Happy Christmas 2025

Elf on a Mission
Watercolour & Ink
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 8.9cm (5.5" x 3.5")

Wishing You a Happy Christmas and a Wonderful 2026

Illustrated Journaling

 

Rudolf
Watercolour & Ink
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0 x 17.8cm cm (5.5" x 7.0")

An illustrated journal is a diary in which you record your life in both words and pictures. Liz Steel (SketchingNow) and Danny Gregory (Sketchbook Skool) both keep and recommend illustrated journals. 

No. It's a Pen Knife!
Watercolour & Ink
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0 x 17.8cm cm (5.5" x 7.0")

Until now, I haven’t included text with my sketches because my main reason for sketching is to practice drawing and painting. I wanted to create perfect little pictures, not to document my life.

Doris Free Weekend
Watercolour & Ink
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0 x 17.8cm cm (5.5" x 7.0")

This year, I’ve embraced the addition of text. My hope is it will make me less precious about creating pristine sketches. This will take the pressure off starting a drawing and result in me sketching more frequently. I also enjoy writing, so it is a welcome addition.

Pencil Full Of Lead
Graphite Pencil
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0 x 17.8cm cm (5.5" x 7.0")

I’m using a small sketchbook; each page is only 8.9cm x 14.0cm (3.5″ x 5.5″). It’s smaller than I enjoy using, but the benefits are it’s small enough to fit in a pocket and to go unnoticed when it’s in use. The small size should also help me to stop fussing over details.

Icing
Ink
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0 x 17.8cm cm (5.5" x 7.0")

 I’m also painting over the middle of the double page spread. This is another strategy to be looser and to reduce the expectation that each sketch needs to be faultless. You have to accept less than perfection when you’re drawing and painting over a fold.

Foliage

In The Woods At Night
Watercolour on Paper
16.5cm x 24.5cm (6.5" x 9.5")

Foliage is the fifth topic in the Tree Techniques chapter of Creating Textures in Pen & Ink with Watercolor by Claudia Nice. 

In one of her examples she shades around some leaves to make them pop out of the picture. This reminded me of a layering technique John Lovett explains in his Textures, Techniques & Special Effects for Watercolor.  He uses negative painting to create the impression of layers of objects stacking on top of each other. Your start with a light wash, then you paint everything that’s not in the top layer with a slightly darker wash, then everything that’s not in the top 2 layers with a darker wash again, and so on. Once you have built up the layers, you go back to add texture and details.

The picture at the top of the post is based on 8 layers. Before I started painting, I painstakingly worked out the shape of what I was painting in each layer. 

In The Woods At Night - Layer 3

This is the third layer. The black is the area that I am not painting over. 

In The Woods At Night - Layer 4

This is the 4th layer. You paint less and less in each layer. Each time you paint an object it gets darker and recedes further into the shadows. I've been meaning to try this for years, so it's exciting to finally give it a try.

Happy Christmas 2024

 

Christmas Tree 2024
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 8.9cm (5.5" x 3.5")

Happy Christmas and Best Wishes for 2025

This is our Christmas Tree. It is 48cm (19") tall from the bottom of the pot. We can't get at our usual decorations (it's a long story), so we are down sizing. Sorry for not posting much this year. Normal service should be resumed in 2025.

Distant and Background Trees

Background Trees - Claudia Nice
Watercolour & Ink
Stillman & Birn Beta Series Sketchbook
11cm x 9cm (4.5" x 3.5")

Distant and Background Trees are the sixth and seventh topic in the Tree Techniques chapter of Creating Textures in Pen & Ink with Watercolor by Claudia Nice. It’s a few months since I’ve picked up Claudia’s book. An exercise from Liz Steel’s SketchingNow Watercolour on Location course inspired me to return. By chance, I’ve picked it up at almost the same point as I left off.

In an exercise about common landscape elements, Liz suggests studying how other artists paint and draw the subject. The first topic on the list is trees, providing the perfect opportunity to revisit Claudia's book.

Distant Trees - Claudia Nice
Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Beta Series Sketchbook
15cm x 14cm (6" x 5.5")

I made some notes about Claudia’s treatment of distant and background trees and tried to copy a couple of her examples. 

Middle Distance Trees - John Lovett
Watercolour & Ink
Stillman & Birn Beta Series Sketchbook
14cm x 11cm (5.5" x 4.5")

I also looked at advice from John Lovett. I studied his suggestions about trees in Textures, Techniques & Special Effects for Watercolor and Getting Started and tried to copy some of his examples.

Tree - John Lovett
Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Beta Series Sketchbook
15cm x 14cm (6" x 5.5")

I’m pleased to get back to Claudia’s book and intend to continue learning from her content.

