Paint & Draw Collection

Creating a piece of art is a rewarding, challenging and very personal endeavour, – the Paint & Draw Collection Volume 3 is here to take you through that journey from start to finish. Art is subjective, and many artists tend stick to one medium. Whether you are interested in oil painting, watercolours, pencil sketching or pastel work, there’s something for you. From quick tips to in-depth tutorials that will guide you from initial sketch to finished piece, learn how to develop your skills and produce your best work yet. You’ll be able to experiment with an unfamiliar medium thanks to the step-by-step workshops that cover everything from essential pencil shading techniques to getting the most out of plein air painting. Over the course of the book you’ll gain inspiration from the likes…

Master metallic reflections WHEN LIGHT STRIKES a metallic object, it can reflect back onto any nearby object in an unusual way. Normally, light hitting a primary and secondary object gives varying degrees of light, shadow and cast shadows, but reflective light also happens under these circumstances, and will need to be shown in your artwork. To show how this works, I have produced the images above, working with a dark charcoal pencil and an eraser. Follow these steps… 1 I select two interesting objects – a highly polished metallic teapot and a ceramic vase. I place the objects with light catching one side so I can carefully observe the highly lit and shadowed areas. I then draw basic shapes with a charcoal pencil, trying to represent these reasonably accurately, although adjustment can be…

SOMETIMES YOU NEED to shake things up with your drawing, and let go of the impulse to do too much with your work. One of my favourite ways to do this is by creating transfer drawings, also known as trace monotypes. With this printmaking technique, you can transform an ordinary sketch into something almost nostalgic, with a gritty texture and bold contrast. The monotype process creates one print, with the potential for a second variation of that print, but no more. So, in many respects it is similar to a singular drawing. With a piece of paper placed against an inked plate, you can create a drawing, and through pencil pressure, ink is transferred as a print. I prefer to draw directly on the paper without a sketch, letting the lack…

GETTING TO GRIPS with colour theory can seem a little bit too much like learning maths or science. You may feel you just want to be creative and express yourself, not work out calculations. But colour theory is one of the fundamental things you need to learn in order to progress and grow as an artist. Read on to create a colour theory chart that will transform your creative life. Follow these steps… 1 The following exercise can be completed with acrylic, oil or watercolour paints, but colouring pencils are best. Not only do you just need the pencils themselves – there’s no need for water, spirits, brushes or a palette – but they’re are also a lot less messy than other mediums. And they’re so portable, this exercise can be completed…

I am going to talk about light, tone, colour and creating interesting brushstrokes. I always love to paint outdoors whenever I can, especially at dawn or dusk. The light changes fast, so you have to learn to work quickly and spontaneously. I am always out on my bike looking for subject matter to paint, I treat it as an adventure. I take sketches, colour studies and photos to make sure I have enough reference in case I want to make a larger painting in the studio. Choosing a subject matter at these extreme times of day means that I have the best chance of creating an atmospheric and relaxing landscape. I always work from light to dark to keep the colours fresh and avoid smudges. I also try and use transparent colours…

In this portrait in oils tutorial, I want to open the door for you to start mindfully introducing arbitrary colours and exciting gestures with a variety of tools. A basic understanding of the colour wheel and complementary colours would be useful, so you may need to do a quick bit of research! I love creating challenging colour combinations, varied surface qualities and large tonal shifts. The more freewheeling and distant from the original source (whilst not losing the connection), the more enjoyable I find it. Before I begin almost every painting, I plan the colour scheme for all major elements in my head or on paper. Then I adapt it as the painting moves on. It’s worth noting that some pigments react with one another by going almost black so you might…