Painting trees and leaves Watercolor Demonstration
About Sandrine Pelissier
I grew up in France but have been living in Canada for the last 12 years, I am currently located in North Vancouver and work from a studio on Pemberton Avenue.
Watercolor is my medium of choice because of the unique way it allows me to render light. The transparency of this medium can make it look like the painting is lit from behind and the light is shining through the paper In my portraits, I like to tell stories about the people around me. I am very interested in childhood fantasy or fairy tales (I wish it would snow Flowers, Hair Balloon, Georgia, the Spanish dress and the Eclectus Parrot). I also like to induce a dialogue with the viewer in some paintings dealing more with introspection and mood (Mixed, In the studio).
Those portraits are not about likeness or knowing the people that are being painted, as I see my models as actors in a movie, they are the faces that will allow me to tell a story or to show emotions. Those faces are a source of endless fascination and I find the subtlety that can be achieved with watercolor well suited to the complexity of the human face.
My technique involves the accumulation of many transparent layers of watercolor. Then I like to incorporate mixed media in the background, work sometimes with some contouring. I also sometimes like to add some drawing on top of the painting or some graphic elements…
Lesson on Painting Rocks with Watercolor
About Steve Fleming
Good art is the result of hard work and dedication. It only happens when the artist finds his or her own story to tell and then learns to do so with his or her own unique language.
I am an artist who works in watercolor and acrylic, and I teach both for The Art League in Alexandria, Virginia, as well as workshops across the country and abroad. My goal as an artist is to be creative; my goal as a teacher is to help my students learn to interpret the world around them, not to promote the belief the goal of art is the perfect rendering of a subject. One of my core messages: art is a creative process and is not just the sum total of the work we sell. In this era of digital cameras, I caution artists to look — really look both inside and outside — for the subject matter that lights our artistic fires. Otherwise, our work will be lacking everything but technique.
How to Paint Strawberries – A Watercolour Demo
About John Fisher
I was born and educated in England, graduating from the Luton School of Arts (now Barnfield College) in 1945. It was my hope to become a graphic artist, but at the end of the Second World War returning service men and women had first crack at the few jobs available, and rightly so. I took a number of jobs while I tried to break into my chosen field, and ended up being a reluctant carpenter. Many years passed and I emigrated to Canada in 1952, married a Canadian woman, started a family, and in 1955 finally started on a career which took in graphic arts, owner of my own graphics arts company, art director at an advertising agency, and careers in marketing, advertising and public relations.
I wish I could claim that my passion for art burned brightly throughout those years, but alas, the need to make a living took prominence. As with many people, I always promised myself that when I retired I would get back to painting again. That time came in 1989, when my wife and I were living the winter months in our condo in Destin, Florida. Robert Long, a talented watercolour artist, was offering private lessons from his nearby condo. He was my mentor, and made my retirement years infinitely richer.
In those days Robert taught only technique, and there were rarely more than four to six of us in those early classes. From Robert I regained my interest in photography as an adjunct to painting, and as the cliche goes – I never looked back. I have had many paintings accepted and hung in exhibitions in Florida and Ontario, where I now live. I’ve won some prizes, come first in some exhibitions, and occasionally won the Citizens’ Choice awards. But I mainly paint for fun – hence the choice of name for this site.
Watercolor Floral Demo – “Nymphaea”
About the Artist
Laurie Asahara was raised on the Big Island of Hawaii and grew up within the vivid floral palette of the lush tropics. Laurie’s art reflects her impressions of the areas of the Western U.S. where she has lived: Hawaii, the desert southwest, northern California, western Washington, and Idaho. Having been a floral painter for many years, Laurie took an interest in portrait painting and now captures the diverse collection of personalities she finds in Eagle, Idaho where she now resides. Laurie had an earlier career as a practicing attorney, but now devotes full time to her art.
Artist’s Statement
I am a floral and portrait painter working predominantly in watercolor. This agile medium is ideal for layering pigment into luminous washes and creating stunning depth of color. Rendering the elements of sunlight, shadow, and reflected light with transparent pigment creates a fascinating dimensionality on the surface of the paper.
Mixed Media Collage Lesson – “God’s Fruit”
About The Artist
Brenda Swenson is the artist author of two books, Keeping a Watercolor Sketchbook (Award of Excellence Finalist) and Steps to Success in Watercolor. Her paintings and sketches have been featured in Splash 11, 12 & 14, Artistic Touch 4, Watercolor Artist, Watercolor Magazine, Watercolor Highlights, Quarterly Magazine, Wheels of Time and numerous other publications.
Brenda has been awarded signature membership in WW, NWWS, SDWS and she has won numerous awards for her paintings. An active participant in the arts community she has served on the board of directors for the National Watercolor Society and Watercolor West. She is in demand to demonstrate and teach her painting and sketching techniques to groups nationwide and abroad.
Visit Brenda’s Website Below:
Watercolor Painting Demo – “Spirit Animates Eternal Years”
About the Artist
I began my watercolor journey in 1975. At that that time, I was a Captain in the United States Air Force and working as an instructor pilot and flight examiner at Altus AFB, OK. It was a change from my previous assignment where I was gone from home, about half of the time. At Altus, I trained Air Force pilots to fly the C-141 aircraft—a four engine jet about the size of a medium size airliner. Our time was spent in the local area—flying training sorties out of the airbase, and consequently, I had a lot of time at home. Since I was home more often than not, I got connected to the base art’s center and learned of a watercolor workshop to be held in the spring. I promptly signed up because watercolor was a medium I had always wanted to explore.
