A Watercolor Holiday: Painting the Season with Terry Wylie - Beginner to Intermediate

Fridays, November 13th - December 11th, 1:30pm – 4:30pm (4-weeks)

***NO CLASS ON NOVEMBER 27th IN OBSERVANCE OF THANKSGIVING***

Age Range: 18 and up

Skill Level - Beginner to Intermediate

Class Description:

Celebrate the holiday season through watercolor!

This four-week course will explore the light, color, atmosphere, and familiar imagery of the holidays while helping students develop practical watercolor skills they can use far beyond the season.

Through demonstrations, guided exercises, and individual painting time, students will explore subjects such as holiday still life, winter scenes, glowing lights, ornaments, greenery, and other seasonal subjects. The course will conclude with students creating their own small original watercolor paintings that can be used to make one-of-a-kind Christmas cards and gifts.

Students will explore:

• Painting reflective ornaments, glass, and holiday decorations
• Creating the appearance of glowing lights and candlelight
• Painting winter skies, snow, trees, and atmosphere
• Using warm and cool color relationships
• Creating sparkle and luminosity by preserving the white of the paper
• Simplifying complicated holiday scenes
• Using lost-and-found edges and expressive brushwork
• Creating strong value patterns and focal points
• Working small and loose with watercolor
• Designing and painting original Christmas cards

Rather than simply copying holiday images, students will learn how to interpret seasonal subjects and make creative decisions about color, value, composition, edges, and atmosphere.

The final class will focus on creating several small watercolor paintings suitable for handmade Christmas cards. Students will learn how a simple watercolor study can be transformed into a personal piece of original art to share with family and friends.

Each class will include demonstrations, guided practice, individual feedback, and plenty of painting time in a relaxed and encouraging environment.

By the end of the course, students will have completed several seasonal watercolor paintings, developed a greater understanding of watercolor technique, and created original artwork they can share during the holidays.

Proposed Weekly Topics:

Week 1 – Holiday Still Life: Light, Color & Sparkle
Ornaments, greenery, ribbon, glass, and other seasonal objects provide an opportunity to explore reflections, highlights, color, edges, and the transparent qualities of watercolor.

Week 2 – Winter in Watercolor
Explore winter landscapes and seasonal scenes while learning to create atmosphere, winter skies, snow, bare trees, depth, and subtle shifts between warm and cool color.

Week 3 – Holiday Lights & Glow
Learn how to create the illusion of glowing Christmas lights, candlelight, decorated streets, storefronts, or interiors by controlling value, color intensity, edges, and contrast.

Week 4 – Hand-Painted Christmas Cards & Small Works
Loosen up and work small! Students will create several original watercolor studies that can be mounted or used as handmade Christmas cards, small gifts, or miniature works of art.

Supplies:

Paper

One Arches 11x14 block (140 lb. Cold Press) — Please purchase this brand if possible.

Students may also want several smaller sheets or blocks of watercolor paper for studies and Christmas card paintings. Additional information about card sizes and materials will be provided before the final class.

Palette & Tools

• Watercolor palette with generous mixing area
• Paper towels
• Kneaded eraser
• Drawing pencils and sharpener
• Mechanical pencil (0.9mm recommended)
• Water container
• Masking tape
• White wax crayon or candle (optional)
• White gouache (optional)

Brushes

• Two round brushes (sizes 12 and 14 recommended)
• One or two flat or square brushes (¼" and ½" recommended)
• Small round brush (size 4–6)
• Rigger brush (optional)
• Mop brush for larger washes (optional)

Preferred brands include Princeton Velvetouch, Silver Black Velvet, and Escoda.

Recommended Watercolor Tubes

Students may use their existing watercolor palette. A basic selection should include:

• Ultramarine Blue
• Burnt Sienna
• Yellow Ochre
• A warm yellow
• A warm red
• A cool red
• A green
• Neutral Tint

Additional colors may be introduced during class for brighter holiday color combinations.

Affordable alternative: Winsor & Newton Cotman 10–12 color tube set.

Christmas Card Materials

A list of optional card-making materials will be provided before the course. These may include:

• Blank white cards and envelopes
• Watercolor paper for small original paintings
• Acid-free adhesive or mounting tape
• Paper cutter or ruler and craft knife
• Metallic or white gel pens (optional)

Suggested Suppliers:

Purchasing online is often most economical. Compare prices for discounts:

https://www.dickblick.com

https://www.jerrysartarama.com

https://www.amazon.com

Instructor email: Terry.d.wylie@gmail.com
Instructor website: terrywyliefineart.com
Instructor social media: www.facebook.com/DCCMwylie

Supporter Tuition - Qualify for Supporter Tuition with a donation of $50 or more.

Refund Policy: https://www.artcentervb.org/classpolicies.html
(Please read refund policy. If your refund qualifies email create@artcentervb.org to request)