Introduction
Whether you call yourself an artist or not, you are one—creativity is an inherent human trait, one that is unique from person to person. The capacity for artistic expression lies in everyone. Sometimes it just needs a little push. Welcome to Your Year in Art: Watercolor! Designed to encourage, inspire, and fuel your art-making all year long, this book features prompts, ideas, and creative tips that will help you build your watercolor skills while also giving you the artistic confidence to triumph over fear of the blank page!
Each week, you’ll explore a new creative and engaging assignment. It may be as simple as experimenting with brushstrokes. It might involve practicing a skill you already know. It might mean pushing yourself to try a technique or color you usually don’t use.
As you begin your year in art, promise yourself that you will devote time to yourself and your craft. Perhaps it’s just five minutes each morning while you’re drinking your coffee or tea. Perhaps you can spend thirty minutes once a week focusing just on painting. The most important thing is to just do it, regardless of the outcome. You don’t have to make amazing art every day—just paint something. Not every assignment will yield a masterpiece, but that’s not the goal. As long as you make the time to paint, you’ll find your year in art a success!
Basic Tools & Materials
There many tools and materials you can use during your year in watercolor, but I recommend having these essentials on hand: round watercolor brushes, flat watercolor brushes, tubes of watercolor paint, a paint palette, a pencil and an eraser for sketching, watercolor paper, masking fluid, and masking tape.
Round brushes can be used in a variety of ways. Flat brushes create sharp lines and geometric shapes and can cover large surface areas. Thin, long brushes are perfect for small detail, long lines, and script.
For tube paints, choose a palette with individual wells. Keep similar colors near each other for ease of use. Artist-grade paints contain more pigment than student-grade paints, yielding better results. However, student-grade paint is great for beginners. Purchase the highest-quality paint you can afford.
