How many of you here love to paint but hesitate to learn it? We know – for adults, it’s natural to think, “Hmm, I’m too old for it, though,” and brush aside your dream. However, age has never been a problem. Today, we’ll introduce 12 short yet practical online watercolor classes that you can take any time anywhere.
How come we decide that they are the best? We interviewed over 20 watercolor professionals, examined public feedback from individuals who took online watercolor programs, and then selected 12 of the top online painting classes. Thus, buckle up and get down to them right away!
Table of Contents
BEGINNERS Watercolor. Get Clear On The Basics And Just Paint – Udemy
If you’re seeking online watercolor lessons for newbies, this Udemy program is a good option. Indeed, it has been one of the bestselling courses on Udemy for years. Thus, if you’ve always wanted to work with watercolors yet didn’t know where or how to begin, this is the one for you.
This online watercolor workshop aims to teach and learn through simple practice lessons.
What’s The Course About?
Throughout this program, the trainer will assist you in breaking free from the draw-and-color-in habit you developed as a youngster. Students will color in basic shapes and experiment with watercolors to enhance their knowledge and skills.
Please keep in mind that if you’re looking for a traditional approach, this Udemy watercolor course might not be for you. The instructor will teach you basic color blending, color names, sketching, and composition in these lessons.
Who’s This Course For?
This course simply acts as the first step that helps you step into the field of painting. This is not the training for those who have previous experience in painting.
We offer this program to starters because they will be instructed by a self-taught painter who knows how individuals think about their creative journey. She understands your dream to do art and knows that it might be very confusing and stressful at first.
Through her attentive, easygoing, and caring training approach, your trainer will assist you in overcoming all of these worries. In addition, your instructor, Nicola, has years of professional experience instructing students of different abilities, both online and in real life.
This program includes 4 hrs of video on request, 11 papers, and 32 printable materials. You may watch it on your TV or smartphone. After completing the program, you will be granted proof of completion.
“Have done a lot of art projects when I was younger, but as life progressed it fell by the way side. I’ve decided to take it up again and found that a lot of the skill in working with any medium has been lost or become so rusty. Also, the 21st-century rush and quick fix, quick result ‘madness’ has put me in a rushed mood, which is not a good place to be when working with any medium… perfection comes in stages and not immediately…” – Andries B.
Modern Watercolor Techniques – Domestika
Following that is a funny watercolor course offered by Ana Victoria Calderon, an illustrator and designer residing in Mexico City. Try and amaze yourself with the endless options that her method gives!
After 10 years of focusing only on painting, she has established her unique art influenced by nature’s mysticism. Her artwork would include posters and book covers, and she has worked with multinational businesses such as Papyrus, Vanity Fair, Ray-Ban, and Editorial Santillana.
Discover how to perfect the water coloring technique step by step alongside Ana Victoria and utilize it in a fun method to get unbelievable outcomes. Due to the essence of the approach, there are moments when the method acts by itself.
What’s The Course About?
This program will teach you how to use unintended “mistakes” to your advantage. First, learn the fundamentals, then progress outside classic watercolor by playing with other materials and a more modern approach.
Indeed, while the training begins with the fundamentals, the primary goal is to acquire more creative approaches by combining watercolor painting with different elements such as brine, ethanol, nail polish stripper, chlorine, and others.
Who’s This Course For?
This course fits those who know little or just begin to learn painting as the main course’s content focuses on the fundamentals. The teaching method is straightforward; thus, it’d be an excellent option for beginners.
“Fantastic, a wonderful course in which you learn a lot in a simple way, with excellent explanations, and also allows your creativity to grow with the knowledge acquired. It’s a 10 out of 10!” – evapalaciosh
Foundations for Mastering Watercolor Painting – Udemy
This basic program from Udemy is listed #3 on our list of the top online watercolor programs. It boasts a 4.8 score and is among the most popular Udemy watercolor courses.
Before we go any further, please note that this online watercolor program is not a hands-on art class. Alternatively, it is a lecture-based course that contains knowledge that you will not learn anywhere else.
What’s The Course About?
The use of colors, water, and a painting canvas are all crucial to the soul of watercolor artwork. Thus, to perfect watercolor techniques, you must deeply comprehend such elements.
This program has been designed to provide you with an in-depth study and insight into the characteristics of each ingredient used in the watercolor painting practice.
Who’s This Course For?
For newbies, obtaining this knowledge would make things much more manageable.
They will have no trouble picking up the principles. Furthermore, even experienced artists will profit from this since they will be better prepared to refine their abilities and tackle existing difficulties.
