Watercolour portraits tutorial for beginners - part one

You won't believe that starting your watercolour portrait in purple will work, but trust me, it does. This tutorial shows how I use a gentle purple underpainting to give structure to the watercolour portrait and then by working in layers we can build fascinating and glowing skin tones. The first thing you learn in painting portraits is that there is no such thing as flesh colour!

I'm a big believer in shortcuts, so for this tutorial we will use a light box to transfer our outline and contours. I give alternatives in case you don't have one. Then we will work on our 'grisaille' - monochrome underpainting. We wil really concentrate on the tonal map of the face and I will show you how to start with large shapes and then move to smaller ones. Then build up warm and cool layers.

If you are looking for more in depth watercolour courses, from beginners through to advanced, then please take a look at www.lizchadertonstudio.co.uk. I am writing a book on watercolour portraits which will be published by The Crowood Press in 2023.

If you are looking for a friendly place to share your art and meet watercolourists from around the world, why not join my Facebook group here: www.facebook.com/groups/watercolourstudiowithlizchaderton

If you have enjoyed this film, please consider liking and subscribing. I do a watercolour tip, trick or technique each week and release it at 2pm on Sunday. So if you hit the notification bell you will be emailed when the next one is out.

This is day 8 of a 30 Faces in 30 Days challenge from Sktchy. If you love portraits and faces look at the Museum by Sktchy app (sadly not on Android), or go to www.sktchy.com. If you follow me on Facebook or Insta (www.instagram.com/lizchadertonartist) you can see if I complete the challenge!



#lizchaderton #watercolourtips #watercolourportrait