32 Art Courses

Video: Red chrysanthemum in colored pencil

Val Webb — Tue, 22 Sep 2026 20:05:52 GMT

Because today is the first day of autumn, it seems like a good time to draw an iconic fall-blooming flower. This lesson was created 10 years ago, and it’s good to hear my old hounddog, Atticus, in the background. I hope you enjoy the lesson! - Val

Scroll down for the actual video (this is just a photo).

Sometimes the simple mechanics of artmaking can seem miraculous. Though I began working as an illustrator more than 50 years ago, I’m still amazed by the way colors interact with one another. I never get tired of watching pigments combine to become something completely new.

In today’s lesson, we’ll practice an astonishing bit of color theory and draw one of summer’s final blooms, the chrysanthemum.

Watch the video all the way through before you begin to draw.

CLICK TO WATCH VIDEO

9 9 Ref Chrysanthemums

473KB ∙ PDF file

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5 Little Songbirds

Val Webb — Thu, 30 Jul 2026 15:15:54 GMT

If you have some old postcards around, this is a way to put them to good use. If not, you can print my scan of antique postcards and paint on them. I recommend printing them on card stock, not regular copy paper:

The Best Nest

Val Webb — Sun, 26 Jul 2026 15:56:47 GMT

This course consists of six lessons. Here is the schedule we will follow:

Lesson 1: Two pencil projects, two videos. Video 1 is Drawing Eggs. Video 2 is A Simple Nest in Pencil.

Lesson 2: Another double pencil project. Video 1 is Feather Study in Pencil. Video 2 is Sketching Birds.

Lesson 3: Our first colored pencil project! Green Heron with Nest and Eggs in Colored Pencil.

Lesson 4: Something different: Purple Martin with Gourd Nest and Eggs in Colored Pencil.

Lesson 5: Something tiny: Ruby-throated Hummingbird with Nest and Eggs in Colored Pencil.

Lesson 6: Our final drawing: Field Sparrow with Nest and Eggs in Colored Pencil.

Draw Paint Letter - Summer Part 2

Val Webb — Tue, 07 Jul 2026 23:59:19 GMT

Welcome!

PRINTABLES: HOST PLANTS IN “QUICK WATERCOLOR”

The menu for a hungry caterpillar is very specific; each species of butterfly has a set of host plants that provide exactly what it needs to fuel the process of metamorphosis.

Monarchs cannot survive without milkweed. For the eastern swallowtail, host plants are members of the carrot family: dill, fennel, celery, parsley or Queen Anne’s lace (wild carrot).

Today we’ll look at some of these vital plants through creating a quick watercolor study. This is the type of watercolor you might make in the field (or in your garden) when it’s necessary to strike a happy balance between capturing important details and keeping the process as simple as possible.

If you can get a sprig of any of these host plants, or if you have some growing nearby and you can go and sit beside it while you paint, that is ideal. But using our reference images will work, too.

The goal is to use a minimal palette -- three colors -- and work in a clean, clear and unfussy style to take “visual notes” of what you see:

Video: Paint a medieval dyer's color wheel

Val Webb — Thu, 25 Jun 2026 23:02:08 GMT

With some dye plant drawing and a bit of Middle Ages lettering under our belts, we are now ready to create our Dyer’s Wheel. For a circular design with multiple elements, planning is everything. Take your time with this preliminary step.

Watch the video all the way through and print the attached pdf pages before you begin to work.

The video password is willow .

CLICK TO WATCH VIDEO

7 15 Dye Plants And Their Colors

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7 15 Tips For Completing Your Wheel

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7 15 Borders

379KB ∙ PDF file

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Printables: Medieval hand lettering

Val Webb — Tue, 23 Jun 2026 21:59:31 GMT

As we begin to think about medieval-style lettering to label our dye plants, it is important to realize that dyers working in the Middle Ages would never have been capable of this task. Less than six percent of the population could read, and even fewer could write.

Most readers were in monasteries, the last bastions of literacy during that time -- but even there, a fair number of brothers knew little more than the shapes of the letters. Recent studies indicate that some of the scribes who copied out manuscripts were only working mechanically, repeating the shapes they saw before them, and were incapable of deciphering their meaning.

Still, every business in the village displayed a sign above the door. These signs were pictographs, not lettered: a tailor might have a large pair of scissors hanging over the entrance of his shop, a blacksmith might have the painted image of an anvil.

The letters on today’s printables come from three sources associated with the medieval period: an early 8th Century manuscript, a 14th Century decree in the British Museum, and a modern-day decorative alphabet influenced by texts from that time. There was no J or W, but it’s easy to flip an M to provide a W, and likewise to draw a curved tail on the letter I to create a simple J.

The main thing to remember is that medieval tools and methods were not precise. Lettering had a slightly rough or rustic look (which complements our plant subjects very nicely). Don’t make your lettering too tidy. :)

Drawing Ancient Letters

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7 13 8th Century Alphabet

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7 13 14th Century Alphabet

311KB ∙ PDF file

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Free bonus: Draw a medieval dyer's garden

Val Webb — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 16:24:40 GMT

The garden of a medieval household was far more than a collection of culinary herbs. It was also the family medicine chest, and the source of dyes for the fabric a dutiful wife might weave.

In that era of rudimentary tools and limited resources, making dye wasn't easy. Only muted colors -- gray, soft blue, brown -- were acceptable for the working class woman to wear. (Bright colors led straight to the mortal sin of pride.)

Woad, a member of the mustard family, was easy to grow and produced a lovely shade of blue. To process the plant, however, required crushing and boiling the leaves, then steeping them in fermenting urine to set the color. Urine from someone who consumed large quantities of alcohol worked best. Despite these requirements (or perhaps because of them) woad was by far the most popular dye plant in Europe for over a century.

