THE ART OF CREATIVE PRACTICING
In my courses, you'll always have my enthusiastic permission to take inspiration and copy the included exercises and illustrations as part of the creative process! After all, my intention is to help you become a better artist. By studying and replicating the course content, you'll acquire valuable techniques, develop a deeper understanding of telling stories without words, thoughtful compositional content, along with formulating essential processes that cultivate your creative voice. Practicing the art of copying, or what I like to call creative practicing, will help you establish a strong foundation and open the door to discovering your one-of-a-kind signature style. - Danielle
COURSE INSPIRATION
Inspired by my travels in Scotland, Ireland, and the Pacific Northwest, I've created a year-long course that combines the magic of these places with the art of watercolor. This course will guide you in creating detailed illustrations of faeries, set against forest-themed backgrounds.
IMAGINE THE POSSIBILITIES
The course is designed to help you establish a consistent creative practice, using watercolor and other mediums, and to enhance your drawing, painting, and imaginative thinking skills. Each month, I'll provide a detailed line art handout for you to recreate a faerie-filled forest illustration, which will be followed by in-depth painting videos.
COURSE SPECIFICS
The course begins with a comprehensive Welcome PDF Packet, which includes insights, information, and a detailed list of the supplies I use in my studio.
Monthly lessons will be available on the first Friday of each month. These lessons include pre-recorded in-depth painting videos and a PDF handout packet, which contains an Illustration Breakdown worksheet, a line-art illustration for practice, a full-color illustration with a supply list, and weekly independent practice prompts. Additionally, five bonus line art illustrations will be provided throughout the year for extra practice.
Think Dot-to-Dot.
Think of the basic shapes as a dot-to-dot drawing. Draw single lines without back and-forth sketching motion when drawing a line. It makes the line too thick and dark. The end points of a line have a little more pressure than the middle.
Add Something New.
When incorporating something new into your creative process, it's best to start with just one new tool or supply at a time. It's always helpful to combine it with techniques and mediums that you are already familiar with and skilled in.
Mix up a unifying wash.
Choose a combination of interesting yet tried-and-true watercolors to create a unifying first wash that serves as a primary backdrop for a series of work. Think of it as a common thread that runs through the course that ties illustrations together.
LET'S WANDER!
Faerie Folk is a comprehensive course that focuses on detailed drawing, watercolor-based mixed media techniques and exploration, in a variety of forest faerie illustrations. By the end of the course, you'll not only develop a substantial set of illustrative skills but also have a foundation for creating characters and scenes with using your creative imagination.
Faerie Folk. The following is a sampling of the curriculum and a list of basic supplies throughout this course. Lesson-specific supplies will be listed in individual lessons as they are introduced. Most of the supplies I use are artist-grade and are a more significant investment than student-grade.
I highly encourage you to use what you have and take notes while watching the videos for the first time. Then, invest in the supplies that will truly enhance your own art.
XO, Danielle
Example Curriculum
Creative Essentials are the short list of basic supplies that I always have handy for my artwork and courses.
- Artist-grade watercolors (pan or tube)
- Watercolor-only brushes
- Artist-grade paper (140 lb., cold press) Please see Course Specifics!
- Mechanical pencil (.3 mm lead) and white vinyl eraser
- White ink marker
- Tube of artist-grade traditional white gouache
- Mixing palette (white porcelain dish works as well)
- Clear jar/clean water
- Paper towels
- Table salt
- Craft dryer (Ranger)
Course-specific Supplies are tools and materials that I use throughout this course. As always, I highly encourage you to use what you have, make notes, and only invest in what you really need to add to your creative toolbox.
- Daniel Smith Watercolors in Quinacridone Gold and Van Dyke Brown
- Schmincke Super Granulating Watercolor in Forest Gray
- Arches Watercolor Paper (Hot Press, 140 lb., 9x12 inch paper pad)
Lesson-specific Supplies are listed on the full-color illustration handout in each Handout Packet.
Course Organizational System includes what you'll need to store all your hard work. Place the Course Handout Cover in the clear pocket of the 3-ring binder. Add the 2-Pocket sleeves to hold your prompts and breakdown practice, then the 52-week tabs for your weekly PDF packets. Your final art is stored in your Art Display Books.
- 3-ring binder with clear cover (Amazon Basics 3 Ring Binder with 2 Inch D-Ring and Clear Overlay)
- 12-month tabs for 3-ring binder (Avery Jan-Dec 12 Tab Dividers for 3 Ring Binders, Customizable Table of Contents, Multicolor Tabs)
- 2-Pocket sleeves (BCW Pro 2-Pocket Photo Pages - 50 ct)
- 1-9x12 Art Storage Binder plus additional refill sleeves if needed (Itoya Polyproplene Art Storage/Display Books)
-
12-5X7 sheets of artist-grade watercolor paper
Kind Words.
Taking Danielle Donaldson's online course was a game-changer for my artistic journey. Her guidance and techniques helped me develop a consistent creative practice and unlock my intuitive artistic abilities. I highly recommend her course to anyone looking to take their art to the next level. -Connie E.
Meet your Instructor.
Hello, I’m Danielle Donaldson. With my trusty mechanical pencil (and eraser), a plethora of watercolors, a penchant for imagination-filled detail, and sprinkle of mixed media experimentation, we’ll adventure together and make some creative magic.
Helpful Handouts.
All courses include a coordinating Handout Packet in PDF format that serves as a tangible reference of the video content and includes insight into my creative process. It also provides an opportunity to continue growing your creative skillset after the course is complete.
CURRENCY. This course is priced in USD. REFUND POLICY. Because you have immediate access to the content of this course, I am unable to offer a refund. QUESTIONS? Send an email to [email protected]. Please allow 48 hours for response.
FAQ'S
How long do I have access to this course?
The course comes with lifetime access and all lessons are downloadable as well.
What is included and how long are the videos? Scroll up to Course Curriculum. In addition to the videos, courses always include coordinating (PDF) Handout Packets.
Is this course suitable for all levels? All levels are always welcome! I try to teach to the middle in my courses. That means beginners might need to practice more and rewatch the videos more than once to grasp techniques and concepts. Advanced artists can use the content to elevate their style by taking bits of the course and infusing them into their own style.
Is high speed internet needed for the course?
Yes. You'll need a good internet connection to watch/download the videos.
Should I buy all of the art supplies used in this course? I highly encourage you to watch the videos and review the handouts prior to investing in new supplies. If you have fallen in love with watercolor and want to continue working with them, I do feel that to get the most out of watercolor-based art, you should consider investing in artist-grade paint, paper, and brushes.
Do you have an online community for your courses? The Danielle Donaldson Art Room is a private Facebook group for participants in all of my courses. You'll find the information to join once you have signed up and have access to the course.
I have a question about this course and can't seem to find the answer. I am happy to help! Please email me at [email protected]. Please allow 48 hours for a response prior to reaching out again.