Free Online Art Tutorials: Painting, Colored Pencil, & More

Color Coded: A step-by-step demonstration of a pastel still life painting | by Sarah Blumenschein

Color Coded, by Maureen Bloomfield, originally appeared in The Artist’s Magazine, (January/February 2013). Enjoy this free excerpt of the article, including a step-by-step demonstration of a pastel still life painting by Sarah Blumenschein. Color Coded “I’m a color person,” says Sarah Blumenschein. “I’m often inspired by color combinations I see in real life; my paintings always start with a color scheme. For example, I’ll see heirloom pumpkins piled outside a Whole Foods store and think of a painting of warm colors—sage greens, golds, dark green, oranges. For Roses and Wedgewood … View

Underpainting Techniques to Enliven Your Paintings | By Richard McKinley

As a painting medium, pastel is amazingly diverse. Some artists apply it in a fashion more closely associated with drawing, while others apply it as boldly as any wet-painting method, such as oil. Artists have experimented with a variety of techniques to achieve the final outcome they desire. Many of these techniques rely on an underpainting in advance of dry pastel application. The methods used to achieve these underpaintings can be divided into these basic categories: pastel completely dry, pastel made wet, and pastel over mixed-media. For this plein air … View

Using Warm and Cool Colors in an Abstract Landscape Painting

Uniting gestural abstraction and calligraphic mark making, Frank Satogata celebrates nature’s beautiful juxtapositions. Here, he demonstrates using warm and cool alterations in one of his abstract landscape paintings, featured in the June 2012 issue of The Artist’s Magazine. 1. Looking at the Photo A blurred photo, shot from the window of a moving car, was the inspiration. My intent is always to capture the essence, so a blurred photo allows me to focus on the broad shapes, not the details. 2. Base Undercoat I made broad, loose strokes with acrylic … View

Paint Light Skin Tones With Carrie Stuart Parks

Forensic artists Carrie Stuart Parks and Rick Parks are long-time members of the North Light family, which they joined with their first book, Secrets to Drawing Realistic Faces, in 2003. A lot has changed since then. In addition to the print version, that original book is now also available as a PDF download if you like. But one thing has remained the same. The Parks duo is one of the best for teaching you how to get realistic results right away and their style is as friendly and easy to … View

Painting a Rainy City

In the March 2009 issue of The Artist’s Magazine, John Salminen explains the joys and challenges of painting a rainy city. Salminen emphasizes the importance of design. Reflections on a Rainy Day Contrast value, color and clarity to bring out the moist, misty feeling of a rain-soaked city. By John Salminen The tour group members standing in the hotel lobby were scaling back their expectations for a day of fun-filled activities as they peered through the windows at the steady rain. Their first bite of the Big Apple—New York City—wasn’t … View

Precise Line, Value and Color

By Sadie J. Valeri A good drawing is crucial to a good painting. Once I’ve established my setup, I trace the size and shape of my painting panel on a sheet of white paper and overlay a sheet of Mylar drafting film over the rectangular shape. With translucent Mylar I can move the drawing around over the panel guidelines in order to refine my composition before transferring it to the actual panel. 1. Start the drawing with a straight-line block-in or envelope I start my drawing with a straight-line block-in … View

Painting with White

In the January/February 2009 issue of The Artist’s Magazine, Ora Sorensen explains how to use the different hues that are perceived as “white.” A Rainbow of White Painting white is a colorful experience! By Ora Sorensen White-on-white paintings are not necessarily without colorful hues. In fact, these paintings can reflect all colors and shimmer with vivid iridescence like the hypnotic color refractions thrown from a prism. Defining white First you must understand that although white isn’t a primary, secondary or tertiary color, it is a color—an achromatic color of maximum … View

Creating Layers with Colored Pencil: A Demonstration by Gary Greene

The basic colored pencil technique involves layering colors, one on top of another—creating hues, values, gradations and textures that are further controlled by using paper surfaces of varying tooth or color. The tooth of the paper plays a major role in this technique, because the paper is allowed to show through the layers of color. All colors in this demonstration are Prismacolor, except when noted as Faber-Castell Polychromos (FCP). Layer the darkest hue of the lightest color area first. Here the shadow areas are layered with cool gray 50%, 30%, … View

Watercolor Demonstration: Painting a Dramatic Sky

In Yesterday is Gone (watercolor on paper, 12×20), the clouds are dark and heavy. To one person, the sky might seem depressing or even angry and threatening, but to another, the impending rain may be needed just like a good cry over the loss of a loved one. Step 1: Paint the sky wet on wet. After you’ve establishing your drawing with a 2B pencil, wet down the sky area with clean water using a 1 ½-inch wide flat brush. Add Prussian blue and cadmium red. Tilt the painting while … View

How to Paint Rose Petals

Roll Out the Roses by Jane Jones Follow basic shapes and forms to paint petal rolls and leaf flips like a pro. Petals and leaves exhibit several different forms and movements. A few flip, some ruffle, and others curve in graceful rolls. Some artists think roses are difficult to paint, but if you break them down into individual shapes and forms, the enterprise becomes much easier. Granted, addressing the multitude of small shapes and forms found in these flowers requires some patience, but the exercise is well worth the … View

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