Drawn images, too, were rustic and simple in those days. Botanicals were reduced to their most rudimentary forms. Oak gall ink and a reed pen produced heavy, uneven lines that resembled woodcut printing.

Scroll down to print the illustrated pdf pages. Today, we'll draw some traditional dye plants in a style that pays homage to medieval art. Tomorrow, we'll practice some lettering options from that period. And the next day, we will paint and letter a dyer's wheel:

Printable pages:

7 11 Draw A Dyers Garden

533KB ∙ PDF file

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7 11 Ref Dye Plants 1

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7 11 Ref Dye Plants 2

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7 11 Ref Dye Plants 3

526KB ∙ PDF file

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Draw Paint Letter - Summer Part 1

Val Webb — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 23:36:54 GMT

PRINTABLES: “MONKEY CUP” IN CHARCOAL

The art of charcoal drawing is ancient -- as ancient as the discovery of fire. For many artists, charcoal was their first drawing medium. Simple to use, beautifully rich and very forgiving, it’s perfect for making preliminary drawings to help develop ideas for more polished paintings. But charcoal can hold its own as a fine art medium. Charcoal drawings can be beautiful and expressive.

For today’s project, you can use charcoal paper, the smoother side of your watercolor paper, or even a piece of good quality cardstock. You’ll also need a clean sheet of paper (any kind) under your drawing hand to prevent smearing.

Our subject is nepenthes, the whimsical-looking “monkey cup” plant, part of a fascinating family of carnivorous bog plants that thrive with the appearance of insect populations in late spring. At the bottom of the cup is a syrupy liquid that attracts unsuspecting insects and then makes it impossible for them to climb out again. Glands at the base of the cup absorb nutrients from captured prey.

Nepenthes is a bog plant, part of a unique ecosystem that forms in a wetland with wet, spongy, poorly drained soil. This week, we’ll draw and paint wetlands vegetation.

Springtime Watercolor Lesson Collection

Val Webb — Mon, 01 Jun 2026 12:11:28 GMT

BEAUTIFUL LOOK-ALIKES

In the steaming summer of 1838, deep in the Brazilian rainforest, naturalist Henry Walter Bates made a surprising discovery. Bates was studying tropical butterflies, and he noticed that some harmless species evolved to become virtually identical to toxic ones. Masquerading as a noxious insect protected the harmless species from predators. Forever after, the phenomenon would be known as Batesian mimicry.

At nearly the same time, in a different part of the Brazilian rainforest, German naturalist Johann Muller made a slightly different discovery. Muller was also studying tropical butterflies... but he noticed cases where two equally toxic species evolved to resemble each other, providing more confusion for predators. His discovery was dubbed Mullerian mimicry.

In this lesson, we will paint three species who benefit from Mullerian mimicry: the Monarch, the Viceroy and the Queen butterfly. All are toxic to birds. With a few key differences, they are similar enough to be very difficult to identify on the wing.

(NOTE: We will use wet-on-wet watercolor, so heavy watercolor paper is ideal. Even 140 lb paper may need to be taped down to prevent buckling.)

Click to watch the video:

Butterflies in Colored Pencil

Val Webb — Thu, 21 May 2026 11:37:34 GMT

Draw four of the most beautiful butterflies you’ve never heard of – each using a different technique, inspired by a woman naturalist from previous centuries. We’ll draw each butterfly with its host plant or nectar plant. An additional full-length video lesson, Butterfly Drawing Basics, is included.

Our colored pencil projects will explore:

Intense tropicals on a black background
Formal but whimsical butterfly illustrations of the Colonial era
Elegantly lush drawings of butterflies and caterpillars in the Age of Exploration
Drawing a labeled butterfly specimen from a 17th Century noblewoman’s collection

LESSON 1: FAITHFUL BEAUTY BUTTERFLY

Welcome to our first colored pencil subject, a tropical moth with a dazzling color and pattern. I had never heard of the Faithful Beauty (Composia fidelissima) until I began researching the life and work of Maria Martin Bachman. Her story is full of surprises. I hope you enjoy meeting her.

I recommend watching both videos and printing the pdf files before you begin to work. The video password for this course is always flutter

Faithful Beauty butterfly in colored pencil

Val Webb — Mon, 11 May 2026 16:03:23 GMT

This week, I’m uploading my full video course Butterflies in Colored Pencil to 32artcourses.substack.com and I wanted to share a free sample lesson. Have fun!

Our drawing subject is a tropical moth with a dazzling color and pattern. I had never heard of the Faithful Beauty (Composia fidelissima) until I began researching the life and work of Maria Martin Bachman. Her story is full of surprises. I hope you enjoy meeting her.

I recommend watching both videos and printing the pdf files before you begin to work. The video password for this course is always flutter

CLICK TO WATCH VIDEO 1

CLICK TO WATCH VIDEO 2

Butterfly Specimen Symmetry

430KB ∙ PDF file

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Butterfly Structure

525KB ∙ PDF file

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Ref Faithful Beauty Moth

274KB ∙ PDF file

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Ref Native Honeysuckle

277KB ∙ PDF file

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Brilliant Blues

636KB ∙ PDF file

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Coral And Optional Pattern

430KB ∙ PDF file

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The Heirloom Garden in Colored Pencil

Val Webb — Wed, 29 Apr 2026 21:59:58 GMT

Not long after the wedding ceremony, newly married couples in ancient Greece would head for the public gardens and dig up orchid roots. According to tradition, eating a thick, sturdy root would ensure that their firstborn was a boy. For a girl baby, they dined on the longest, thinnest root they could find.

Orchids no longer have a place in family planning, but throughout human history these exotic beauties have been treasured for other reasons. Their unusual forms make them a perfect subject for our introductory lesson.

