by theartist | Apr 20, 2020 | Advice, Drawing tutorials, Oil tutorials, Still life, Tutorials, Watercolour tutorials
Choosing what to paint or draw for a still life can feel overwhelming, however it’s such great practice for observation, composition and deciding what to include and leave out of a picture. It’s also a great way to practice rendering tone, texture and...
by theartist | Jan 12, 2020 | Advice, Tutorials
I sometimes get asked about the brushes I use, so I thought I’d write a post about them. I have to say first however, that every painter will feel differently about their brushes, and every brush has a different feel depending on what paint is used and what...
by theartist | Jan 3, 2020 | Tutorials
Over the years I’ve written quite a few posts about using watercolour paints. I love to share what I’ve learnt over the years of using this medium as it isn’t always obvious how to use it and I’ve made more than my fair share of...
by theartist | Jan 14, 2019 | Tutorials
I’ve had quite a few enquiries about running lessons, so I thought I’d bite the bullet and start planning some group sessions. I’m thinking of running a very small group class in my home (4-5 people) in drawing and watercolour, on either a Wednesday...
by theartist | Jan 2, 2019 | Inspiration, Tutorials
Happy New Year everyone! I’m looking forward to another year of blogging about my work and how I do it, but I thought I’d start off with a summary of some of my most popular blog posts so far, just in case you missed them: 1. How to choose and mix colours...
by theartist | Aug 26, 2018 | Tutorials, Watercolour paintings, Watercolour tutorials
When you’re planning a painting in watercolour (rather than a study or a practice piece), it’s really important to work out how you will tackle it. You need to think about highlights, light and dark, texture and detail and what order you’re going to...
by theartist | May 24, 2018 | Reviews and recommendations, Watercolour paintings, Watercolour tutorials
Finding the right watercolour paper to use can be tricky. They vary widely, and the paper you use affects the marks that you make far more than the type of canvas you use affects oil or acrylic paint. How to use watercolour paper In general, water will make your paper...
by theartist | Mar 13, 2018 | Advice, Tutorials
When I first started painting I was very definite that I wanted to learn all by myself without going to learn from a tutor. The reason I gave myself was that I didn’t want to pick up the style of that particular tutor and use it in place of developing my own....
by theartist | Jan 23, 2018 | Oil paintings, Oil tutorials, Still life
One of the hardest challenges for a painter (I think) is painting in oils from life, but as with any challenge it’s something you’ll learn a lot from. Here is how I painted some lemons from life in one sitting (alla prima). I set up my lemons on a very...