SketchingNow – Edges

 

Cakes – Hard v Soft Edges
Watercolour & Ink
Stillman & Birn Beta Series Sketchbook
14.0 x 20.3cm cm (5.5" x 8.0")

In March, I joined a group run through of Liz Steel's SketchingNow Edges course. I then fractured my shoulder and couldn't sketch for over a month, so I finished way behind the rest of the group. 

Woodchester Park Boathouse
Watercolour & Ink
Stillman & Birn Beta Series Sketchbook
14.0 x 20.3cm cm (5.5" x 8.0")

(If you watch The Crown, you may recognize this building as the Gordonstoun school changing rooms.)

The Edges course is about creating depth and interest in your sketches by developing an understanding of edges. This involves recognizing whether the edges you see are a change in plane or just a change in colour and whether the edges are hard or soft or strong or weak. Once you understand the edges you are seeing, you can then decide how to represent them and manipulate them to make your sketches more exciting. There are four lessons each with an indoor and outdoor exercise.

Fruit Bowl
Watercolour & Ink
Stillman & Birn Beta Series Sketchbook
14.0 x 20.3cm cm (5.5" x 8.0")

I’ve done the course before in 2018 (see SketchingNow Edges), but I've learned a lot more this time through. 

Local Larder
Watercolour & Ink
Stillman & Birn Beta Series Sketchbook
14.0 x 20.3cm cm (5.5" x 8.0")

As a next step I've joined a group run through of Liz's SketchingNow Watercolour on Location course  which started on the 19th of June, but I'm already behind and rushing to catch up because of recovering from this injured shoulder.

Dresser
Ink
Stillman & Birn Beta Series Sketchbook
20.3 x 14cm cm (8.0" x 5.5")

You can see a few more sketches in a video on my YouTube channel SketchingNow Edges - What Have I Learnt?

A New Watercolour Palette for Sketching

New Palette
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
18cm x 18cm (7" x 7")

This is my new watercolour palette. The sketch is in the style of the colour charts Liz Steel does of her palettes (see CURRENT PALETTE – JAN 2020 by Liz Steel).

I needed a new palette because I’ve been using the lack of a suitable palette as an excuse for not sketching outdoors. I'm following Liz Steel's SketchingNow courses, so I've decided to try a palette more like hers. The colour selection is a mixture of paints I use in my main palette and paints Liz uses in her courses - like Potter Pink and Monte Amiata Natural Sienna.

Ready To Go

I've filled only one side of the pans because I'm trying a simplified version of ramp filling - which is explained in this blog post (The advantages of only partially filling watercolour pans from tubes by Jane Blundell). The idea of ramp filling is instead of having to jab into the paint and damaging the point of your brush, you can just swipe across.

There is a video with more details about setting up the pallet on my YouTube channel (https://youtu.be/7UqQuG_4VyY).

SketchingNow – Watercolour

 

River Arrow
Watercolour and Ink
Moleskine A4 Watercolour Album

Since January, I’ve been participating in a Live Version of Liz Steel’s SketchingNow Watercolour course.  I've taken the course previously in 2019. You can see some of my sketches from then in these posts:

• SketchingNow Watercolor (Lessons 1 to 2)
• SketchingNow Watercolor (Lessons 3 to 4)

House Plant
Watercolour and Ink
Moleskine A4 Watercolour Album

Liz doesn't teach a traditional approach to watercolor. She uses it in a quicker and more spontaneous way, which lends itself to sketching on location. The course is structured so you can work through it at your own pace, but this year she ran a live version in which you work through the lessons with a group and Liz hosts a weekly live stream. 

Vegetables
Watercolour and Ink
Moleskine A4 Watercolour Album

Working through the course with a group has been motivating and adds an extra bit of encouragement to do the exercises. Seeing other people's work and hearing about what they've learned and found challenging is also helpful. 

Butcher Hill’s Lane
Watercolour and Ink
Moleskine A4 Watercolour Album

I'm building up some sketching momentum and this has encouraged me to join a group run through of Liz's Edges course which starts in mid-March. This is in preparation for her Watercolor on Location course which starts in June.

Still Life
Watercolour and Ink
Moleskine A4 Watercolour Album

I am studying Ian Roberts' YouTube videos (Ian Roberts Mastering Composition) in parallel to working on Liz's exercises. Most of these sketches have been influenced by his teaching on composition and shadows.

You can see a few more sketches and hear a bit more about my experiences with the course and my plans to develop my sketching skills on my YouTube channel SketchingNow Watercolour - What Have I Learnt?.

Sketching From Nature

Lump of Moss
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0 x 20.3cm cm (5.5" x 8.0")

Since October 2023, I've been reading a section of the Curious Nature Guide by Clare Walker Leslie each week and using it as the inspiration for a sketching exercise. 