In Part 1, we will create a preliminary pencil sketch -- the first step of the journey to a finished colored pencil drawing.( It’s a technique that also works beautifully for field sketching flowers in the garden.)

Watch the video for all the way through and print the illustrated pdf pages before you begin to draw.

Draw Horses and Ponies

Val Webb — Mon, 06 Apr 2026 13:47:35 GMT

Study the science of art and the art of science. — Leonardo da Vinci

LESSON 1: THE HORSE’S HEAD

A horse’s head is the least mobile and most expressive part of his body. We’ll begin by drawing two views of the head, and exploring some of its features. For this lesson, focus on a deeper understanding of the mechanics of the head - keep your drawings simple and clean. Don’t worry about shading or adding fine detail. The aim here is clearness and getting acquainted with equine anatomy. We will produce a higher degree of “finish” in upcoming lessons. Enjoy!

Watch the videos all the way through and print the illustrated pdf files before you begin to draw.

CLICK TO WATCH LESSON 1 VIDEO 1

CLICK TO WATCH LESSON 1 VIDEO 2

L1 Drawing Eyes And Nostrils

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L1 Drawing Eyes And Nostrils

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L1 Drawing The Mouth

394KB ∙ PDF file

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L1 Drawing The Ears

585KB ∙ PDF file

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Horse Head Ref 1

490KB ∙ PDF file

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Horse Head Ref 2

434KB ∙ PDF file

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A “Lagniappe” mini-lesson on drawing the 3/4 view will appear between Lesson 1 and Lesson 2 this week. (In the Gulf Coast region where I live, lagniappe (pronounced “lan-yap”) means a little something extra.

LAGNIAPPE: THE 3/4 VIEW

We’ve drawn the head’s front view, and the side view... but what about the 3/4 view? You will discover that this view is still consistent with the principles we explored in Lesson 1. The familiar rectangular guide (though tilted on its side) still works.

I have sketched some notes about drawing the 3/4 view on the printable below. Here are some handy reference images, too. Try sketching some of the heads now, and try the bodies after Lesson 2.

Birds in Watercolor and Beyond

Sat, 28 Mar 2026 22:07:50 GMT

Supply List Page 1

227KB ∙ PDF file

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Supply List Page 2

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Supply List Page 3

193KB ∙ PDF file

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LESSON 1: THE ESSENTIAL BIRD

In today’s lesson, we’ll reduce birds to their most basic forms. There is a deep satisfaction in seeking out the simplest elements of a beautiful subject - in fact, painting flowers and birds was a form of meditation for Buddhist monks in the 10th Century. Our “essential bird” watercolor lesson is inspired by their tradition, which valued using just a few strokes to paint the essence of the bird.

Click on the video link and watch it all the way through, then download the printable material for Part 1. As you view it a second time, draw and paint along.

CLICK TO WATCH LESSON 1 VIDEO 1

L1 Essential Forms

242KB ∙ PDF file

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L1 Sketch Steps

275KB ∙ PDF file

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L1 Sketch Examples

315KB ∙ PDF file

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L1 Warm Up Sketches

411KB ∙ PDF file

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L1 Ref Birds B

356KB ∙ PDF file

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L1 Color Mixing

332KB ∙ PDF file

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Note: to see the work of mid-century illustrator Charley Harper, who called his style of painting birds “minimal realism,” visit http://charleyharperartstudio.com .

In Part 2, we'll combine essential sketching and eloquent brush strokes. Watch the video and download the printable material before you begin painting.

CLICK TO WATCH LESSON 1 VIDEO 2

L1 Cardinal In 5 Steps

423KB ∙ PDF file

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L1 Brush Stroke Exercises

447KB ∙ PDF file

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L1 Essential Bird Examples

863KB ∙ PDF file

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L1 Ref Birds A

435KB ∙ PDF file

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L1 Ref Birds C

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L1 Ref Birds D

375KB ∙ PDF file

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LESSON 2: THE ELEGANT BIRD

Today’s project is inspired by two popular trends of the Victorian era: caged songbirds and lush botanicals. We will combine the warmth of watercolor, the rich opacity of black gouache, and the elegance of thin white line to make a silhouetted bird who looks a bit like a finely honed woodcut.

Watch the first video all the way through. You may choose a bird from the printable, use an image from the Lesson 1 printable, or use a photo of your own. Practice a few detailed silhouette drawings before you move on to Part 2.

CLICK TO WATCH LESSON 2 VIDEO 1

L2 Ref Birds2

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L2 Ref Birds1

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Still pondering which medium to use for your white lines? Here’s a closer look at three options pictured in the video. A white gel pen or a fine white paint pen will also work well.

Watch the video for Part 2, then print the pdf pages that appear at the end of this lesson.

CLICK TO WATCH LESSON 2 VIDEO 2

Here is the finished sample painting:

…and here is a three-step sequence showing the gouache, then the white lines, then the final addition of a birdcage. You may or may not choose to cage your bird. Either way is fine!

If you choose to include a cage in your design, here are some forms to inspire you:

Here are illustrated printable pages with botanical gouache/ink patterns and some information on wing feathers. Both will come in handy in today’s lesson:

L2 Wing Feathers

418KB ∙ PDF file

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L2 Botanical Patterns

497KB ∙ PDF file

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LESSON 3: THE HIDDEN BIRD

Today’s lesson features an unusual technique that has become one of my favorites: ink resist. (It is also sometimes called gouache resist.) The “reveal” step, in which the spray from a garden hose uncovers the bold and elegant lines hidden beneath, feels just like opening a present on Christmas morning!

Watch the video all the way through, then print and read the pdf Tips for Successful Ink Resist before you begin to work. Examples of simplified drawing, and reference images for this project, are at the end of the lesson.

