Watercolor Crash Course!
Enjoy an afternoon of experimentation and fun while you learn the fundamentals of watercolor . Brenda Stevens has created an abbreviated introductory watercolor class, using traditional methods of art instruction. You will learn the basic techniques all watercolorists use in every painting they do. Mix yellow, red and blue to make all the colors you need. This simple concept, using a limited palette of colors, guarantees color harmony in your paintings and introduces you to color; how to mix and how to use it. You can expect plenty of individual attention and Brenda’s demonstrations will walk you step-by-step through the entire painting process. You will be amazed what you can do.      Twelve Subjects:
Seascape, Viceroy Butterfly, Tybee Island Lighthouse, Sunflower, Silver Maple, Great Blue Heron, Goldfinch and Zinnias, Hummingbird, Callaway Gardens Chapel, Callaway Gardens Barn, Prunifolia Azalea, Magnolia.

Examples of Subjects:

Watercolor One
Unlock the mystery of making colors. Discover the power of the color wheel; a painters most valuable tool. Use the classic method of making all your colors from primary colors. Learn the simple truth about soft edges and hard edges; how to make them and when to use them. Create a three dimensional optical illusion on a flat piece of paper by controlling value changes.  Add four basic painting techniques and you will be prepared to paint a wide range of subjects. (9 hours)

Watercolor Two
 In Watercolor ONE you learned the four ways of applying paint to paper and how to use the best tool a colorist has; the color wheel, to mix the colors you want. Now, you can continue to practice these skills while painting  landscapes.      (12 hours)

Composition For the Painter  Learn how to make compositional decisions based on sound design principles. Take the skills you’ve learned in previous watercolor and drawing classes and push them to the next level. You will learn the process of creating original work; from inspiration to conception to completion. (12 hours)

Mother Nature in Watercolor  Advanced beginners who know how to mix colors and want to learn simple techniques for painting seascapes, trees, sunsets, stormy and clear skies, puffy white clouds, watery reflections and other natural elements, will benefit greatly from this class. You can expect plenty of individual attention and helpful demonstrations.  (5 hours).

Trees   Autumn is all about trees and so is this class. Not only will you learn how to paint the brilliance of fall color, but you will also learn to mix the gorgeous greens of summer and spring. Learn about the recognizable structure of trees; the graceful, bare limbs of deciduous trees in winter and the distinctive shapes of evergreens like spruce, pine and palm. Learn how to create the illusion of a distant tree line with loose washes charged with pure color, and learn techniques that mimic the rough textures of up-close-and-personal tree trunks.

Paint Your House    You will bring several color photographs of one architectural subject, taken from different view points. This is important because it will provide the instructor flexibility in choosing the best angle for the subject. The subject could be your house, an ancestral home, or any architectural structure having emotional significance to you. You will sketch and paint the house with guidance from your instructor and in the process you will learn about composition, thumbnail sketches, color decisions and value patterns.       (6 hours)                                                                                                                Recommended Prerequisites: Beginning Watercolor, Intermediate Watercolor, and Drawing Fundamentals.

Autumn Leaves in Watercolor   This five hour workshop is for the intermediate student or a beginner who has had a few watercolor lessons. Each student will bring in several fresh, colorful, fall leaves and together we will select the best one for you to paint. Yellow and red leaves are easier than red and green leaves. We will discuss the fun of “leafing”, identification and pressing. I will demonstrate wet-in-wet techniques such as  mingling, texturing, and spattering and wet-on-dry techniques such as dry brushing and glazing. These small leaf paintings make wonderful gifts and greeting cards and they are fun to do. (5 hours) Suggested Prerequisites: Beginning Watercolor or Watercolor Crash Courses.

Drawing Crash Course! To draw realistically the artist must overcome a mental resistance to draw optical distortions, like a foreshortened view. They will learn to draw what they really see instead of what they expect to see. I will use exercises from Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain , by Betty Edwards to encourage intentional observation. Artists have a special way of “seeing”; they see contrasting values, repeated patterns, the shared edge of a positive shape and negative space, the relationships of one thing to another; fitting together like a puzzle. You can learn to do this. While the left hemisphere of your brain analyzes things like perspective, proportion and time management, the right hemisphere of your brain has the superior ability to process visual information. Learn how to tap into this gold mine. (4 hours)

Drawing Fundamentals   Learn the skill of observation, the most valuable skill of all. Drawing can be a time of meditation, an expression of wonder and appreciation for the world around us. Learn about viewpoint, focal point, shading, contour drawing, proportion, sighting and perspective. Understanding these things is essential, regardless of the painting medium in which you ultimately choose to work.