Journeys are strange things—they are strange because sometimes you don’t even know you are about to begin a journey, and then one day it dawns you that something has changed in your life. That certainly is true of my watercolor journey. When I signed up for that workshop, I didn’t have the slightest clue about what changes it would weave in my life over the next 37 years.
I took that workshop and fell in love with watercolor. The fluid nature of the medium, the way light played over the paper, and I suppose the exacting nature of painting a credible watercolor all appealed to me. In fact, they reached out and grabbed me, shook me around, played with me, intrigued me, and delighted me, and still haven’t let go almost 40 years later. I’m as crazy about watercolor now as I was when I first saw amazing things happen when I dipped a little pigment into some water spread on paper.
Watercolor Painting Demonstration – Winter Ice, Potomac River
A Virginia Artist – Creating Award Winning Art In Oil and Watercolor
CHRISTINE LASHLEY — ARTIST’S STATEMENT: As a contemporary impressionist painter, I am constantly drawn to light. Nature’s unique colors, harmonies and contrasts offer a visual feast that I love to capture in artwork. I gather most of my ideas by painting outdoors. On location there is no time to second-guess choices, so the resulting brush strokes convey a sense of immediacy and vitality. My studio paintings are a chance to work larger, while retaining the freshness of painting “plein-air”. Planning first, with sketches and reference, lets me paint freely in the final artwork. Favorite subjects are portraits, still life and landscapes.
ARTIST’S BIO: Christine Lashley studied as a teen in Paris at the Parsons Art Institute and the Sorbonne, continuing on to earn her Bachelor of Fine Arts at Washington University in St. Louis. She worked for several years in the fashion industry in Europe, then as a muralist and graphic designer, but turned her interest to fine art soon thereafter. Christine’s paintings have been shown nationally and internationally. With numerous works in private and corporate collections, her work has also been featured in publications such as:American Artist Magazine, The Washington Post, and Elan Magazine. A North Light Publications book: Creative Freedom, will feature two of her oils in a step-by-step demonstration.
Christine currently lives in the Washington DC area with her husband and two children, and has been an art instructor for over 10 years. She is a juried, signature member of several art groups including: the Potomac Valley Watercolorists (where she served as President), The Baltimore Watercolor Society, and the Washington Society of Landscape Painters, and a juried member of OPA (Oil Painters of America).
Watercolor Painting Demonstration by John Fisher
About John Fisher
I was born and educated in England, graduating from the Luton School of Arts (now Barnfield College) in 1945. It was my hope to become a graphic artist, but at the end of the Second World War returning service men and women had first crack at the few jobs available, and rightly so. I took a number of jobs while I tried to break into my chosen field, and ended up being a reluctant carpenter. Many years passed and I emigrated to Canada in 1952, married a Canadian woman, started a family, and in 1955 finally started on a career which took in graphic arts, owner of my own graphics arts company, art director at an advertising agency, and careers in marketing, advertising and public relations.
I wish I could claim that my passion for art burned brightly throughout those years, but alas, the need to make a living took prominence. As with many people, I always promised myself that when I retired I would get back to painting again. That time came in 1989, when my wife and I were living the winter months in our condo in Destin, Florida. Robert Long, a talented watercolour artist, was offering private lessons from his nearby condo. He was my mentor, and made my retirement years infinitely richer.
In those days Robert taught only technique, and there were rarely more than four to six of us in those early classes. From Robert I regained my interest in photography as an adjunct to painting, and as the cliche goes – I never looked back. I have had many paintings accepted and hung in exhibitions in Florida and Ontario, where I now live. I’ve won some prizes, come first in some exhibitions, and occasionally won the Citizens’ Choice awards. But I mainly paint for fun – hence the choice of name for this site.
Pouring Watercolor Demo
About Barbara Sailor
An Ohio artist, Barbara studied art and art education at Bowling Green State University and has been a public school art teacher for more that 40 years. She was raised in Cleveland and now resides in the western section of the state.
She works in many media, but is primarily a watercolorist because she loves the spontaneous quality of watercolor and the many special effects which can be obtained. Her work is basically realistic with abstract patterns and varied textural effects utilized. Barbara paints a variety of subject matter including studies of people, florals, still lifes and landscapes. She loves to use a lot of color in her paintings and strong value patterns.
She has earned several awards and ribbons and has displayed her work in many shows including the University of Cincinnati and in Columbus. She has had several one man shows in the western Ohio area and teaches beginning and intermediate watercolor to adult students as well as continuing to teach students in school.
Watercolor Painting Demo of Flowers – Ladies Roses
About Barbara Fox
Barbara has achieved a tremendous following on both the national and international level as a watercolor painter with a vivid and unique style.
Her paintings have been featured in solo and group exhibitions in museums and galleries throughout the United States, including the Phillips Museum of Art in Lancaster, Pennsylvania; the Millicent Rogers Museum in Taos, Mexico; the Salmagundi Club New York City; The Neville Museum in Green Bay Wisconsin; and the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts
Barbara is a signature member of the National Watercolor Society, the International Guild of Realism, the Pennsylvania Watercolor Society, and the Northeast Watercolor Society, among others.
She has been published in the major watercolor publications Splash: the Best of Watercolor Painting, and Secrets of Watercolor Masters. Barbara has been a featured artist in the leading national art magazines American Artist and Watercolor Magic.
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