Rosemary
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0 x 20.3cm cm (5.5" x 8.0")

Using a prompt for what to sketch is helpful for a couple of reasons: 

• It cuts down the time I need to procrastinate about what to draw.
• It encourages me to try subjects I might not have otherwise chosen.

Early Autumn
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0 x 20.3cm cm (5.5" x 8.0")

The sketches have been of varying quality, but the results aren't that important. What matters is the time I've spent drawing and intently studying a subject. The pictures on this post are my favourites. You can see all 13 sketches on my YouTube channel (Sketching From Nature – Getting Started).

Lavender
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
20.3 x 14.0cm cm (8.0" x 5.5")

My motivation for drawing at least one sketch from life a week is to make sure I keep training my hand eye coordination and the skills to accurately draw a subject. I want sketching from nature to be a reason to get outside and explore. I would like to become more knowledgeable and to develop a joyful appreciation of my environment. I'm keen to visually document my feelings about a place; the mood, the atmosphere and other things that a camera doesn't always capture. The sketches can then be a source of inspiration and reference material for paintings.

Branches

 

Woodchester Beech
Watercolour on Paper
24.5cm x 15.5cm (9.75" x 6")

Branches is the fourth topic in the Tree Techniques chapter of Creating Textures in Pen & Ink with Watercolor by Claudia Nice.

This post has been a long time coming. The topics in this chapter are continuing to be challenging and educational. I made a few false starts on this subject trying to paint winter trees in sunsets. I’ve also been distracted by my new YouTube channel - Mark Bateman Art.

There are two videos about this painting: 

• Creating a Blurred Soft-Focus Background in Watercolour 
• Painting a Textured 3-Dimensional Tree in Watercolour

The blurred soft-focused background is painted with the same technique I used in the post about painting A Fuzzy Background.

I gave the tree some form with a modelling wash (mostly light grey with some dark in the shadows) and then slowly built up the shape and texture in layers using drybrush.

The finishing touch was to add some foreground leaves in gouache.

Hopefully, creating videos will become less time consuming and I will be able to get back to drawing and painting.

Happy Christmas 2023

Happy Christmas 2023
Watercolour on Paper
11.5cm x 17cm (4.5" x 6.75")

Wishing You Peace and Happiness for Christmas and the New Year

Sorry for the lack of posts this year. Starting a YouTube channel (MarkBatemanArt)  has taken a lot of time. Normal service will be resumed in 2024 - hopefully.

More Recent Sketches

Aloe Vera
Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
20.3cm x 14cm (8.0" x 5.5")

Sorry for the lack of posts. Starting a YouTube channel (MarkBatemanArt) has distracted me from drawing, painting and blogging.

Prawn and Couscous Salad
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

Once a week, I’ve been sketching from life. A lot of these have been based on exercises from Liz Steel’s SketchingNow Edges.

Gift Box
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

This lovely little decorated box was made by Wendy.

Tea, Biscuits and a Seaview
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

At the beginning of the summer, Elaine, Doris and I had a pleasant few days at the Talland Bay Hotel in Cornwall. These are the tea making facilities (and biscuits) from our room. I painted them as Doris recovered from a blistering hot day on the coastal path.

Father's Day Fern
Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
20.3cm x 14cm (8.0" x 5.5")

The aloe vera at the top of the post and this fern were Father’s Day presents from Doris. I've no idea where she got the money from - best not to ask.

Recent (And Not So Recent) Sketches

 

No Flat Roads
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0 x 20.3cm cm (5.5" x 8.0")

Before Christmas, I realised I wasn’t drawing and painting from life very much, so I started doing an exercise a week from Liz Steel's SketchingNow Foundations. 

Quick Sketches Still Count
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 8.9cm (5.5" x 3.5")

These are a few of the sketches I’ve created since then. 

Palette
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0 x 20.3cm cm (5.5" x 8.0")

This is at least the third time I've taken the course. Not all the sketches have been successes because I am a bit out of practice and I am challenging myself to tackle difficult subjects from taxing angles.

What's in my Pocket?
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
20.3 x 14cm cm (8.0" x 5.5")

My new YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/@MarkBatemanArt ) is taking up a lot of time, but I am still managing at least one sketch a week.

Over the Fence
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
20.3 x 14cm cm (8.0" x 5.5")

Roots

Roots
Watercolour on Paper
24.5cm x 15.5cm (9.75" x 6")

Roots is the third topic in the Tree Techniques chapter of Creating Textures in Pen & Ink with Watercolor by Claudia Nice.

