Creating Water Color Portraits with Mood and Depth
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Learn how to paint an emotive portrait in transparent watercolor from start to finish! In this workshop, the process of creating a portrait will be broken down into bite-sized pieces. We’ll begin by drawing basic structural shapes based on the value scale from provided reference, explore both wet-on-wet and dry-brush techniques, discuss flesh-tone "recipes", and cover the importance of lighting, composition, and narration in portraiture.
Please note that this program is intended for experienced watercolor painters. Participants must bring their own supplies. List of required supplies below:
Supply List
1-Day Portrait Workshop Irena Roman
- Your palette (any style you’re comfortable with as long as it gives you room to mix colors.).
This style palette works great:
https://www.dickblick.com/products/masterson-aqua-pro-watercolor-palette/
- A medium-sized watercolor brush that comes to a point (#4-7 round).
- A large brush that also comes to a point (#10-14).
- A flat “sky” brush (3/4” – 1.5”) (completely optional)
And any other brushes you’re used to using. (Can be synthetic or a blend of synthetic and natural hair.)
- A variety of Windsor + Newton (or comparable) tube paints (not pan paint). Bring your go-to favorites, plus a warm and a cool red (for example, Cadmium Red + Alizarin), yellow (Cadmium Yellow + Hansa), and blue (Cerulean + Ultramarine).
- An all-purpose plastic sprayer with an adjustable spray trigger. (You can find this at any hardware store or at a Michael’s.)
- A large water container (I like using “recycled” gallon-sized water containers.)
- Roll of white paper towels (preferably Viva, with no texture or color.)
• 6 oz plastic cups (at least a dozen)
- A jar of masking fluid (Incredible White or Miskit Frisket work well.)
- An old brush or two, such as a #4 round to apply the frisket with- something that comes to a point but doesn’t need to be perfect.
- Pencils, a kneaded eraser, masking tape for taping edges, scissors, an Xacto knife.
- Paper: 2 sheets of 22” x 30” Arches 140 lb. cold pressed (not from a pad). (Please don’t bring Strathmore paper. It doesn’t hold up well compared to Arches.)
- A small pad of watercolor paper would also be handy (for planning, testing colors, etc.) (Any brand- even Strathmore- is OK for this.)
- If you like, a lightweight surface of some sort (such as Masonite, foam core or a clip board) to give your paper support. (Completely optional.)
Irena Roman's Bio:
Irena Roman is an award-winning transparent watercolorist from Scituate, MA. She holds a BFA from Massachusetts College of Art and Design and an MFA from Syracuse University.
She achieved Signature Status from the American Watercolor Society in 2012 and
Dolphin Fellowship status in 2023. She also holds signature membership with the Transparent Watercolor Society of America, the New England Watercolor Society, the Watercolor Honor Society, and American Women Artists.
Irena’s paintings are in many corporate and private collections, including Toray International Inc., Tokyo, Japan, and The National Fire Protection Association, Boston, MA. Her work is regularly included in national and international competitions and has been featured in several publications, including a 2024 feature story in The Art of Watercolour magazine.
In addition to being a painter, Irena is a professor at Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Boston, with over thirty years of teaching experience.