Welcome to Watercolor: A Beginners Guide to Contemporary Botanical Watercolor

Welcome! My name is Natalie Martin and I'm a watercolor artist based on the Surf Coast in Victoria, Australia. This is my first online course, and where else do you start, but at the beginning? In this professionally filmed, self-paced beginners guide to contemporary watercolour, we start from the foundations and build your skills and confidence towards painting a botanical specimen from observation. Essentially, I have broken down my own process into accessible, bite-size pieces ready for you to devour. 

Working through a series of technique based exercises, I share all my best tips. We'll look at getting the paint moving fluidly on page, how to hold your brush, manage water control, swirl and twirl your brush, relaxing into the process and much more!

We’ll delve into the materials you'll need and how best to work with them. I believe sharing my experience and why I use and recommend certain things over others can help inform you as an artist and your own choices. My philosophy is to build your kit gradually, rather than outlay too much initially. Discover and play with the medium first. Find your feet in it and tailor your materials accordingly.

My own style is loose, organic, flowy and all about creating an expression of the subject on the page - not replicating it exactly. I talk about where I find inspiration and how working from observation has really informed my practice. I also encourage you to find your own creative voice.

Quick note: I am Australian, and we spell watercolor with a 'u' in it. I've adapted the class to suit this largely US based audience, I may miss the occasional 'u' though!

Outcomes:

• Fundamental skills using watercolor
• An understanding of watercolor as a medium and necessary materials
• A final project - a botanical watercolor painting

 

Downloadable files included:

• Materials List
• Course Notes
• Emergency Reference Photos

I've also provided a list of links to individual products in the Projects and Resources section.

• Introduction
• Let's Talk Materials
• Getting Started
• Techniques Part 01
• Techniques Part 02
• Exploring Brush Strokes
• Simple Shapes
• Let's get Botanical
• The Wrap Up