Watercolor
There is a cap of 17 students for Watercolor class.
New students may join the watercolor class for the winter semester, but they will need to purchase all the supplies from last semester and get themselves up to speed.
Watercolor is a class that’s designed for students to learn by doing; therefore, they will be invited to dive right in, and (as Ms. Frizzle would say) take chances, make mistakes, and get messy! Class is divided into several smaller parts (although we won’t necessarily do all five every week):
Five-Minute Warm-up - Each class period will begin with students doing a five minute warm up activity, where they are shown an object (ex. a flower, a pinecone, etc.) and given five minute to paint what they “see”. This exercise will help with overworking, making decisions quickly, identifying colors/values, practicing painting what we actually see instead of what our brain tells us we see, and letting go of perfection.
Color Theory - We will be spending a small portion of each class period immersing ourselves in color. We will do this by working through the color exercises and meditations found in the book A Field Guide to Color by Lisa Solomon. This might sound boring, but what it really means we’re going to do is create and name our own colors, explore black watercolor paper, attempt to color match starburst wrappers (and eat the Starbursts of course!) and all kinds of fun, color related activities.
Service Opportunities - We want to show our students how art can be used for the benefit of others. We will be participating once a month in a program called Let’s Make Art Matter where we will paint postcards for people who could use some cheering up and send them in the mail. (Postcards will be sent anonymously with no return address given.)
Techniques/skills/styles - Using the book No Fail Watercolor by Mako we will spend a portion of each class exploring some of the skills and techniques of watercolor painting, like using salt to create texture, making a watery paint mess with spray bottles… on purpose! Trying our hand at abstract landscape, watercolor pencils, ink and wash, portraits, and en plein aire, and maybe we’ll even venture into the realm of gouache (pronounced goo-wash).
Any other painting activities that Sis. Swan thinks will be fun - These could be anything from playing watercolor musical chairs, to feeding (and painting) a venus fly trap, to walking to the duck pond to paint on location, to eating chips and salsa. Because creativity is fun and spontaneous.Homework - Expect 1 to 2 hours of homework per week.
Homework will typically be picking one online watercolor tutorial and following it (a list of recommended watercolor tutorials will be provided). Students will post their homework each week on the class Slack channel and students will be encouraged to give each other positive feedback.
Time | Ages 12+ | Cell |
Mentors Co Mentor Kenni Wilcox | Level Depth or Breadth? | Tuition $45 Winter Semester $20 |
Prerequisites
Before the first day of class, students need to watch the Let’s Make Art Watercolor Beginner Series, Episodes 1-5 (see the episode titles below). These 5 videos are an introduction and overview of watercolor and they are fantastic. Student’s don’t need to paint anything before the first class (unless they want to), just watch. We’ll go over any questions on the first day of class, but this way we can jump right into painting and skip a lot of talking, because talking about painting isn’t as fun as painting 🙂
- Watercolor Beginner Series Episode 1 - Materials (20 min)
- Watercolor Beginner Series Episode 2 - Color Theory (10 min)
- Watercolor Beginner Series Episode 3 - Techniques (30 min)
- Watercolor Beginner Series Episode 4 - Tips & Tricks (10 min)
- Watercolor Beginner Series Episode 5 - Textures (20 min)
Materials Required
Some of the students are taking this class for the second time and already have many of the materials they need that were purchased for them last year. So instead of buying all the supplies again for every student, I am going to provide a list of supplies that students will need to purchase for themselves. New students will need to purchase all of the supplies. Returning students should check their supplies and purchase only what they need. *Check your brushes! Paint brushes are like toothbrushes and should be replaced periodically, depending on how much you’ve painted with them. If your paint brushes are not making a fine point at the end, then it’s probably time for new ones. Here is a supply list.
Homework
Homework - Expect 1 to 2 hours of homework per week. Homework will typically be picking one online watercolor tutorial and following it (a list of recommended watercolor tutorials will be provided). Students will post their homework each week on the class Slack channel and students will be encouraged to give each other positive feedback.
Notes
All class communication will be done through a class Slack channel under the Students of ASA workspace. Students will need weekly access to Slack through the website or using the Slack app. An invite to this private channel will be sent out after registration.
Books Students Provide
Title: A Field Guide to Color A Watercolor Workbook
Required: yes - all year
Own or share with sibling? Can share
Notes: Purchase here on Amazon.
Title: No-Fail Watercolor The Ultimate Beginners Guide to Painting With Confidenc
Required: yes - all year
Own or share with sibling? Can share
Notes: Purchase here on Amazon.
Title: Gouache in 4 Easy Steps
Required: yes - winter
Own or share with sibling? Can share
Notes: Purchase here on Amazon.