Yes to Class at the Civic Center in Libertyville Feb 18th 1pm to 3:30pm

Yes to Class at The Studio in McHenry Feb 20th 9:00am to 11:30am

Email me at Beckerart@gmail.com for any info you may need about my classes or workshops.

  In my teachings, I talk a lot about what is most important in painting in watercolor, drawing being most important, then composing the value pattern into a good composition, and then I would put knowing your subject matter and painting what you know and love way up there on the list.

At first, a beginner doesn't really have to know their subject matter because they are learning the basics of the medium and basically working with whatever their teachers gives them to paint or the students work on simple images that they feel they can handle. 

After you reach a point of knowing how to handle the medium and are no longer a beginner, that would be the time where you have to start painting things that you know and love. Knowing your subject matter and just loving to paint that subject matter helps you so much in developing into a skilled artist. 

I love painting boats, water, cities, and people in those scenes. You are probably wondering how does loving and knowing these subject matters really help one become a better artist. The answer is that loving to paint a subject matter gets you to paint more and that is the only way you are gonna get better is to do a lot of it. Knowing your subject matter helps you so much in your drawing of the subject matter and helps you in designing the value pattern which is one and two when it comes to the importance of learning how to paint. So in a way knowing and loving your subject matter is just as important as learning drawing and value pattern when it comes to becoming a skilled artist. 

Get out there and start picking your subject matter based on what you know and love, I guarantee it will help you so much when it comes to advancing as an artist!

Here is to knowing what you love!  
David