Today I have some strategies for you that have helped me improve and grow. They are the strategies I come back to when I need to refocus, think smarter, and determine the best way to move forward as an artist. Keep reading to learn my 4 strategies for smarter watercolor painting.

Don't be too literal in your painting. 

When we are on location, painting a scene or we are looking at a reference photo, it's very easy to get into the habit of copying exactly what is in your photo onto your painting. However, we need to remember to approach the scene as a painter and not as a photographer.

This is not a knock on photography at all. It’s simply permission to become the artist, permission to become the creator. 

As artists, we're not trying to relay the scene exactly as it is, we’re interpreting the scene. We’re emphasizing something compelling or beautiful about the subject.  

To challenge this impulse to copy a scene, here are a few questions you can ask yourself: 

• Why am I painting this scene? What attracted me to this scene in the first place? Maybe it's the light of the scene. Maybe it's the atmosphere. Maybe it's the movement of a street scene. Whatever it is. Make a mental note of it.
• What in the scene can I emphasize and what can I eliminate? Think about what supports the main point of your scene (what attracted you to it in the first place) and what creates balance in your painting. Then make some decisions about what to keep, move, or take out completely. 

Say you're painting a landscape scene, and you are in awe of the sense of distance and depth that the scene offers. That is the main idea of your painting. So if you get too engrossed in the details - the fence posts, cows, flowers - whatever - in the foreground, and you include it all, you will end up detracting from the main point of your scene.

Here's a good way to think about it: 

If we emphasize everything in our scene, we are actually emphasizing nothing. 

If we give the same importance and the same priority to every part of our painting, then the message is lost. The main idea of the painting is lost. So we must be selective in what we choose to emphasize.

Think like a scientist. 

As artists, we put our emotions, our feelings, and our creativity into each painting that we create. If our painting does not meet our expectations, we often experience disappointment. This makes sense, and is a part of the process. However, the way we choose to handle this disappointment determines how resilient we are as creators.

We can benefit from thinking about scientists. If a scientist is conducting an experiment and the outcome is different than anticipated, they approach their result without attaching their self-worth to it in any way. They look at the problem with curiosity instead of self-criticism. 

This is how we need to think as painters.

If we can become curious and open ourselves up to experimentation and play without connecting so much weight to the outcome, this can build resilience. It can strengthen your dedication to the journey you’re taking as an artist.

Study the subject before you start your painting. 

If you follow me regularly, you know that I talk about this often because it is so important: 

• I've shown you how to use markers to create a value study 
• I've talked about what a value study is.
• I’ve emphasized the importance of having a plan before you start.
• I’ve introduced the concept of a small thumbnail sketch to plan your composition.

Whatever you can do to eliminate questions and to understand your plan before you start will help you to be more successful. 

So, I want you to commit to some type of study. Whether it’s a thumbnail sketch, a value study with paint, or a quick value sketch, devoting some time to a plan of action will pay off in spades.  

Set aside time to practice. 

Can you imagine telling a professional athlete or a professional musician that the only time that they were going to practice their craft was during a performance or a game?

That's kind of what we do when we only approach the easel with the intention of creating a complete painting. 

Practice is just as important for artists. 

To see the most growth in your craft, identify specific areas you want to improve and isolate some of these skills:

• Drawing
• Composition
• Values
• Color mixing
• Brushwork

If we're only practicing these elements of our craft when we are focused on a complete painting, then we’re missing out on the opportunity to hone in on specific lessons and see massive growth. 

At one point, I needed repeated practice focused on skies and figures, so I set aside time just to work on these specific skills.

Whether it is 10 minutes a day, three days a week, every single day, or twice a month, it is important that you commit to a regular practice of the skills you want to see improvement in.  However, it fits into your schedule, committing to this hard work and intentional practice, will contribute to fantastic growth over time.