Your class project is to create a watercolor painting of a cat or a dog. We will also be shooting it as a flat lay composition to share online — on social media or as an example photo for an online shop.

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As you work on your class project, you will learn how to:

Choose properly lit reference photos
Draw a cat or a dog by building up from simple shapes
Draw your subject from the reference and skills learned
Choose accessories that highlight your pet's personality
Transfer your drawing to the watercolor paper by choosing one of four transfer techniques
Paint the background using wet on wet washes
Plan to leave white areas clear before painting
Paint flat washes and build up detail
See color when painting white fur
Fix mistakes while painting
Paint light and shadow
Layer up paint and detail and decide when you're finished
Use gouache for white whiskers
Create a compelling, professional looking flat lay composition
Photograph your finished painting

Resources:

To help you throughout the process, I've created four PDFs, they're attached in the Resources section of this page:

Basic Color Theory
How to Draw a Cat from Memory
How to Draw a Dog from Memory
The photos I used for Pumpkin's Reference in case you want to follow along

Materials:

For this class you will need:

A photo reference of your furry friend
Watercolor paper about the size of printer paper 140 – 300 lbs
Paper to sketch on — similar sized printer paper or sketchbook paper
Various paintbrushes
Water container
Watercolor paint
Pencil and eraser
Light box or tracing paper or graphite paper
Low tack painter’s tape
Bonus: accessories for your flat lay photo shoot. Small plants, rocks, your art supplies.

Be sure to upload your pet photos, and work in the Project Gallery. I would love to see your cute pets and the fabulous artwork you create! I'll be checking them and supporting you through the class. So if you have any questions or need more tips, please post them in the Discussions section of this class.

Can't wait to see your class projects!

Sarah Soffe

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