CLICK TO WATCH LESSON 3 VIDEO 1

L3 Tips For Success With Ink Resist

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Here’s how my black-and-white pelican looked before it was tinted with watercolor:

L3 Simplified Drawings

431KB ∙ PDF file

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L3 Ref Bald Eagle

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L3 Ref Flamingo

351KB ∙ PDF file

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L3 Ref Great Blue Heron

428KB ∙ PDF file

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L3 Ref Brown Pelican

537KB ∙ PDF file

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LESSON 4: THE LIVELY BIRD

It’s fun to draw birds in motion - but even if your reference bird is perching quietly, you can use ink textures to make your painting lively and dynamic. Watch the first video and print the pdf before you start to work on Part 1.

CLICK TO WATCH LESSON 4 VIDEO 1

L4 Ink Textures

617KB ∙ PDF file

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In Part 2, we’ll combine vigorous texture with the precision of a fine-tipped drawing pen. Watch the video, print the reference images, select your favorite, and jump right in.

CLICK TO WATCH LESSON 4 VIDEO 2

L4 Ref Greater Vasa Parrot

522KB ∙ PDF file

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L4 Ref Eastern Bluebird

448KB ∙ PDF file

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L4 Ref Grey Crowned Crane

391KB ∙ PDF file

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L4 Ref Brown Pelican

419KB ∙ PDF file

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Here are the earlier stages of my watercolor example, a dancing heron. The dark marks at the corners of my rough sketch are placed there to help my scanner find the pale pencil marks of the preliminary bird.

When you add the feather structure, use as much pencil as you like, as long as the lead is soft (2B or 4B work well). After all your ink has dried, it will ve very easy to remove every trace of pencil with your kneaded eraser.

LESSON 5: THE PLAYFUL BIRD

Watercolor is an astonishing medium. You can begin with a few spatters and splashes, using only two colors (Pyrrole Orange and Phthalo Blue) and after a short, happy journey you arrive at a completed hen. Yes, we’re painting poultry for our warm-up project. Chickens are usually overlooked when it comes to painting birds, but they make wonderful subjects. Watch the video all the way through and print the pdf pages that appear below the screen before you begin Part 1.

CLICK TO WATCH LESSON 5 VIDEO 1

L5 Texture Sampler

620KB ∙ PDF file

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L5 Hen Progression

415KB ∙ PDF file

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Chicken Reference 1

177KB ∙ PDF file

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Chicken Reference 2

165KB ∙ PDF file

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Your preliminary sketch can be very simple -- no need for great detail. Your watercolor brushes will provide surface textures and shading. Here’s how my hen sketch looked:

…And here is the completed little black hen:

In Part 2, we’ll employ an unusual method for moving paint across the paper’s surface: blowing sharp puffs of air that push the color away. Feel free to use as much or as little of this “wind power” as you wish, depending on the final effect you want. The bird in this image, for example, uses much more of this technique than the bird our video demo.

CLICK TO WATCH LESSON 5 VIDEO 2

Reference Raven

202KB ∙ PDF file

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Reference Crow 1

214KB ∙ PDF file

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Reference Crow 2

252KB ∙ PDF file

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LESSON SIX: THE TONED BIRD

This summer was the 50th anniversary of my first illustration job. Over all those years and thousands of drawings on tight deadlines, I discovered some shortcuts in creating realistic images. This week, we will use one of my favorites (and one of the most fun). After laying down a heavy wash to tone the entire surface of our paper, we’ll lift out all the light areas before we ever begin to paint. Using this method, your painting is half finished before you paint the first brush stroke!

Our earlier projects have been loose and impressionistic. Now, we turn our creative energies to a realistic subject: the wonderfully expressive faces of owls. Before we paint, we will do some sketching in Part 1. Look carefully at the eyes of our references, and spend a little time drawing several examples. Sketching preliminary studies will make your final painting more accurate.

Watch the video for Part 1 and print the pdf files before you begin to sketch.

CLICK TO WATCH LESSON 6 VIDEO 1

L6 Caustics

346KB ∙ PDF file

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L6 Ref Owls 1

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L6 Ref Owls 2

391KB ∙ PDF file

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L6 Ref Owls 3

414KB ∙ PDF file

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In Part 2, we will use a combination of watercolor and white gouache over toned paper. Each of us will have slightly different backgrounds, since no two washes are the same. If you have a rich background and your watercolors seem to fade into it, experiment with mixing a tiny amount of white gouache to your colors -- just a touch on the brush tip is all you’ll need. The extremely opaque nature of gouache will keep your pigment on the surface of your painting.

Watch the video all the way through before you begin.

Note: This lesson requires the watercolor board that was on our supply list. Heavyweight (300lb) watercolor paper also works very well. Our usual 140lb paper will not tolerate the repeated wetting and lifting.

CLICK TO WATCH LESSON 6 VIDEO 2

Here’s the progression of the demo owl to completion:

LESSON 7: THE BIRD IN THE FIELD

Field sketches -- those basic drawings created outside, while looking at a live subject -- can teach you a great deal about your bird, and they also sharpen your powers of observation. Watching birds fly, feed or interact with other birds can provide a wealth of information and insight no photograph can possess.

Today’s lesson is different from all the others. (You’ll notice that right away!) I’ll share my approach to field sketching, give you some specific tips for quick and accurate drawing, and offer techniques for simple lettering and using “mental snapshots” to capture a moving subject. Then, instead of drawing from a photo reference, try to find a live bird to sketch. Any bird will do. It might be a songbird at your backyard feeder, chickens in a coop, an ostrich at the local zoo, pigeons in the park, or wild birds along a shoreline or at the edge of the woods. Birds are everywhere -- ornithologists estimate there are 400 billion individuals on the planet at this moment -- so grab your sketchbook and see who is in your neighborhood today.

When I draw outdoors, I try to keep my supplies very light and simple:

CLICK TO WATCH LESSON 7 VIDEO 1

Here is my outdoor sketching kit all packed away: all the art supplies and field guide fit into the gray zipper pouch, the binoculars are in their case and all that remains is the small sketchbook and water. If you have to walk very far, every ounce can make a difference.

Here are two pages of drawings from my morning of sketching terns and pelicans on the bay. When sketching light-colored birds, it is helpful to block in a simple background color for contrast. Keep it neutral -- a gray, blue or green can work well. Remember, field sketches are really just visual note-taking and the goal is not a finished piece of artwork:

It’s great fun to be outdoors with your birds, but they don’t hold still for long. How do you sketch them when they are constantly moving around? I use a method of “mental snapshot” to help get active subjects captured on paper. This method also works well if you are trying to draw a bird you are looking at through binoculars -- another tricky prospect! Here is the technique:

Think in the stages of your drawing. At first, it’s only the general form and flight angle (more about that in a moment) you are after. Watch your bird closely, ignoring everything except the basic form -- no need to think about shading, patterns, beaks or eyes at this stage. While still looking at your bird, close your eyes and hold that “snapshot” in your mind. Open your eyes while looking at your paper. Picture the “snapshot” there. Practice it a time or two, and you may be surprised how much information you retain when you visualize the “snapshot” on the blank sketchbook. Draw what you remember. Then repeat. This method improves with practice. And it’s fun. Give it a try!

The first step in drawing a flying bird is to see and draw the flight angle. Your drawing will be built on this foundation. Here is an example of that concept:

CLICK TO WATCH LESSON 7 VIDEO 2

Here’s a printable to help with visualizing flight angles:

L7 Flight Angles

338KB ∙ PDF file

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It’s important to include written notes with your field sketches. Some people have more text than sketches, while others include just an occasional label or observation. Any sort of printing or writing will do, as long as it’s legible. (When you look at a sketch in 20 years, you may not recall the details of that day, so you’ll want to be able to read your remarks.)

I sometimes use a modified form of block printing called “quickhand” for jotting things down rapidly. It’s as fast as cursive writing, but I like the look of it better. If you are not in a hurry, block printing works well, too. Here are examples of both:

The watercolor field sketches you make this week will help prepare you for our final three lessons, which all deal with realistic birds, and how to paint the settings around them. Enjoy!

LESSON 8: THE SOARING BIRD

“Once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward, for there you have been, and there you will always long to return.” — Leonardo da Vinci

When you “walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward,” what you will see are soaring birds. They inspire us, they uplift and entertain us, they teach our hearts to fly. In today’s lesson, we will learn three methods for creating the space for our birds to soar. Painting skies in watercolor is a playful, exploratory process in which no two results are ever exactly the same. This lesson will return to our earlier technique of lifting the background wash to create lighter values, and then working on top of them.

I encourage you to cut your paper down to a small size (I used 6x6 inches) for this project. The smaller size will prevent warping, encourage you to keep your skies fairly simple, and fit the sizes of our brushes better than a larger image would.

Watch the video all the way through and print the reference images (or use your own). Try out all three sky painting techniques. Take a look at the step-by-step completion photos, which demonstrate a red-wattled lapwing painted into one of the three skies you saw on the video. Can you tell which one I used for the painting?

CLICK TO WATCH LESSON 7 VIDEO 1

L8 Ref Flight 1

185KB ∙ PDF file

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L8 Ref Flight 2

165KB ∙ PDF file

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L8 Ref Flight 3

115KB ∙ PDF file

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Here is the sky, completely dry, with my sketch drawn lightly in 4B pencil. Using the #4 brush, I rewet any darker blue areas inside the bird outline and lifted them with a damp paper towel. This won’t return the paper to white, but it will considerably soften the blue background. (You can see this in the lower wingtip.)

Always be mindful in placing your bird in your painted sky... don’t allow the edge of your bird to line up with elements in the clouds. The human eye is powerfully attracted by continuous line, and your viewer will be distracted.

Next, I used white gouache for any pure white areas on the bird. This is the same technique we used in our lesson on toned brackgrounds:

Next, I painted the head and tail. All the darker areas on the bird are painted with a mixture of Ultramarine Blue and Pyrrole Orange. (More blue = a blackish tone. More orange = a warm brownish tone.) The highlight areas on the top of the head and under the throat are made by rewetting and lifting away the dark paint with a dry brush. The red wattle is the same mixture with some Quinacridone Rose added. I painted the flight feathers with the blue/orange mixture, using more orange here to create the warm reddish-brown color:

Using my good old orange/blue combo, I painted a thin layer along the leading edge of the bird’s shoulders and back:

Working from front to back, I added the golden-brown mantle of this bird with my same old blue/orange combo, brightened up with the addition of Hansa Yellow. The highlights are touches of white gouache. All done!

Why isn’t the lapwing reference in our collection of reference images?

While it is informative to watch the unfolding of the demo watercolor, it’s much more informative to take those principles and test-drive them on a different bird of your own. Each watercolor is an unfolding sequence of unique choices, and you will learn more if you are allowed to make those choices on your own, with your own bird, from start to finish. Enjoy!

