Take a Retreat with the Ocean Blues Course

Summer is here and what better way than to spend it painting one of your favorite vacation spots! I love painting the ocean because of its calming presence, but also because of its unique beauty that can be captured in so many different ways. 

I've decided to create a course called, Ocean Blues, that was inspired by the very ocean that is not too far from me. 

In this course, I dive into 4 paintings of the ocean that you can paint in the very comfort of your own home. You will learn about different depths, shades of blues, shadows, and so much more. 

The best part is that each painting comes with techniques that you can utilize in other paintings and help you grow as an artist! 

Painting #1: Ocean View Getaway

Ocean View Getaway was inspired by a person that wants to learn how to paint water easily without focusing too much on the details of the waves. The goal – is loose and simple, but still includes depth and the beauty of the ocean. I was inspired to create this painting based on the many paintings I saw that were vibrant. With this painting, you will see how the ocean takes up the majority of the canvas but is still very detailed in a subtle way. Various techniques were used to create this painting. 

Techniques Used:

Masking: By using the masking technique, you are protecting objects in your painting such as the sail of the boat and the sparkles that can become ruined if a darker color is painted over. 

Wet-on-wet: This technique was used to create a hazy, layered background looking over the mountains and water. It creates a lifelike effect to the painting while adding more visual interest.  

Wet-on-dry: Using the wet-on-dry technique involves adding wet paint onto already dried paint. This allows the boat to become the focus of the painting by adding it last after the rest of the painting has dried. 

Scratching: Scratching is a technique I enjoy doing when adding fun elements such as sparkles. Adding sparkles to water makes the painting become alive and light. To begin scratching, you simply use a sharp object like a cutter, art knife, or pen to scratch off some of the paint. 

Lifting: This is another technique that can be used to soften the harder edges of the masking, which is usually where the paint dried. Lifting is a simple technique that requires very little such as water, a brush, and a paper towel. All you need to do is use a dry or damp brush to go over areas where you want to remove the paint. The brush will act like a sponge and soak up any paint that you want to remove. 

This painting is definitely one of my students' favorites. 

Painting #2: Hidden Beach

Everyone loves a good hideaway! This painting, Hidden Beach, is another one of my favorites! I absolutely LOVE painting clouds and casting them in such a dramatic way, but subtle. The inspiration behind this painting is to show people that they can overcome the struggle of paper drying quickly. 

Some of the techniques used…

Techniques Used:

Masking: Masking was also used in this painting to create sparkles on the beach and in the sky. We do this in a much more subtle way compared to the Ocean View Getaway painting. Here masking was done to really give that glowing feeling of the warm sand and sunny skies. 

Wet-on-wet: Now, I know that wet-on-wet can be difficult to achieve. However, since Hidden Beach requires a lot of wet paint, you will learn how to master wet-on-wet. This technique is used on the clouds to create that soft dimension of them. It is also used on the water and beach. 

Wet-on-dry: Another common technique used in this painting is wet-on-dry which is used for the people. We want to create the illusion that people are actually walking on the beach, so having them set last on the painting will create this effect. We will first paint the beach, ocean, and sky, let them dry then paint the people over. 

This painting reminds me of moments that I've had with family and friends at the beach. 

Painting #3: Seaside Architecture 

Another painting that reminds me of the ocean that includes architecture and culture is the Seaside Architecture painting. So far we've painted the ocean in wide landscapes, this time we will be painting the ocean as the background. The inspiration behind this painting is that I wanted to encompass architecture with blue tones that remind me of the sea. This here is a go-to architecture building that everyone knows, or at least has seen somewhere online. This painting captures the glow and sun while remaining glowy, airy, and sparkles 

Techniques Used:

Wet-on-wet: Again, this technique is most popular because this is literally what painting is about! We used wet-on-wet techniques for the background and flowers. 

Softening: So with so much white with contrasting bright colors in this painting, it's important to soften the edges around the flowers, the blue part of the building, and the ocean to enhance that bright sunny look. 

Gouache: Now, this is a technique that is popular amongst artists that feel more confident in their abilities, but it's not that hard to do. Gouache consists of mixing opaque watercolors with regular watercolors to provide a flat, matte bold color as you see in this painting.

 Painting #4: Sparkling Away

And, our final painting is Sparkling Away. You will learn how to paint this beautiful sailboat on a tranquil sea this summer course along with the other three paintings. This painting was a happy mistake! I pretty much combined everything from the previous paintings – sparkles, water, sky, boat, and the feeling of peace. I didn't overthink this painting, I simply went with my instincts and painted – something I highly recommend every painter should do. I was getting so lost in the painting. I did consider restarting at halfway point, but I trusted myself and went with it! I'm so happy that I did, I love how it turned out! 

Like I said, I used pretty much every technique I had used in the previous paintings. These were… 

Techniques Used:

Wet-on-wet: By this point, this one is very obvious. I used the wet-on-wet technique for the majority of the painting, mainly for the mountains and water. 

Negative Space: This technique was one that I haven't mentioned yet. But, I used it for the sky. Instead of painting the sky, I simply painted everything else around it – leaving the white space on its own. 

Masking fluid: Again, I wanted to protect certain objects. I used masking fluid to save some of the white on the sky, boat, and sea. 

Scratching: So, I added some sparkles onto this painting too. I just love them! They make the ocean glisten and really brighten up and make me want to go on a retreat. 

Magic Sponge/Softening: Although we love sparkles, I decided to soften them up with this painting. I used a magic sponge to dab on the sparkles and make them a tad bit softer so that they're not so apparent. The goal is to make the ocean look real. 

Wet-on-dry: Finally, I used wet-on-dry to paint my boat, making it the focus of my painting. 

Whether you're painting the beach or a sailboat in the sea, Ocean Blues will teach you everything you need to know about painting the beautiful ocean. 

You can buy the course to learn how to paint these paintings individually. OR, buy them in a bundle. These courses are available every day, all day throughout the summer, and forever! You can view the course materials here. 

Have questions about the course?

-Mako