour brushes of various sizes; a block of watercolour paper; a simple set of watercolour paints; a set of fine-liner coloured inks; a bottle of masking fluid, and paper towels.
““Sophie took us through all the key skills we needed for drawing and painting from nature and somehow I now have the confidence to just try drawing things around me. Before this I had no idea how to even start. Thank you!”
Undecided? contact us to arrange for an initial taster. If you decide to continue to the end of term, the taster is deducted from the fee for the remaining sessions.
For a taster session, all materials are included. For regular students, we can advise you on obtaining materials at the taster.