In Part 2, we’ll paint birds’ eggs. Is there anything more charming than the sight of a clutch of speckled eggs tucked into a nest? Watch the video and print the illustrated pdf pages before you begin:

CLICK TO WATCH LESSON 8 VIDEO 2

L8 Speckled Egg In 4 Steps

409KB ∙ PDF file

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L8 More About Eggs

408KB ∙ PDF file

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L8 Ref Eggs 1

382KB ∙ PDF file

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LESSON 9: THE SCENIC BIRD

In our last lesson, we set our birds free to fly across a background of sky. This week, we’ll provide a place for them to perch awhile. In Part 1, we’ll explore quick and easy techniques for creating stone walls and weathered fences. Watch the video and print the illustrated pdf pages before you begin to paint:

CLICK TO WATCH LESSON 9 VIDEO 1

L9 Weathered Wood In 4 Steps

448KB ∙ PDF file

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Now it’s time to add a bird or two! The video reviews the process of creating textures and combines them -- you may paint your birds quite small, as I have, or zoom in for a close-up and feature them larger in your image. Either way, be sure that the proportions of your bird and your scenery match.

Watch the video and print the reference images, or use some of your own. Enjoy!

CLICK TO WATCH LESSON 9 VIDEO 2

L9 Ref Perching Birds

279KB ∙ PDF file

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L9 Stone Wall In 4 Steps

320KB ∙ PDF file

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LESSON 10: THE FINAL BIRD

It’s handy to have a few creative techniques for painting the vines and branches upon which your bird will perch. In Part 1, we’ll put a colorful twist on the classic watercolor tool, negative painting. Most helpful for building layers of overlapping plant material, negative painting is perfect for lush foliage. Watch the video all the way through, then print the accompanying pdf pages before you begin:

CLICK TO WATCH LESSON 10 VIDEO 1

L10 Brush Strokes

490KB ∙ PDF file

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L10 Plant Forms

539KB ∙ PDF file

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L10 Ref Leaf Forms

429KB ∙ PDF file

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...And in Part 2, we return to our birds. In our final project for this course, we will use another traditional watercolor technique: glazing with layers of color or texture. Remember to work from light to dark, and allow undercoats to dry before adding new pigment on top. Most of all, enjoy yourself:

CLICK TO WATCH LESSON 10 VIDEO 2

L10 Ref Branches 1

364KB ∙ PDF file

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L10 Ref Branches2

348KB ∙ PDF file

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L10 Ref Birds1

175KB ∙ PDF file

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L10 Ref Birds2

351KB ∙ PDF file

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Thank you for doing this course with me!

Gentle Garden

Val Webb — Sat, 14 Mar 2026 18:32:25 GMT

Less smudgy and easier to control than charcoal, richer and darker than graphite - and with no graphite “shine” - carbon pencil is a sensitive and satisfying medium for botanical drawing. In 12 step-by-step video lessons, learn new techniques while drawing a wide range of flowers and their pollinators.

This course is designed to demonstrate the unique characteristics of carbon pencils. If you use graphite or charcoal instead, you will get very different results from what is demonstrated in our class videos. It’s OK to use substitutes for most of the items on our supply list, but carbon pencils are at the heart of the techniques we’ll be using. I strongly encourage you to use the four pencils recommended below.

Most of our supplies are small, ordinary, and pretty much available anywhere that art supplies are sold. Mine were ordered from Dick Blick, but you can find them all over:

Wolff’s Carbon Pencils B, 2B, 6B
General’s Kimberly 9XXB extra extra soft pencil
Regular drawing pencil, 2B any brand you like
At least one large and one smaller blending stump
A kneaded eraser
A square of ordinary felt (the kind you use for crafts)
X-acto knife
A small chamois
Clic retractable eraser (You will need some type of white plastic eraser. Either 9, 10 or 11 will serve you just fine for our course. I have all three and like them. Choose one or — even better — perhaps you already have one lying around somewhere! The Clic eraser is often sold with school supplies or office supplies.)
Staedtler Mars plastic eraser
Tombow Mono Zero round eraser
Frisket film (I ordered mine from Dick Blick, but it is often sold in office supply stores. IMPORTANT: You want LOW-TACK frisket film, which will not damage your paper when you remove it. If you are offered a choice of glossy or matte, either is fine. Liquid frisket will not work for us.
A pencil sharpener big enough to accommodate the Kimberly 9XXB pencil, which is similar in girth to those huge pencils you used in kindergarten. My beloved electric sharpener is too small, so I use a two-hole handheld one for just that pencil. If you have an electric with several sizes of holes, you may be able to sharpen it the easy way.
Very fine sandpaper OR…
A sandpaper block. We will need to hone some extra-fine points and sandpaper will also allow us to trap carbon pencil dust to use for some drawing effects.
Workable fixatif (not varnish or regular fixatif) for stabilizing areas with heavy carbon pencil coverage. We will mostly use it for black backgrounds, but you can also use it to protect all the drawings you create during the course. Craft stores and big box stores carry it. Some mail order companies don’t like to ship aerosol cans. We will not be drawing black backgrounds until well into the course, so you don’t need to have this at the beginning.
Surprise! There isn’t a picture to go with this number. This is where we talk about which paper to use for the class. For all my carbon pencil work, I use 140 lb hot press Arches watercolor paper exclusively, because it gives such beautiful results and happily tolerates being repeatedly drawn upon, erased, rubbed with blenders and drawn upon again. There is nothing worse than damaging your paper halfway through a project. (And some papers trap the carbon pencil in their surface fibers and then you can’t erase to create highlights.) Two big sheets will easily carry you through the whole course with some to spare, or you can order a pad of 12 sheets online (recently Jerry’s Art-a-Rama had 9×12 pads for about $15). If you already have another brand of hot press watercolor paper, I would bet that it also work well.

LESSON 1: RED POSTMAN BUTTERFLY

We will begin our exploration of carbon pencils with a tropical butterfly whose markings make him fun to draw: the toxic but lovely red postman, Heliconius erato. Carbon pencil has a special ability to mimic the texture of a butterfly’s wing. Prepare to be impressed!

The first video demonstrates how to make an accurate preliminary sketch. Even if you plan to transfer the printed sketch for your carbon pencil practice, I encourage you to watch both videos all the way through. There is a lot of additional info tucked in alongside the sketching process.

