Teaching An Old Dog Watercolor Tricks

           
                  "Everybody who is incapable of learning has taken to teaching." --Oscar Wilde.

                             "You can't teach an old dog new tricks."--Anonymous.


I disagree with both of the above quotations: I am teaching art yet continuing to learn; and I am an old dog learning new tricks.

I am learning to use watercolor from Satoko--a watercolor Instructor at Lane Community College.

I once before took a watercolor class, but dropped it halfway through because the woman who taught it, taught us the cliques that that are all too common in watercolor "art".

When I think of watercolor art that I want to emulate, I think of the recent paintings by David Hockney. He has achieved a place in his art where he is an aged and flawless Master of his medium.

Here are two paintings by David Hockney that illustrate my  point:

David Hockney






David Hockney

I had the privilege of learning under the great painter Adam Grosowsky and yet now I must begin again at the beginning--watercolor is that different. It is humbling.

The first day of class Satoko had me do a color study.

Color study in watercolor

Then, the next week I was able to move on to a simple still life, using only cool colors. Here is my first
watercolor, still life under Satoko:






Still Life




Anyone who has sat under Adam can see his influence on my painting style, yet this is a "beginner's painting".

That's OK though, because I believe that teachers can still learn and that old dogs can learn new tricks.