LEVEL 3 ONLINE COURSE

Abstract Florals: Experimenting with Expressive Watercolour Techniques

Playful sketchbook exploration ‍ £ ‍40

Will be £40

After purchase of the course, you’ll receive a FREE watercolour techniques video, as a ‘thank you’ for registering.

Equipment List

About This Course

You will begin by setting a colour palette to ensure that your abstract creations feel cohesive and present as a series. You will learn how to dissect an inspiring image (in this case, from our garden as usual) and let nature do the heavy lifting for you. You will also learn how to accurately mix your colours.

Next comes getting familiar with the equipment as you follow along with Caroline’s demonstration of fun, dynamic watercolour techniques. You will experiment with different types of watercolour brushes to create different types of mark-making, as well as water-soluble and permanent pens. We will also explore the difference between transparent watercolour and opaque gouache whilst mixing these media.

You’ll also learn basic watercolour techniques, such as wet-on-wet and wet-on-damp, and how letting the paint take charge with its for happy accidents can lead to beautiful, unpredictable results. We will create palettes of colours, shapes and textures, inspired by nature, that can be combined together to make interesting abstracted outcomes. Once learnt, this process becomes an opportunity to bypass ever feeling creatively stuck again.

We will explore using collage to help with playful composition. Within your downloadable handouts, you’ll be given sheets of Caroline’s drawings of leaves and flowers to help you through the drawing and composition process. You can choose to make your own drawings from inspirational mood boards with collated reference images, or use the drawings provided to give you the option to side-step the drawing stage if you prefer. You will then transfer your unique composition from tracing paper directly onto watercolour paper, ready to enjoy the fun process of painting up.

You’ll learn Caroline’s process, which will allow you to take what you have learnt in this course and implement it for your own future projects going forward. We will also look at framing sections of your previous artwork to enlarge, simplifya nd reinterpret as new abstracted outcomes.

With no experience necessary and no drawing required, all you need to bring with you is your sense of adventure and play, and be open-minded about experimenting with the materials. You can post your work in a dedicated virtual classroom for feedback from Caroline for seven weeks. Your course materials will be available to download for seven weeks so that you can keep them forever.

FAQs

This course includes a series of instructional videos that .take you through a range of projects.
Each project will get your creativity flowing while you explore exciting activities to fill your sketchbook with ideas.
You will then bring all of your creative play and exploration together in a series of outcomes that are unique to your own creativity.
If you prefer you can simply jump ahead and use Caroline’s drawings and incorporate them into your own work. Of course there is also the option to work with your own drawings too.
You will create a series finished artworks, and learn lots of fun techniques along the way if you choose to undertake all of the projects.
Caroline has included helpful handouts with and an equipment list, ready for you to get started.
Your tutor will be Caroline Tatham, a qualified lecturer who has a lifetime of experience teaching creativity.
This course is aimed at those wanting to stretch their existing art experience, but we specialise in supporting and encouraging those with no previous experience at all. You just need a ‘can-do’ attitude and a willingness to invest some time into your creative journey!
There is a full equipment list on our web page and also in the handouts.
Feel free to use your own colour combinations if you prefer, it’s all about play and exploration.
Quality paints are expensive but also have more pigmentation. This will enhance the techniques in this workshop making them more evident.
Quality paper will also produce a better result. 100% cotton paper will give the best results.
It is, of course, fine to start with cheaper materials and invest in more expensive ones as your experience and interest in this wonderful medium grows.
Just be kind to yourself if some of your results are a little more subtle with cheaper materials.
Do not worry! We are all creative and Caroline specialises in connecting people to their inner creative voice.
You just need to be willing to give it a go. Absolute beginners are most welcome.
You will gain a greater understanding of the tried and tested techniques of watercolour painting.
You will also develop an understanding of playful sketchbook exploration and how to find your own creative voice.
You will also gain confidence in creative composition and painting preparation.
Finally, you will create a series of abstracted artworks inspired by floral colours, shapes and textures.
Yes! You will have access to a dedicated virtual classroom for seven weeks.
You can post your progress here for feedback and support from Caroline.
She will usually respond to your posts within 24 hours.
This course is suitable for all levels of art experience, but is particularly aimed at intermediate creators.
Whether you are new to watercolour painting or are more experienced and just want to develop skills, this course will get you going!
If you are feeling creatively stuck, this course will set you off on a new artistic tangent.
This is an instant access course.
This course costs £40.
You can complete this course at your own pace. The course videos and handouts are available for you to download for up to seven weeks from the date of purchase. Once downloaded, you will have the course forever!

After purchase of the course, you’ll receive a FREE watercolour techniques video, as a ‘thank you’ for registering.

About Your Tutor

Caroline Tatham is a passionate artist who loves helping people to discover their own innate creativity.

She studied at the Royal College of Art and has taught at a range of colleges and art schools, including Central Saint Martins School of Art in London.

Caroline is a qualified lecturer and has loved running the Cotswold Gardening School since 2010. She specialises in teaching creative design to a professional standard for those with no previous experience, helping them achieve results they never imagined possible. She is proud to have 30+ years of teaching experience under her belt.