When you feel like you have to be perfect, it makes it hard to show up to paint. The process isn’t joyful and your paintings end up stiff and sad. To build more nourishing painting practice I had to find a way to quiet that critical inner voice, and let myself get loose and play.
I want to share that process with you.
In this class, we are going to paint one goofy glorious expressive little bird (in Gouache!) in a loose and lively style, to learn to show up with more joy and less judgment. We’ll focus on how to build up layers of colour, make loose expressive marks to convey textures, and let go of that judgy part of your brain so you can paint with more joy. This class is suitable for anyone with a mean little voice that tells them they shouldn’t paint (you definitely should paint!)
Birds offer an excellent canvas to let loose and make marks, with their simple shapes and glorious textures (hello feathers!). Together, we’ll study birds and sketch them, create an underpainting as a base layer of colour and texture, practice making marks in a low-pressure way, and bring it all together to create a beautiful finished painting. Along the way, we’ll practice being present in the moment, letting go of the results, and being kind to ourselves to make showing up to paint something you look forward to.