Furthermore, an excellent feature of this online watercolor program is that it comes with a 30-day money-back warranty. You will receive a slew of materials as parts of the training, including 3.5 hours of on-demand videos and 26 printable files.
In addition, the program is available for lifelong access. You may watch the program on your TV or mobile device. After finishing the training, you will get a certificate of participation.
“The instructor’s choice of subject matter and the way she presented it was incredibly helpful and easy to understand, especially if you’re a visual learner. She’s a very good instructor to learn from.” – A C.
Architectural Sketching With Watercolor and Ink – Domestika
Mix liquid ink drawing with watercolor to develop stunning structures that pop off the canvas.
In this session, Alex will demonstrate his method for obtaining the essence and vibe of a location with watercolor or ink and transferring it onto the canvas, since it is another point to describe a picture precisely and quite another to convey the spirit and vibe of a location. So learn to paint and utilize watercolors to breathe fresh soul into your artworks.
What’s The Course About?
This program begins by introducing how Alex’s previous events have inspired his sensible method of painting. Then you’ll study a variety of artworks that have shaped his classic painting technique. He also provides more materials, photos, and book references along the way.
Alex offers all of the things you’ll use for structural drafting using watercolor in the following section, as well as recommendations on where to obtain the best painting equipment. He also teaches linear viewpoint and layout, so you’ll have an excellent basis to build on as you progress.
Master the fundamental watercolor drafting methods you’ll need for lifelong achievements. Begin with strokes of color, then progress to color blending. These might appear to be simple techniques, but they provide all you need to produce stunning artworks when used together.
Afterward, use what you’ve studied regarding layout, viewpoint, and color blending to create stunning Parisian architecture. Finally, Alex demonstrates how to incorporate lighting and shades to paint a beautiful architectural watercolor picture.
Ultimately, Alex offers his final ideas on developing your personal style, as well as advice on how to maintain and store your watercolor artworks.
Who’s This Course For?
This course is perfect for those who have previous painting experience. Indeed, since the class mainly concentrates on upper-level techniques and approaches, learners must have the basic knowledge.
“I enjoyed the course and Alex’s stories about his path to painting and drawing. It’s nice to have company to motivate yourself to get back to painting,” – twisttooth
Art Essentials: Learn Watercolor Painting Basics – Skillshare
At the 5th position on our list of the top online watercolor classes is a program from Skillshare. Throughout this course, you’ll study the fundamentals of water coloring that will assist you in conquering designing tasks.
What’s The Course About?
Throughout this course, you will learn how to paint a subject at hand with excellent construction, dimension, and colors. At the end of it, you’ll have a chance to showcase your newly gained techniques with your capstone project.
This program also includes a lot of experiments to help you understand how watercolor works and how it responds to different techniques.
You will not be studying to sketch as part of the curriculum. However, sketching-related papers are available as supplemental material in this program.
Furthermore, as a section of the training, the instructor will teach you when to use more or less water, differentiate among various paintbrushes, and create a simple color palette using the existing paints.
Who’s This Course For?
This course is suitable both for newbies and experienced ones. Indeed, not only does this class offer the basics, but it also introduces a few useful tricks for experienced ones.
“Katie is so comfortable in her talent that she teaches as if you were a friend at the table with her. She talks you through the whole process while giving countless tips. I once took a six-month course that did not teach me as much as one of Katie’s classes. If you’re looking for knowledge on how to paint fashion, watch Katie!” – Colleen Kehl
Watercolor Illustration with Japanese Influence – Domestika
If you are into Japanese painting style and illustrations from Studio Ghibli movies, stop everything you’re doing and try out this watercolor lesson.
What’s The Course About?
Begin by learning further about Flor, her Okinawan heritage, and her current life as an animator. Following is an overview of the origins of Sumi-e to provide the background for this illustrating style.
Play with your initial brushes and find a way to deal with color schemes and spaces in a layout by going through a couple of watercolor activities.
Then, learn about the Japanese aspect of watercolors. Flor demonstrates the basic brushwork utilized in this technique and discusses the significance of intensity, movement, and position.
She also provides you with the “4 Gentlemen” of Sumi-e, which are the bamboo, orchid, chrysanthemum, and plum flower, to allow you to master the origins of this artistic work.
Finally, you’ll have a chance to demonstrate learned skills in your capstone assignment. The instructor will first guide you to look for reference sources to inspire your artwork.
Afterward, she’ll help create your drafts and give feedback as you go. Then, you’ll be on your own to replicate the draft on watercolor canvas.
Who’s This Course For?
