A Watercolor Lesson from Sicily: Beach Scene

May 26, 2025

I am just getting my feet underneath me again after a busy and inspiring retreat in Sicily!

This was a fantastic trip spent with a great group of students in some of the most gorgeous spots in Europe! Shout out to everyone who attended the retreat and to UpTrek for being such a great partner in organizing trips like this! This isn't my first, and it won't be my last, so let me know if you'd be interested in joining me on my next excursion!

In the meantime, here is a little taste of the experience. I hope you follow along and paint this beautiful Sicily beach scene inspired by a trip to Chefalú!

Paint This Sicilian Scene With Me

What Supplies Do I Need to Paint This Scene?

I am painting on Saunders Waterford Cold Press 140lb paper, and I have my surface tilted to 35 degrees.

I use a variety of brands of brushes, but I mainly stick to a large mop, medium round and smaller synthetic brush with a point.

Here are the list of pigments on my palette:

Burnt Sienna
Cadmium Red
Cadmium Yellow Medium
Cerulean Blue
Cobalt Blue Cobalt
Teal Blue
Cobalt Turquoise
Lavender
Neutral Tint
Payne's Gray
Quinacridone Gold
Raw Sienna
Raw Sienna Light
Raw Umber
Rose Madder Permanent
Ultramarine Blue

If you would like to purchase some of the brushes I feature in this video you can take a look at my Amazon Affiliate link: https://www.amazon.com/shop/m.white.art

Reference Photo

Sometimes finding the right reference photo can be tricky. For tips on how to choose a watercolor subject, read this blog I wrote last month.

In this case, I implemented one of the tips I shared in that blog.

Below is the original photo I snapped for inspiration. But the problem with it is that there is so much information in it. It lacks focus, and for my painting, I wanted to simplify the scene.