Course dates

Saturday 22 – Saturday 29 June 2024

Profile

Atmospheric Landscape in Watercolour: Studio/Plein Air’

In this course, you will learn how to create atmospheric landscapes by manipulating tonal values, colour, and edge. Michael will show how to paint luminous landscape and how to add emotions to artwork. Step-by-step, we will work on the project with detailed explanations. During the course, we will combine exercises and training in the studio with work in the Plein Air to consolidate the skills.

Michael will focus on :

• How to build a colour palette, the choice of basic and complementary colours based on the subject.
• How to create a realistic cloudy sky using wet on wet technique
• Methods that allow you to bring light into the landscape using the lifting technique
• The correct construction of the composition depends on the task at hand

Michael will share personal secrets and techniques that allow you to create an impressive emotional watercolor in a few simple steps. You will understand how to draw the right sketch and capture a picture in a dynamic and fresh style. It is the individual approach to each student, as well as the generosity with which he shares all the tricks and professional secrets, which made his workshops so popular all over the planet.

You can expect plenty of individual attention and helpful demonstrations all the time.

Artistic philosophy

Michael is often called a “sunny watercolourist” – his airy, transparent artworks look as though they emit the sunlight. His traditional academic art education, extensive experience as a head theatre/ stage designer, and oil painter career now inform his priority as a watercolour artist – light.

Michael is a watercolour artist of great renown, with exhibitions and workshops all over the world, from Bolivia to France to Australia. Michael sees his work as an artist as exploration and observation of the world and its presentation in such way the others can see the things he saw – one of the most interesting jobs in the world His main belief is that sometimes even a pile of rubbish with beautiful lighting can become an artwork.

His stage designer background has provided two main insights fundamental for his subsequent watercolour artist career – understanding that the light is paramount to the art and the love for collective co-creation.

Watercolour is the most interesting medium to Michael because it is the only material on the whole planet where he is not solely responsible for the creative process. Rather than working alone, he forms a partnership with the water. Watercolour flows, permeates the medium, it exists in time as an alive being. Michael works together with the watercolour in a fascinating process of co-creation which leads to interesting outcomes. Such partnership does not exist in all other branches of visual arts.

Michael considers adrenaline and experimentation the necessities of the creative process, always challenging himself with new techniques, ideas, stories, and materials. Willingness to experiment and create led Michael to design his own line of watercolour materials and release a series of watercolour video lessons.

Praise from some of Michael’s previous students

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Thank you for providing instruction for me. I like your work because you paint the light beautifully. I consider your style masterful. Your enthusiasm, willingness to share tips, secrets, techniques & insights, along with your love of watercolor is apparent, conveyed well & inspiring, for this I am grateful. BC

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I really do appreciate that you are so willing to share what you know and give us so many helpful hints. I can tell that teaching gives you great joy! GD

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Thank you so much for a great lesson and full of insights. Feel like I have so much more to learn from you. You are a great teacher. RA

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Thank you for sharing your expertise and experience. I wish you could share your amazing talent as well! RU

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