Wattles in Watercolour with Karen Holloway

A fun and creative workshop with Karen Holloway inspired by the colourful Australian native wattles.

Dates: 30 August 2025
Times: Saturday 9.30am - 4.30pm
Venue: NatureArt Lab Studio, M16 Artspace, 21 Blaxland Crescent, Griffith; free parking is available at either the front or both sides of the building.

About the Course

Learn all about watercolour paints as a medium for capturing the essence of beautiful native wattles to produce an expressive watercolour painting. 

This course will help get you on your watercolour journey. It will cover the basics of working expressively with watercolour medium including how to control water and your brushstrokes to get stunning, expressive effects. It will also help you get familiar with colour and equipment choices. 

You will complete a flower painting with different techniques to build familiarity and confidence with the watercolour medium.

Learning Outcomes:

• Knowledge of materials and equipment used with watercolour paints

• From beginning to end - discussing the steps from concept to finished artwork

• Knowledge of basic colour and composition theory

• Skills in using different watercolour techniques for applying watercolour to paper

• An understanding of how to approach and develop a floral inspired artwork

At the end of the class students can expect to be familiar with choosing and using material and equipment, mixing colour, employing composition and colour basics to make a pleasing composition, and using different brush strokes to create a loose native floral artwork. Students can choose to create the class project or enhance their own process of discovery by working on a composition of their own creation.

Materials
A materials list will be provided before the start of the first class. Arches watercolour paper is available to purchase directly from the tutor. 

Level of course/workshop
Suitable for students with some watercolour experience - intermediate level students. 
This course is suitable for any nature enthusiast aged 16+. 

About the tutor
Karen Holloway is an award-winning Canberra based botanical and mixed-media artist with a background in design and applied science. She combines her love of nature, patterns and surface decoration with keen observation honed by many years working as a paper conservator to create fresh, loose artworks with a vintage sensibility.

Karen is an enthusiastic advocate for using art and observation to connect with nature regardless of age or skill level. She encourages students to enjoy investigating different techniques and mediums to embrace the beauty of nature and explore their own passion for the natural world. Karen is currently undertaking professional studies for a Masters of Art Therapy and the benefits of art for human well-being.