Ink Drawing Lesson Collection

Val Webb — Sun, 01 Mar 2026 20:36:19 GMT

Ink, with or without watercolor, is my absolute favorite drawing medium. It’s practically magical. I hope you enjoy exploring these seven ink drawing projects with me (plus two additional Drawing Landscapes videos). I always love to hear your comments or suggestions, or to answer any questions; you can mail me at studio@valwebb.com.

LESSON 1: DRAW SUCCULENTS IN PENCIL (A WARMUP)

Succulents, the strange and wonderful family of plants whose name derives from the Latin for “juice,” have fascinated humans for thousands of years. The Romans planted them in roof gardens, believing they would repel lightning. Christopher Columbus brought exotic-looking succulents and cacti back from the New World as gifts for Queen Isabella.

Their odd shapes and fleshy textures make them ideal drawing subjects, and we’ll use them as models in a simple sketch technique that balances two different line weights - delicate and spidery HB pencil and robust 4B pencil - to create a fresh, informal drawing that is botanically accurate without lots of fussy detail.

I have provided reference images, but if you have succulents in your home or garden, feel free to draw them instead!

Watch the videos all the way through and print the attached pdf pages before you begin to work.

The Edwardian Lady's Garden in Colored Pencil

Val Webb — Sun, 08 Feb 2026 18:28:33 GMT

Get to know Edith Holden, explore techniques for using a dip pen and sepia ink, then create a colored pencil plant study. Lesson 1 is designed as a multi-part warmup.

I recommend watching a video all the way through and printing the accompanying pdf pages before you start to draw.

LESSON 1

THE PASSWORD FOR VIDEOS IN THIS COURSE: Edith

Click to watch Meet Edith Holden

Click to watch Video 1: Sepia Ink

Click to watch Video 2: More Sepia Ink

Click to watch Video 3: Colored Pencil Study

Printable pdf pages for Lesson 1:

Sepia Ink Dip Pen Style

611KB ∙ PDF file

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Sepia Ink Practice Flowers

487KB ∙ PDF file

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More Ink Flowers

479KB ∙ PDF file

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Ref Zinnias

449KB ∙ PDF file

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Lesson 1 Optional Line Art

458KB ∙ PDF file

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Colored Pencil Practice

572KB ∙ PDF file

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Ref Rosa Villosa

288KB ∙ PDF file

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Ref Edith Holden Studies

293KB ∙ PDF file

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LESSON 2

Practice the 4-step method for sketching botanical subjects. Transfer your own pencil sketch of a long-stemmed wildflower bouquet to a sheet of cream paper, create a shaded foundation drawing and then add color layers. This week, we are working from one of Edith Holden’s watercolor flower studies. (We’ll talk more about her unusual, creative family, too!)

THE PASSWORD FOR ALL VIDEOS IN THIS COURSE: Edith

Click to watch Video 1: The Four-Step Sketching Method

Click to watch Video 2: Wildflower Bouquet

Click to watch Video 3: More Wildflower Bouquet

Printable pdf pages for Lesson 2:

L2 Botanical Sketch In 4 Steps

494KB ∙ PDF file

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L2 Ref Wild Arum

255KB ∙ PDF file

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L2 Long Stemmed Wildflowers

315KB ∙ PDF file

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L2 Ref Corn Cockle

414KB ∙ PDF file

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L2 Optional Line Art

430KB ∙ PDF file

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L2 Bees, Dragonflies And Damselflies

475KB ∙ PDF file

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L2 Ref Wildflowers

264KB ∙ PDF file

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LESSON 3

Learn a helpful trick for accurately drawing a butterfly specimen. Sketch a butterfly and nectar flowers, add an umber foundation and then a color layer working from Edith Holden’s nature notes. We’ll pay special attention to layering color and pattern on the butterfly’s wings - colored pencils are the perfect butterfly drawing medium! Also, we’ll follow Edith into her mid-20s as she works toward her goal of illustrating books.

THE PASSWORD FOR ALL VIDEOS IN THIS COURSE: Edith

Click to watch Video 1: How to Draw a Butterfly

Click to watch Video 2: Butterfly & Flowers

Click to watch Video 3: Coloring

Printable pages for Lesson 3:

L3 Ref Butterfly Photos

307KB ∙ PDF file

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L3 Ref Butterfly Photos P2

287KB ∙ PDF file

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L3 Ref Edith Holden Peacock Butterfly

393KB ∙ PDF file

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L3 Ref Edith Holden Garden White Butterfly

293KB ∙ PDF file

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L3 Butterfly Structure

568KB ∙ PDF file

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L3 Optional Line Art

418KB ∙ PDF file

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L3 Ref Wild Hyacinth And Red Campion

314KB ∙ PDF file

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L3 Butterfly Collection

677KB ∙ PDF file

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LESSON 4

Letter a heading for a set of “mottoes” (Edith Holden’s proverbs, which she included in her nature diary at the start of each month). Explore drawing decorative banners and expressive little ink vignettes to complement your mottoes. Draw a colored pencil study of two very invasive botanicals, inspired by Edith’s page - or by your own weeds, if you wish!

THE PASSWORD FOR ALL VIDEOS IN THIS COURSE: Edith

Click to watch Video 1: Edith’s Mottoes

Click to watch Video 2: Drawing and Lettering

Click to watch Video 3: Coloring

Printable pdf pages for Lesson 4:

L4 Mottoes Practice

545KB ∙ PDF file

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L4 Edith Holden Mottoes P1

514KB ∙ PDF file

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L4 Edith Holden Mottoes P2

499KB ∙ PDF file

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L4 More Mottoes

512KB ∙ PDF file

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L4 Ref Edith Holden Mottoe Pages

430KB ∙ PDF file

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L4 Ref Bindweed And Couch Grass

330KB ∙ PDF file

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L4 Optional Line Art

362KB ∙ PDF file

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LESSON 5

Learn a handy trick for starting a bird sketch, then practice drawing birds in Edith Holden’s style. In our main project, draw a bird among flowers using a partial monotone technique.

