Art Skool Lesson: Paint A Window and Door in Provence

Here is a sketch I did of a door and window in Provence.  Feel free to print it out and sketch it with a pencil on watercolor paper.  If you like the look of thin ink lines combined with watercolor, go ahead and go over your pencil lines with a thin tipped waterproof pen. 

 Do you feel like adding some watercolor?  If so here are directions for painting in layers. Let each layer dry before adding the next for ultimatum control of the paint. Use only one layer of paint for a light color and add more layers where you want your colors to be darker. These are the colors I used: yellow ochre + permanent rose for the building.  For the darker areas of the building I added burnt sienna and for the darkest, I added ultramarine blue also.  Bright areas of leaves were painted with sap green and a little lemon yellow and the the dark areas of the plants were painted with sap green + ultramarine blue. I used cerulean blue for the shutters, diluting it with water where I wanted it the lightest and using it full strength where I wanted it the darkest. To paint the flowers I used mixes of permanent rose and lemon yellow. For the shadows I used mixtures of watery cobalt blue, permanent rose and lemon yellow.

If you'd like to paint Provence in person, I have a Watercolor Painting Trip to Provence Sept. 28-Oct. 5, 2013. We stay in the heart of the Luberon region and visit many of the charming small villages, including Gordes, Rousillion, Isle Sur La Sorgue and more. Our home for the week is a blue shuttered  farmhouse B & B where we are spoiled by the lovely host and hostess.  All week you'll have art instruction in the morning, then go out touring,   have delicious food for lunch  and spend a  relaxed afternoon and evening at our hotel with a like minded group of people, in a relaxed atmosphere. Cost for the week, which does not include airfare is $2,350 and a stipend for transportation.

Contact me soon if you're thinking of signing up because I only have two spots left. Email me at:

rabjsl@pacbell.net