The Easy Guide to Painting Skies in Watercolour

Stephen Coates was born in Sheffield in 1960. The son of a draughtsman, he was introduced to drawing at a very young age. He excelled in art at school but chose a career in retail, working first in the music industry for 16 years followed by another 16 years running his own catering business. Over a period of 20 years, Stephen learned and specialized in watercolours in his spare time, and gradually developed his own style and unique brand of teaching. In 2011 he traded his sandwich business for a career in art and teaching. He became a full-time professional freelance artist, and set up his own studio in Sheffield with the purpose of teaching others watercolour painting. From here he runs courses, workshops and hosts his own amateur art groups. Stephen also demonstrates his skills and shares his expertise at art societies all over England, and exhibits at a variety of national art shows. Visit his website www.coatesart.co.uk.

Introduction 6

The challenge of watercolour skies 8

Planning 9

Understanding the paint 10

Brushes and brushing techniques 16

Watercolour paper 21

Tools and materials 24

Working from photographs 26



SKIES

Large Blended Washes 30, White Clouds 38, Sunset Skies 50, Sunbeams 60, Stormy Skies 70, Low Clouds and Mist 84, Perspective and Focal Points 94



Building your repertoire of skies 106

Index 112