23/12/2021 by Bill Breckon
Now that the rigours, and delights, of Christmas are over, it is time for a few moments of self-indulgent creativity. So why not treat yourself to a New Year present: two or three hours of pleasant painting online in your own home, learning from the watercolour Masters in the company Watermill painting tutor Mike Willdridge? You know you deserve it
Mike says: “You learn to paint by painting and that, I believe, is as true for the great masters as it is for the novice painter.†The subject is a simple scene of a few bare trees in the foreground and a suggestion of trees in the distance, all blanketed in a cold, snowy, wintery setting in Norfolk, England. To join the session please click here.
And the inspiration for this session is the great English watercolourist Edward Wesson (1910 – 1983), whose paintings are known for their simplicity, boldness and mastery of brushwork. Mike is a great admirer of his work, as are many other artists. The painting above and all the others here are all of the same scene painted by Wesson.
“I selected these paintings,†says Mike, “because they show clearly how Wesson returned, not only to the same subject time and time again but, often to the very same spot – a low bank of trees. Wesson painted these trees in all four seasons; these paintings are from his winter oeuvre.
In this session, Mike will help you learn from Edward Wesson and help you paint a snow scene similar to one of these shown. He says: “It’s a wonderful opportunity to practice your washes, consider values and, of course, to brush-up your brushstrokes.â€
Unlike many online painting tutors, Mike will not expect you to ‘look over his shoulder’ for a long demonstration, and perhaps be allowed to ask the odd question or two. No, you will be painting along at more or less the same time, trying out the watercolour techniques that Mike shows you, step-by-step. He will demonstrate some basic techniques for only a few minutes before you start painting the same subject at home. Then, after you’ve been given a little time to catch up, Mike will move onto the next part of the process. Lois Breckon from The Watermill at Posara will be on hand during the session to feed your questions. The session will last about three hours. There is no need for any pre-drawing.
When you register for the session, you will be asked for a donation. Some people ask how much this should be. It is up to you, but we do suggest a minimum donation of £20 GBP (English pounds). Our Zoom painting demonstrations do take quite a bit of time in preparation and administration and your support is very much appreciated. With your generosity we can plan and run further sessions and, more importantly, provide a regular meeting place for creativity, camaraderie and fun. We hope that you enjoy the international, online painting community that we have created.
Once you have registered you will be provided with two links. The first is the Zoom link for you to join the session. Please note that the start time is 3:30pm European time, that is, 2:3opm (UK time, GMT). Please check the precise starting time in your own time zone compared with Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).
The second link is where you will find the Edward Wesson reference photographs that you will paint, and a list of equipment and colours for your palette.
After the event, you are invited to add your painting to the private gallery, where you will be able to view the same scene uploaded by your fellow painters on Zoom. In addition, we will send you a link to a video that will enable to you revisit Mike’s step-by-step teaching. To join the session please click here.
You can find out more about Mike’s style of teaching online by watching the edited video below from a Zoom session last year, hosted by The Watermill at Posara: please just click here.
When you’ve painted with Mike online, why not join him for real at the Watermill in Tuscany Italy this Summer? We would love to welcome you to the Watermill. You can find more details of Mike’s week-long course, from Saturday 3 September to Saturday, 10 September 2022, by clicking here.