PASSWORD FOR ALL VIDEOS IN THIS COURSE: Edith

Click to watch Video 1: Drawing Edith’s Birds

Click to watch Video 2: Partial Monotone

Click to watch Video 3: More Partial Monotone

Printable pdf pages for Lesson 5:

L5 Edith Holden's Cuckoo

261KB ∙ PDF file

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L5 Cuckoo In 4 Steps

475KB ∙ PDF file

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L5 First Draw An Egg

444KB ∙ PDF file

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L5 Ref Edith Holden Birds

438KB ∙ PDF file

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L5 Ref Edith Holden Cuckoo And Wildflowers

310KB ∙ PDF file

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L5 Ref Edith Holden Green Finches

398KB ∙ PDF file

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L5 Ref Edith Holden Chaffinch

352KB ∙ PDF file

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L5 Optional Line Art

464KB ∙ PDF file

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LESSON 6

In our final lesson, use the techniques we have explored to create a full-page monthly cover with botanical and bird elements. Thank you for drawing with me. :)

PASSWORD FOR ALL VIDEOS IN THIS COURSE: Edith

Click to watch Video 1: Preliminary Drawing

Click to watch Video 2: Foundation Drawing

Click to watch Video 3: Coloring the Leaves

Click to watch Video 4: Coloring the Bird

Printable pdf pages for Lesson 6:

L6 Headings

494KB ∙ PDF file

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L6 Optional Line Art

398KB ∙ PDF file

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L6 Ref Bittersweet

268KB ∙ PDF file

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L6 Ref Dogwood And Crabapple

341KB ∙ PDF file

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L6 Ref Elderberry And Beech

324KB ∙ PDF file

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L6 Ref Green Finches

411KB ∙ PDF file

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L6 Ref October Tints

376KB ∙ PDF file

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L6 Ref Yellowhammer

286KB ∙ PDF file

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Draw Paint Letter: Spring Part 3

Val Webb — Mon, 26 Jan 2026 02:52:17 GMT

PRINTABLE: SHINY AS A SALAMANDER

For several sessions, we will focus on drawing and painting pond life -- plants, animals and insects that live in the water or along its edge. We'll also do some "pondscapes" to paint water and mist.

Water dogs, the slippery-skinned salamanders who pass through an aquatic stage during their life cycle, look like an odd cross between a frog and a lizard. There are hundreds of types of salamanders, with an astonishing assortment of physical features: some can breathe through their skin, some can regrow a missing tail or leg, some can protect themselves by poking the sharp tips of their ribs through their skin to become a sort of amphibious porcupine.

For our purposes, though, we will look at their shiny surfaces. Today's illustrated printable is about techniques for drawing things that are glossy or wet. The salamander -- whose skin must stay moist all the time -- is an ideal model.

Draw Paint Letter: Spring Part 2

Val Webb — Tue, 13 Jan 2026 03:07:03 GMT

PRINTABLES: EPHEMERAL WILDFLOWERS IN PEN AND INK

While winter’s chill still hangs in the air, before the trees leaf out, sometimes even before the last snows melt, a special group of early wildflowers bloom and fruit and vanish again -- all within a fleeting eight-week lifespan.

They are ephemerals, woodland flowers that raise the first flag of spring and later retreat to spend the summer months dormant underground.

The spidery lines of pen-and-ink can be a lovely medium for sketching these flowers. Today’s printables will get you started in that direction. On Wednesday, we’ll sample some alternative techniques for marrying ink and flowers. And in Friday’s video lesson, we will combine ink and watercolor to evoke the vivid colors and delicate details in the first fresh blooms of spring.

Take a look at the two instructive printables, then use the reference images to practice ink sketches -- or, even better, see if there might be a wildflower or two at your back fence or along a nearby roadside!

Draw Paint Letter: Spring Part 1

Val Webb — Fri, 26 Dec 2025 18:13:29 GMT

PRINTABLES: GARDEN PEA ALPHABET

Our subject today is Pisum sativum, the garden pea, a humble green vine with a celebrity past.

Peas have been cultivated since before written history, grown in the shadows of the early Bronze Age, eaten as a staple food in neolithic Syria. They were harvested in the gardens of the Pharaohs of ancient Egypt. Thomas Jefferson loved peas and grew more than 30 cultivars in his vast kitchen gardens at Monticello.

Pea vines are beautiful, which makes them an ideal drawing subject. And they send out wonderful spiral tendrils, which makes them ideal for today’s project: a watercolor pea alphabet!

Think of today’s exercise as a way to playfully explore mixing shades of green and using your brush in different ways. Perfection is NOT the goal, and your pea alphabet may not resemble mine. That’s fine! (No botanical accuracy is needed, so we are going with brush strokes and not reference photos. Resist the urge to be too realistic.)

If you are new to watercolor, fill a page or two with practice strokes and swirls before working on a word.

If you are not sure of your drawing skills and you are eager to get painting, you can transfer the desired letters from our printable pdf page to your watercolor paper. Be sure to enlarge them on your copier -- I recommend drawing them around 2 inches tall for easier painting. Then cut out your letters, fill in the back side of the copy paper with a healthy coat of pencil graphite, and trace over the outlines to transfer them.

Of course, you may not want to draw the letters at all. For wild and whimsical vines, look at the Pea Alphabet pdf for inspiration and just start laying down your paint in the general twirly shapes of the letterforms.