Visiting Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria Neuschwanstein Castle—the “Disney Castle”—is probably Germany’s most famous castle. Maybe Europe’s. Rising above the Bavarian countryside, it sits high on a hill surrounded by the foothills of the Alps. It is absolutely beautiful and completely deserving of the hype. Purchase the original painting & fine art prints I first visited…
Purchase this paint ONLINE Holbein Davy’s Grey is a semi-opaque gray-green watercolor made from Raw Sienna, Lamp Black, and Titanium White. It excels at painting fog, mist, weathered stone, and atmospheric landscapes, producing subtle granulation rather than dramatic blossoms. The first time you squeeze Holbein Davy’s Grey onto your palette, one thing immediately stands out….
One of the greatest challenges in watercolor is creating the illusion of depth. After all, we’re working on a completely flat piece of paper. Somehow we have to convince the viewer that one tree is ten feet away, another is fifty feet away, and sunlight is streaming through an entire forest beyond. That sounds intimidating,…
UNC Old Well Watercolor Tutorial: Combining Multiple Watercolor Techniques What Watercolor Techniques Were Used? The University of North Carolina’s Old Well is one of the most recognizable landmarks in North Carolina. If you’ve ever visited Chapel Hill, you’ve probably seen it—or at least fought your way through a crowd of students taking graduation photos around…
How to Paint Atmospheric Fog in Watercolor Best Subjects for This Technique Fog effects work especially well for: Watercolor is traditionally known as a transparent medium. Most instructors teach students to preserve the white of the paper and build color through transparent layers. Even though white watercolor paints exist, the brightest highlights are usually created…
Colorful grays are created by mixing complementary colors rather than relying on premixed gray paints. These mixtures create more luminous shadows, stronger color harmony, and paintings that feel more alive. Purchase original painting or fine art prints HERE Why Your Gray Paintings Look Dull (And How to Fix Them) One of the most common mistakes…
Daniel Smith Perinone Orange (PO43) is a transparent, highly staining red-orange watercolor pigment known for glowing washes, strong color impact, and excellent blossoming effects. It works especially well for sunsets, autumn landscapes, warm florals, glowing architectural light, and mixing rich dark neutrals with Ultramarine Blue or Cobalt Blue. Purchase this paint ONLINE Daniel Smith Perinone…
Purchase Payne’s Gray ONLINE Painting a Moonlit Winter Treescape in Watercolor Using Only Payne’s Gray Sometimes the best watercolor lessons come from using less. A moonlit winter landscape painted with only Payne’s Gray is a perfect exercise in simplicity, mood, and watercolor harmony. By limiting yourself to a single pigment, the painting immediately feels unified—every…
Purchase this paint ONLINE I Tested Holbein Opera (Quin Rose) — Here’s What Happened Holbein Opera is one of those watercolor paints that immediately gets attention. It is bright, loud, unapologetically pink, and looks suspiciously like something that escaped from a tropical cocktail menu. At first glance, many watercolor artists assume it belongs exclusively in…
Painting Kallio Church in watercolor should have been simple: dramatic architecture, sunset mood, and a limited palette to keep things stylishly straightforward. Naturally, I managed to complicate everything. This demo began as a wet-into-wet race against the clock, the humidity, and my own questionable artistic decisions. And because watercolor enjoys reminding us who’s boss, I…
