Learn to Paint:
Painting with Pencils - Birds

About the course

Join Linda to explore the techniques of drawing with water-soluble pencils before adding water to creative beautiful painterly washes indistinguishable from pure watercolour paintings.

Linda features her favourite garden birds and places them in context with foliage and fruits but the technique lends itself to a wide range of subjects.

She’ll cover the materials and equipment you’ll need and a variety of techniques for painting your chosen bird including:

  • finding suitable reference material
  • composition
  • drawing
  • working with water-soluble pencils
  • mounting your work to a panel

During the course of three videos you will learn how to achieve the best results from a few water-soluble pencils. These are an incredibly versatile medium that can be layered to create lovely effects. You’ll discover how to source inspiration for your painting and Linda will give her ideas for achieving a successful composition. She will discuss the importance of scale when working in a small format.

Next she’ll demonstrate, step by step, how to make the drawing/painting onto watercolour paper and will show exactly how to mount the finished work onto a wooden panel. The final touch is how to seal the paint surface with wax to protect it for display. The beauty of this technique is the finished painting is ready to hang with no frame or glass required.

The course is suitable for beginners and those with some previous art experience who wish to explore the potential of the medium of water-soluble pencils. The lessons will guide you through all the steps needed to create a finished painting mounted on a wooden panel ready for display.

Sign up here..

What do I need?

To work alongside Linda you may already have much of what you’ll need. She suggests you watch the first video before popping to the art store or shopping online! See if you have the following;

A few watersoluble coloured pencils
Watercolour paper minimum weight 140lb
A medium sized round paintbrush and a small one for fine detail
Kitchen paper
Water pot
Acrylic matte medium
Wooden painting panel 6 inches square (15 cm x 15 cm)
Acrylic Gesso or white acrylic paint
Cold wax medium (optional but recommended)

You’ll also need reference photographs as inspiration but these will be discussed.

All signed up? Let's go!

Below you’ll find all the course materials (these will be fully accessible once you’ve signed up). We recommend that you watch the first workshop before you purchase any materials. If you have any questions be sure to visit the Community page and chat with us and your fellow students there. Don’t forget, you need to be logged in to view the Community page.

The video workshops...

In this session work along to complete the painting and mount it to the wooden panel ready for display. To access this post, you must purchase Painting with Pencils - birds.
Painting

Painting with Pencils – Birds – Part Three

In this session work along to complete the painting and mount it to the wooden panel ready for display.

To access this post, you must purchase Painting with Pencils – birds.
In the first session Linda will advise you on where to find good reference material for your painting, plus she'll share some tips of working out the composition that'll suit the little painting. To access this post, you must purchase Painting with Pencils - birds.
Painting

Painting with Pencils – Birds – Part One

In the first session Linda will advise you on where to find good reference material for your painting, plus she’ll share some tips of working out the composition that’ll suit the little painting.

To access this post, you must purchase Painting with Pencils – birds.
In this session work along with Linda to make your painting. Start with a sketchy drawing then add wash and further detail. To access this post, you must purchase Painting with Pencils - birds.
Painting

Painting with Pencils – Birds – Part Two

In this session work along with Linda to make your painting. Start with a sketchy drawing then add wash and further detail.

To access this post, you must purchase Painting with Pencils – birds.