Anyone that loves Japanese-influenced artworks will love this fantastic course. However, as this course doesn’t detail the basics, it’d be more suitable for experienced ones.
“Love the course and illustration technique” – hmleung55
Paint Realistic Watercolor and Botanicals – STUDIO BASICS – Udemy
This Udemy program ranks 7th among the top online watercolor classes. It boasts a 4.5 score and is an excellent program for newbies.
This excellent online watercolor course is taught by a qualified, professional instructor and painter. The great part about this program is that it includes a plethora of valuable insights, recommendations, and views on anything from a studio setting to important working habits and resources.
What’s The Course About?
The program consists of 2 sets of activities specially created to familiarize you with the most basic watercolor skills essential for creating the best natural floral depiction.
Who’s The Course For?
As mentioned above, you’ll learn the basics and how to step into this industry after learning this course; thus, it’s best for beginners.
This excellent online watercolor program also offers a money-back warranty for 30 days. In addition, the program includes 3 hrs of on-demand video, 1 paper, and 2 printable extras. Furthermore, you will receive total unlimited access to this program and will be able to see it on your TV and mobile devices.
After completing the program, you will be granted a globally recognized certificate of completion. You may save it, put it on the internet, print it, mention it in your resume, and upload it to your LinkedIn account to boost employment opportunities.
“I liked this course, especially the section where the instructor explains her approach to colour choices. This is always a mystery how to choose colours among hundreds which are offered by different brands, so it was very helpful. Also the exercises are very useful – I think I’ll be returning to them for a few times before I master those techniques. Great job on putting together this class!” – Natalie
Botanical Illustration With Watercolors – Domestika
In this program, Paulina will show you every stage of her painting approach (in detail) for creating the best floral artwork using watercolors.
What’s The Course About?
Start your training by learning some basic info about your teacher, Paulina Maciel, and her expertise. Then, she reveals a few of her inspirations and walks you through the learning content, along with a few more technical components.
After that, begin working with simple watercolor techniques. Next, learn how to use your paintbrush in various techniques and experiment with various materials available in nature.
Explore how to use optical illusions to create depth in your artworks. Learn how to recognize the geometrical patterns of various plant species and blossoms to depict them more effectively. Examine the many components of a plant and decide which ones are necessary for your depiction.
In this course, Paulina also experiments with floral representation in 2 ways: working freely with watercolors and adopting graphite’s grisaille approach.
After you’ve completed your final painting using the methods provided, Paulina will show you how to scan and edit it in Adobe so you may use it for almost everything.
Who’s This Course For?
Not newbies. As the course only mentions basic knowledge briefly, if you don’t have previous experiences, it might be hard to catch up with the lessons.
“I loved it. Very professional.” – smirlina
Beginners Watercolor Techniques with Geoff Hutchins – Udemy
This Udemy program is ninth on the top online watercolor classes list as it is a well-ranked class with a score of 4.5.
Indeed, this is among the most well-known online watercolor classes that might well assist anybody in creating their first watercolor paintings at home. Geoff Hutchins, an English experienced painter, and instructor, will walk you through 10 lessons videotaped in real-time.
What’s The Course About?
The first 5 lessons will introduce you to subjects like the sky and trees. After that, Geoff will further expand the instruction in the last 5 tasks to guide you through the paintwork polishing procedure. And everything is encapsulated in a three-hour and twenty-minute program.
The real kicker is that Geoff will walk you through each workout piece by piece, using various strategies that are all simple to grasp.
Besides that, the PDF that comes with this Udemy painting lesson contains all of the critical knowledge about the colors, tools, paintbrushes, and paper varieties. Each lesson in this program begins with a checklist of painting colors and paintbrushes required to complete the course.
Who’s The Course For?
Because the primary curriculum centers on the essentials, this program is ideal for people who know little or are just starting to study painting. The instructional style is likewise clear and straightforward, making it an excellent choice for newcomers.
Besides 3.5 hours of on-demand video, this training includes 2 printable materials and a 30-day money-back policy. You may watch it on your phone or TV, and you have unlimited access to it for the rest of your life.
In addition, upon the end of the training, you will be issued a certificate of participation. Furthermore, Geoffs maintains a track history of over 5000 pleased learners, so your contentment is assured. You can also buy this program with complete confidence since it comes with a 100% money-back warranty.
“So enjoying this teacher. He is explaining as he goes along and works slowly enough that I can paint as he does. I love when he thinks he hasn’t done something just right then with a few strokes changes the look and it turns out beautiful. I want to be able to that! Enjoyed the course very much. I want to start at the beginning again and improve as I go along.” – Gail L.
