
Beginner
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2 hours 8 min
00:58
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04:32
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17:57
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09:54
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06:13
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12:28
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07:43
|
07:59
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00:41
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00:58
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15:35
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11:13
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20:24
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12:19
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This two-part foundation course is a perfect entry point for beginners, providing a basic understanding of how to paint successfully with watercolors. Yao begins the course by introducing artists to the array of colors everyone should have in their palette, and shows how to mix and apply pigment to paper. From there, she goes on to explain the uses of specific paintbrushes and demonstrates how to make beautiful expressive marks to create leaves, trees, and simple geometric shapes.
Watercolor paints - Yao recommends beginning with Winsor Newton watercolor tubes in the following colors: lemon, yellow deep, yellow ochre, brown ochre, orange-red shade, scarlet lake, opera rose, permanent sap green, cobalt turquoise, manganese blue hue, Prussian Blue, ultra-marine violet, Ivory-Black Watercolor paper - Yao recommends Arches cold-press watercolor block Bone folder, craft knife or ruler to separate watercolor paper pages Paint palette White and gold gouache Variety of paintbrushes: Round tip – size 6 / 14 / 20; Mop brush – 16mm; Small angle brush – 10mm; Flat brush – ¼” and ¾”; Round oval brush – ¾” Water for dipping brushes (one for cool colors and one for warm colors) Spray bottle Paper towels
Learn how to:
What you’ll get:
Here’s what you’ll need:
Downloads:
- Mix and apply pigment to paper
- Use specific paintbrushes
- Create simple geometric shapes
What you’ll get:
- Detailed lessons on basic watercolor techniques
- 12 HD video lessons you can access online anytime, anywhere
- Detailed supply list
- Step-by-step instruction by expert instructor Yao Cheng
- The ability to leave comments, ask questions and interact with other students





















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Beginning Watercolor: A 2-Part Series Reviews
4663 users recommended this class to a friend
Julie Lake
I loved Yao's emphasis on experimenting with how the brushes move, the flow of the brush to produce different strokes/effects, and her emphasis to not focus on a finished product. Sometimes my brush seemed to put a lot more paint onto the paper than the model and I wondered if Yao sometimes took some water off her brush without verbalizing that. I learned a lot about the saturation of colors and how many times you can lighten the color just by dipping the brush into the water.
16 hours ago
Doreen Guijarro
I appreciate Yao's teaching method in that she is casual and allows the student to feel relaxed and free to experiment.
February 26, 2025