Focusing on Brushwork When We Paint

Good brushwork demands attention. Research has shown that 46% of the time we are not actually paying attention to what is going on now.

We all admire clean bold brushwork. In my experience, we don't ever master that. We need to pay attention and push ourselves to be bold, direct and precise.

In this video I only show the actual painting process, the brushwork. No block in. Just finding the color and putting it down.

[leandrodurao]

Hello Ian ... I hope everything is fine ... I'm from Roo de Janeiro, Brasil ... I watch your lessons every day ... I painted for 45 years with a classic tendency rich in details ... you radically changed my painting with simplification and a new focus in design ... painting only what really matters ... I am very very very happy with the freshness of my new work ... stay with God ... lots of health ... sorry about my english ... It's like Tarzan ... 😂😂😂

[JayDouglas]

Loved seeing a painting done without a traditional blocking in stage. I'm a very detail-oriented person, and I have such a hard time with big blocks of color that I know will be covered by something else! Thanks for another great lesson.

[annsowers]

I like to take a day and concentrate on color mixing and using my different brushes. There is a definite learning curve with watercolor but I enjoy it. I paint to help me with the loss of my Son. It keeps my mind busy.

[normanmerrill]

I’ve just started watching you and already feel more comfortable with your teachings than all the 1000’s of painting videos I’ve watched...I will continue...thanks...

[elizabethclaire]

"the adventure starts when you pick up the brush" amen.

[lovewillwinnn]

Finished painting is stunning as usual. 😆👏👏

[maryannbradshaw]

Thank you for the lesson on brush strokes.

[karlasolomon]

Watching you paint, especially hearing the choices and decisions you make as you go, is both interesting and useful.

[Nurse]

Came to your sure through James Gurney. Always been a watercolorist, but a friend is having me take acrylic classes with her … and I miss the great lights that I used to get with watercolor . You sir, have proved to me that an opaque technique can be full of LIGHT! Thank you, and you deserve the $60/month I’m paying for these classes!!!

[lanaschuster]

Margaret was right, this is worth another viewing for the brushwork. It was also a good review of the steps: crop the view, sketch the road map, draw the value masses, all this before painting. Now I have a third mantra: crop, sketch, draw, paint. It's great that these videos stay up for revisiting. Thanks again Ian.

[pchabanowich]

I echo my previous comments. Always fresh and beautiful - you inspire tremendously. Lately I've been able to create a space to work in oils, and soon I'll begin playing with oils. Thank you again!❤‍🔥💐

[glorious]

From prosaic photo to a work of art.
Thank you so much for your generosity in teaching people you don’t even know. God bless you.

[kathleenflanagan]

Thank you. I would never have attempted to paint a scene with so much foreground. I feel like giving it a whirl.

[sandraworrall-hart]

The brushwork of all the different greens in the foreground creates a lot of movement. Love the way you have accentuated the blue in three places. Thank you

[jenniferbealey]

I have been totally blocked in my painting for the last 15 months or so, not knowing what to do about it. Having just stumbled on your videos Ian I feel as though I have some starting points to get back into it. I’m going to give it a try today, so thank you so much.

[Dennis-Hare]

You are right, Ian. The finished image has great coloration. Thank you.

[janeiwan]

Ian, all of your posts are fabulous. I am so thankful that you're doing these demos. Best wishes,
Jane

[leandrodurao]

before you I loved my details. today i'm happy to throw them away ... u made me a new painter ... i'm much happier ...

[pchabanowich]

Every time I encounter a new work of yours, I instantly recognize it, and the same initial appeal of your subtle colours has me caught yet again! I've no room to paint, but I take your compositional and colour information to my work digitally. Thank you huge.💐

[joyceheddy]

Loved it! Do more. Fantastic instructions