watercolor teachers Archives

Hi there! In this episode of the podcast I talk about a watercolor breakthrough I anticipated I’ll be going through soon.

Watercolor Rough Patch

I’ve had a challenging 2 months or so when it comes to painting. I didn’t feel like my work is connecting the way I’m used to, and the results were hit or miss. Got some great ones, but also some subpar ones.

This isn’t necessarily bad. It usually means you’re going through growth and raising your standards.

Sergey Temerev & Looking at Shapes

I gained an interesting insight while, by pure chance, stumbling upon a video of Sergey Temerev painting a spectacular cloudy skies scene (his speciality, it seems).

Here’s an example of a similar one by Sergey Temerev (you should really look into his work – it’s SO GOOD!!).

And here’s the specific process video I watched:

While watching it I felt like there’s something I want to try when it comes to the painting process. And that thing is looking at shapes a little differently, and dividing the subjects into shapes a little differently from what I’m used to.

The result was this small painting of the Bourges Cathedral in France.

I’m highly pleased with it.

I think it will be a bit hard to explain the exact mental shift I went through, so I do plan on addressing it in a future YouTube video.

But it does seem to be connected to wet-in-wet, and making the most out of every part of every wash.

I hope that makes sense, and that you enjoyed listening / reading.

And with that, I’ll wish you lots of good health in these challenging CoronaVirus times. Stay safe and healthy!

And I’ll talk to you again soon,

— Liron

Here’s where you can reach out to me (:

TikTok – @Liron.Yan

YouTube – Liron Yanconsky Art

LinkedIn – Liron Yanconsky

Pinterest – Liron Yanconsky

Instagram – @LironYanIL

Twitter – @LironYan

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In this episode I discuss the dangers of learning painting from others, whether it’s teachers, YouTube videos, DVDs and so on…

The Dangers of learning painting from others

Here’s a quick list of some of the dangers of learning painting from others.

Narrowing our perception – One of the main problems. By seeing other artists, following them and imitating their work process, we narrow our perception of what’s the “correct” way of doing things.

We end up doing things they way, without realizing there’s a HUGE spectrum of other possibilities we haven’t even considered yet.

Losing / not discovering your authenticity – That’s the most tragic problem. Learning painting from others can distract you from your unique gift.

I truly believe anyone has a 100% unique way of creating and viewing the world. The artists who are most appreciated have usually discovered their version of that.

By “copying” other peoples’ art and approach, you run the risk of never finding out what your gift was – the one you were the only one able to give.

Copycat – Talking about copying, there’s always the risk of becoming a copycat with no originality.

The solution

I’ll offer three main solutions.

Learn the rules – Physics – Watercolor does have rules – those bound to physics and water and paint.

You do have to learn that when you use more paint, the mixture gets darker. It is important to know and experience how a wetter wash flows more.

But once you learn that – it’s pretty much time to strike out on your own. The rest are things you can figure out.

Detox / Isolation – If you’ve been highly affected by others, it may be a good idea to go completely detox. This means to avoid looking at ANY artwork by other artists for a while.

This is a temporary solution only, you can’t live your artistic life in complete vacuum (well, you can… but I don’t think it’s fun or practical!).

I’m seriously thinking of going through such a detox myself. Could be interesting.

Balance – On a regular basis, try keeping a balance of how much external art, tutorials and guides you consume, as opposed to the time you spend creating purely, not worrying about anything else.

Conclusion

I hope you found this info useful! I’m still learning these things too, so I’ll keep you updated regarding my experiences and findings (:

Want to Reach Out?

Got any questions? Want help with your paintings? Feel free to reach out to me in any of the platforms I’m on, and I’ll be happy to help (: