Our Watercolor Mastery theme for 2027 is Painting WithSimple Compositions And Limited Palettes. We kick off the year and the theme by studying a masterwork by Andrew Winter titled “Old Fish House Monhegan”. This work is a masterpiece of simplicity and limits.

We’ll spend most of the first hour of class viewing and discussing this work in terms of its composition and the artists color choices. There’ll be an emphasis on the effect of both on depiction of the scene, season, light and mood.

RECOMMENDED MATERIALS

For this and all Master Work Study classes, you’ll want to have the In addition to your regular watercolor supplies, there are several other materials that will make the evaluation process and Master Studies much easier.

• Tracing paper

• Black marker or sharpie

• White gouache

• Many small - postcard sized - pieces of watercolor paper. These can be ‘scraps’; the backs of not so successful paintings or other explorations.

• Value scale - nine or ten steps with holes in the middle. Use a commercial version or make one of your own. Video tutorials for making your own 5 as well as 9 step scale can be found in the Mastery Basic Composition course.

The Master Studies can be done in either watercolor or gouache. I recommend gouache. You’ll find controlling hue, value and chroma a little easier in this water-based media.

This is a ‘paint-along' class very like a more typical online watercolor class where we paint the same subject together.

This months’ subject is a winter landscape scene. Following the 2027 theme, the painting will be guided by a simple value composition. Also following the theme, we’ll use a limited but ‘expanded’ complementary color palette.

Paint Colors For Class Project - Ultramarine Blue, Cerulean Blue, Burnt Sienna, Raw Sienna

This session is a critique session for member works. You are free to submit any work you like but recent work that follows the class theme and lesson sequence is likely to help your progress the most.

To get the best from any critique, follow the guidelines in this article.

Submit work by email to tc@tonyconner.com. Please submit by 12 noon on February 14th.

This is a ‘paint-along' class very like a more typical online watercolor class where we paint the same subject together.

This months’ subject is a what I call a “winter still life” because it is set up near a window to catch feeble winter light.

We’ll continue to follow the 2027 theme, painting will be guided by a simple value composition and using another ‘expanded’ complementary color palette.

In addition to composition and color themes, we’ll look at methods for creating Object Clarityusing directional marks, paying attention to edge condition and overlaps.

Paint Colors For Class Project - Ultramarine Blue, Cerulean Blue, Cadmium Red, Cadmium Orange

This session is a critique session for member works. You are free to submit any work you like but recent work that follows the class theme and lesson sequence is likely to help your progress the most.

To get the best from any critique, follow the guidelines in this article.

Submit work by email to tc@tonyconner.com. Please submit by 12 noon on March 14th.

This is a ‘paint-along' class very like a more typical online watercolor class where we paint the same subject together.

This months’ subject is an early spring scene that we’ll use to highlight a bright subject with harmonious neutrals.

Following the 2027 theme, the painting will be guided by a simple value composition and using another ‘expanded’ complementary color palette.

In addition to composition and color themes, we’ll look at methods for creating Texture using the surface of the paper, brush technique and sedimentary colors.

Paint Colors For Class Project - Ultramarine Blue, Cerulean Blue, Cadmium Red, Raw Sienna

This session is a critique session for member works. You are free to submit any work you like but recent work that follows the class theme and lesson sequence is likely to help your progress the most.

To get the best from any critique, follow the guidelines in this article.

Submit work by email to tc@tonyconner.com. Please submit by 12 noon on March 14th.

In this session we’ll study a masterwork by Edward Hopper titled “Manhattan Bridge Entrance”. This work is was likely done ‘en plein air’ using an understated, low-intensity color palette. The composition relies on a solid value arrangement that provides both structure and sense of light.

We’ll spend most of the first hour of class viewing and discussing this work in terms of its composition, the color choice and the sense of light. .

The second hour of class will be spent developing master studies of the value arrangement and color composition.

RECOMMENDED MATERIALS

For this and all Master Work Study classes, you’ll want to have the In addition to your regular watercolor supplies, there are several other materials that will make the evaluation process and Master Studies much easier.

• Tracing paper

• Black marker or sharpie

• White gouache

• Many small - postcard sized - pieces of watercolor paper. These can be ‘scraps’; the backs of not so successful paintings or other explorations.

• Value scale - nine or ten steps with holes in the middle. Use a commercial version or make one of your own. Video tutorials for making your own 5 as well as 9 step scale can be found in the Mastery Basic Composition course.

The Master Studies can be done in either watercolor or gouache. I recommend gouache. You’ll find controlling hue, value and chroma a little easier in this water-based media.

This is a ‘paint-along' class very like a more typical online watercolor class where we paint the same subject together.

This months’ subject is a summer scene that we’ll use to explore

The painting will be guided by a simple value composition and an Analogous With Complement color scheme.

In addition to composition and color themes, we’ll look at methods for creating both a sense of light and representation of form with a simplified value arrangement.

Paint Colors For Class Project - Indanthrene Blue, Cobalt Blue, Aureolin Yellow, Permanent Alizarin Crimson

This session is a critique session for member works. You are free to submit any work you like but recent work that follows the class theme and lesson sequence is likely to help your progress the most.

To get the best from any critique, follow the guidelines in this article.

Submit work by email to tc@tonyconner.com. Please submit by 12 noon on March 14th.

This is the last live class until August. The instructions for June and July are to get out and paint!

Summer is the best time to get out and paint. Take advantage of this great plein air painting season to accomplish two goals:

• Learn to represent form by observing and painting light on actual objects

• Build your mental encyclopedia of common objects by painting from direct observation

While there will be no new lessons or classes, summer work will be guided by a series of themed tasks you’ll receive by email.