Watercolor In The Woods: A Beginner’s Guide To Painting The Natural World – Skillshare
Floral is a lovely topic, but there’s far more to the beauty of nature that calls to be portrayed. Rosalie Haizlett, a painter and visual artist, has created an outstanding program that will train you to sketch and color mushrooms, petals, and other native species that you may discover around your house.
Long story short, this is a must-take program for cottagecore enthusiasts! Moreover, this lesson is relatively brief, ideal for individuals who want to get right to the point.
What’s The Course About?
So, how does this simple and straightforward 41-minute course curriculum go?
It all begins with the learners determining their inspirations. People who want to stick with the program’s concept may get ideas straight from the wilderness. A shrub, a bush, a flower, or an animal – anything they might find surrounding their place.
Following that, learners comprehend the benefits of a good pencil sketch and acquire some sketching and painting techniques. Sketching is especially essential in art practice, as all competent artists understand.
The “real action” begins after learners have completed their sketching phase. First, Rosalie demonstrates to the pupils how to get along well with their paintbrushes straightforwardly. Next, she shows learners how to overlay watercolors, introduce vivacity, improve small features, and conclude with personal touches.
Who’s This Course For?
It’s the perfect “watercolour painting for beginners” class. Nonetheless, the method Rosalie provides her art lessons makes it a valuable asset for intermediate-level artists.
“Feeling much more confident in my watercolor skills after taking this class. I feel like watercolor is now much less of a guessing game for me and more of a clear creative formula!” – Jo.
Watercolor 101 – Creative Live
To be clear, this course earns a spot on our ranking since more than 17000 people have completed it, with 73% recommending it, which is very impressive.
What’s This Course About?
You will discover all you need to know about paintbrushes, watercolors, materials, and layout throughout this online watercolor class.
It is a complete painting roadmap offered by Molly Murrah in which she shows you many watercolor strategies that will come in helpful while developing any painting.
Who’s This Course For?
Since the core content concentrates on the fundamentals, this course is suitable for those who know little about art or are just beginning to pursue it. The teaching approach is also clear and straightforward, suitable for beginners.
This program includes 28 HD video tutorials and 10 hours and 3 minutes of course material. In addition, throughout this course, you will also gain access to some other (exclusive) bonus content. Another great thing about this brilliant online program is that you’ll earn unlimited lifelong access so that you can revise the lessons anytime.
Also, this program is available for access at any time and from any location. It may also be accessed offline on smartphone and computer devices while also allowing you to synchronize the lessons remotely with your mobile and tablet apps.
“Molly’s class is wonderful for getting a thorough understanding of watercolors and how they work. It’s perfect for a beginner or even a more experienced watercolorist looking for a refresher or a few new techniques. I can’t recommend it enough! I can’t wait to play with all the techniques and theories discussed!” – Ashley Dubolsky
The Mechanics of Watercolor Painting – Udemy
Artist Jill Poyerd guides learners through more than 4 hours of instruction more than 30 classroom exercises, including things like paintbrush holding, color blending, paint placement, and so on, employing her friendly, easy-to-understand instructional style and loads of hands-on exercises.
What’s This Course About?
We start by studying everything about your workstation. Next, we go through all of the different facets of a paintbrush, including effectively using a paintbrush and correctly diluting your colors.
The lesson subsequently concentrates on blending your watercolors and becoming familiar with your color palette.
And ultimately, after we grasp a decent knowledge foundation, we will study the 3 primary painting techniques: controlled, semi-controlled, and uncontrolled paint applications. Finally, we conclude the program with a watercolor artwork presentation so that learners may see how you can put everything into effect.
Who’s The Course For?
Most of the above watercolor courses may not be the best for those people who have already developed their personal painting style.
Thus, if you are also one of those, scroll through the above and try this Udemy course. It focuses on practical methods and painting skills, which you may apply in any style you like.
Indeed, the Mechanics of Watercolor Painting is among the most thorough courses on mastering applying watercolors that you might discover on the internet. It is mainly targeted at young painters, although it may be used by anybody who believes they are weak in expertise while painting using watercolors.
“It is really an amazing course for a complete beginner like me. Learnt so many things about water colour painting and painting in general. Thank you, Jill, for preparing this course with so much patience and sharing your knowledge and experience. !!!” – Pramod S.
Wrapping Up
No matter how old you are, you can now give wings to your dreams with our above online watercolor classes. Indeed, whether you want to stumble into art professionally or keep it as a hobby, these courses are valuable assets to your knowledge.
If you want to grab some offline classes, google “painting classes near me for adults” and check out the reviews from previous students. Good luck!
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