Another Class – Another Great Experience

I just wrapped up the third virtual offering of my Sketching With Ink & Watercolor Class presented through the Community Arts program at the University of Saskatchewan.

Five sessions (once a week) spread out over a month from start to finish. The series is designed for artists and would be artists who are attracted to expressive line work and lively colors and keen to create images inspired by everyday life experiences.

We worked with ink and watercolor on paper, and engaged in a series of ‘see & try’ experiences – brief demos followed by hands-on exercises and assignments.

The aim: to build a set of skills to help people capture vignettes on paper wherever they find them – from their own backyards to street cafés halfway around the world.

These are some of the topics we covered:

• Cultivating the art of noticing as a way to breathe more life into images
• Experimenting with dynamic lines to add variety and emphasis to the work
• Mixing and applying watercolors in ways that keep them fresh and lively
• Approaching a scene, exploring compositions, choosing a focus & completing a sketch
• Putting it all together – including specific tools and tips for sketching on the go
• Developing skills in critiquing your own sketches to keep growing as an artist

I enjoyed connecting with another lively group of committed students. They were quick to share their questions, eager to try to the techniques, and steady on the follow through with their practice assignments.

This time I delivered an evening class (5:30-8:30). So special thanks to husband, Dave, who created a 5:00 snack to nosh on before class, and was ready with dinner to enjoy after it was over.

More than once, during the delivery of the sessions, I found myself smiling to myself and thinking, “This is fun!” What more could you ask for?