The topics in this chapter are challenging and educational. They are providing the perfect opportunity to experiment with and to develop a feel for drybrush technique. The key skill seems to be patience. I made quite a few mistakes with this picture, but I managed to correct some of them and making mistakes is a good way to learn.

James Gurney recently published an interesting post about Andrew Wyeth's use of drybrush (see What did Andrew Wyeth mean by "drybrush?").

Hardwood Tree Bark

Beech Tree Bark?
Watercolour on Paper
24.5cm x 15.5cm (9.75" x 6")

Hardwood Tree Bark is the second topic in the Tree Techniques chapter of Creating Textures in Pen & Ink with Watercolor by Claudia Nice. 

Pretty sure this is some kind of Beech tree, but I have to put more effort into identifying trees. I should start by making notes about what I photograph as Elaine, Doris, and I wander around Westonbirt Arboretum (Will I ever learn - I took some photos today and still forgot to take notes).

All the texture on this tree was created using dry brush. This was a break through because until now I’ve struggled with the technique. I also used a masking fluid applicator to reserve some highlights. This is the most delicate use of masking fluid I’ve achieved, so I am pleased with the purchase (see Drawing and Painting the Landscape - Masking). 

You may have noticed I’ve not been posting as regularly as usual, this is because I am distracted by a side project. I’ve started a YouTube channel - Mark Bateman Art.If you are interested, please take a look.

Conifer Tree Bark

Conifer Tree Bark
Watercolour on Paper
24.5cm x 15.5cm (9.75" x 6")

Conifer Tree Bark is the first topic in the Tree Techniques chapter of Creating Textures in Pen & Ink with Watercolor by Claudia Nice. 

Claudia uses Indian Ink to draw the heavily textured bark in her examples and then tints them with watercolour. I tried this approach, but it didn’t turn out satisfactorily because my tree is less textured and a much lighter in tone than her subjects. 

The picture on this post is my second attempt. This time, I painted the tree with light watercolour washes and added the bark pattern with dry brush work and sponged texture. This version is better, but now the bark is not conspicuous enough. This chapter is looking like hard work and I am expecting to learn a lot.

Driftwood

 

Driftwood Sculpture
Watercolour on Paper
16.5cm x 24cm (6.5" x 9.5")

Driftwood is the last topic in the Wood Grain Patterns chapter of  Creating Textures in Pen & Ink with Watercolor by Claudia Nice. 

We don’t live near the sea and the only piece of driftwood knocking around is in this sculpture by Mike Lythgoe. I’ve drawn it once before – back in 2015 (see January 2015 Sketches). 

Studying the piece intensely has helped me to appreciate it even more. I don’t think I had really noticed the shadows until I sat down to paint it.

Old Wooden Structures

Winery Barns
Watercolour on Paper
16.5cm x 24cm (6.5" x 9.5")

Old Wooden Structures is the sixth and penultimate topic in the Wood Grain Patterns chapter of Creating Textures in Pen & Ink with Watercolor by Claudia Nice. 

These are some barns at one of the wineries in Niagara on the Lake. I took the photo in 2011, so I can’t be sure which winery and I suspect the barns have gone. The one on the right was the tasting room.

I cross referenced Claudia’s guidance with suggestions from John Lovett‘s book Textures, Techniques and Special Effects for Watercolor; which is sadly out of print.

Painting the texture of the timbers was harder than I expected even with two sources of advice - I need more practice.

Drawing and Painting the Landscape – Masking

Dart Moorings
Watercolour on Paper
15.5cm x 23.5cm (6" x 9.25")

Lesson 36 of Drawing and Painting the Landscape by Philip Tyler starts with a discussion of masking and then introduces a number of other watercolour topics.

Masking is the technique of using a fluid (rubber solution) or tape to preserve the white of the paper. You could just carefully paint around the white areas, but masking them makes life easier. I wrote about this approach recently (see A Fuzzy Background).

Some people never use masking because it can cause problems. Most notably, the edges created by masking can appear too hard and prominent. Masking fluid is also notorious for wrecking brushes. You have to use an old brush and protect the bristles by covering them in soap; which can make it difficult to apply the masking fluid accurately. It can also tear the paper if you leave it too long before removing it.

In honour of this lesson, I bought a fine tipped masking fluid applicator (Jackson's Masking Fluid Applicator) to mask the boats in this painting. It was the least stressful masking fluid experience I can remember.

A monochrome study of this scene in which the horizon was much lower (see Drawing and Painting the Landscape – Monochrome Study) made me suspect the composition would work better with more water and less sky.

Dart Moorings -  Thumbnail Sketch - 6.5cm x 10cm (2.5" x 4")
Pencil on Paper
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook

A thumbnail helped to confirm this before committing to paint.