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London Art College: Distance Learning Art Courses
Artwork by Gloria Rossi

Course Prices

Inside UK

£400.00

Outside UK

£425.00

Instalments UK & International

£400.00 in 4 instalments at £100.00 each

International students will not be supplied with a paper copy

Watercolour Online Art Course

Tutored by Steven Hersey

The Watercolour Course is a Diploma Course.  

Watercolour painting is often the next exciting step for aspiring artists who have mastered the basics of drawing. With just a few tubes of paint, brushes, and paper, you can start creating beautiful works of art. However, watercolour can be complex and sometimes frustrating without the right guidance. Mastering this medium can lead to spectacular results, making it one of the most rewarding and accessible artistic forms to explore.

Why Choose Our Watercolour Painting Course?

  1. Comprehensive Approach: Our course offers a well-rounded introduction to watercolour painting, covering traditional techniques and introducing innovative ideas that will spark your creativity. You’ll gain a thorough understanding of colour, tone, composition, and the essential techniques through practical exercises and engaging lessons.
  1. Inspiration from the Masters: Dive into the techniques of renowned watercolour artists like John Singer Sargent, Edward Wesson, and Philip Wilson Steer. Our course includes detailed references, illustrations, and step-by-step demonstrations to help you learn from the best.
  1. Personalized Feedback: Benefit from the support of your dedicated tutor who will provide detailed critiques and constructive advice on seven assignments throughout the course. This personalized feedback will guide you in refining your skills and improving your artwork.
  1. Flexibility and Accessibility: Our course is designed to fit your lifestyle with no set deadlines for coursework submissions. Whether you're a beginner or have some experience, you’ll find the course adaptable to your pace, allowing you to balance learning with other commitments.
  1. Creative Freedom: Explore a variety of styles and subjects, from traditional landscapes to imaginative and abstract works. Our course encourages you to develop your unique artistic voice while building a solid foundation in watercolour techniques.

  1. Engaging Learning Materials: Access high-quality materials, including diagrams, illustrations, and exercises, that clarify key concepts and enhance your learning experience.
Course Details:
  • Duration: Designed to span approximately 1 year, with the flexibility to complete within 2 years.
  • Enrolment: Open to students of all backgrounds and experience levels, with rolling start dates and no pressure to meet specific deadlines.

Henri Matisse once said, "One note is simply a colour. Two notes make a chord and life." Embark on your watercolour journey and discover how to make your artistic vision come alive.

Ready to dive into watercolour painting? Enrol today and start your artistic adventure with expert guidance and support.

We look forward to helping you bring your watercolour creations to life!

Students are able to upload their artwork to the 'The Art Room' on our website. Each student is given a unique username and password on enrolment for their own private area in The Art Room.

Students can upload their artwork for the tutor to collect and critique. The tutor will then upload feedback for the student to download. If you do not have facilities to upload your artwork, you can mail your artwork to the tutors centre and receive your artwork back with your critique.

It is essential you label all packages/artwork with your student number.

Student Artwork by Jane Minter

All our courses are written to be your comprehensive guide into each of their subject matters. We understand that students appreciate clarification about various aspects of their work from a course tutor, whom provide reassurance that techniques are put into practice effectively. 

Each courses has its own dedicated Tutor. The tutor keeps the course up to date and relevant to today's students. They are available to the individual student for advice and encouragement. Each course has regular exercises and assignments that are constructed in such a way as to give the student the opportunity to practice the techniques learnt on the course and to test themselves as they go along. Students are encouraged to submit the assignment work to the college for the tutor to critique.

Coursework can be submitted online, as digital photographs, in your individual art room account and the tutor will upload their critique for you to download and retain forever.

On many courses the assignment work may be suitable for inclusion in a student's Portfolio of Work that could be very useful later. The college will use the assignments submitted as the basis for your award of a diploma.

On successful completion of this course you will have studied new skills and gained knowledge for your own enjoyment and development.

Student Artwork by Mahua Pal
Media: Equipment used Subject: Areas covered Techniques: Skills developed
  • Watercolour-Tube Paints
  • Watercolour Brushes
  • Watercolour Paper
  • Palette
  • Landscape
  • Skies
  • Water
  • Still Life/ Indoor
  • Portraiture/ Figure
  • Subject and Style
  • Imaginary/ Illustrative/ Narrative
  • Any and All!
  • Basic Methods
  • Tone and Colour Handling
  • Composition
  • Light and Transparency
  • Techniques in Context
  • Observation and Interpretation
  • Planning and Forethought
  • Inspiration and Discipline
  • Alternative Methods
  • Finer Points

Click the download button below to view a pdf sample course page which will open in a new tab. Alternatively right click and save the file. Please be patient for it to load.

Download Sample

Below are a few images from the course.

I really enjoyed the watercolour course. I feel much more confident with my skills in this medium. I struggled with watercolour before and wanted to improve, I am looking forward to applying what I have learned in future work.

C Brain
Steven is an exceptional Tutor I thoroughly enjoyed every aspect of this course thanks to him . I loved the freedom to let my imagination run riot with zero rules . I feel my progress has taken a giant leap forward . Absolutely value for money and total joy throughout . Many thanks.

J Reid
My Tutor Steven Hersey's comments for each of my assignments were detailed and very helpful. They were also sent very promptly after each submission. He has encouraged me to continue to learn and enjoy watercolour painting, so my thanks to him and LAC.

G Hester
I learnt all I wanted to know about painting in watercolour. Fabulous Tutor, considerate, enthusiast, helpful, intuitive, great advice, encouraging and always positive. Huge thanks.

S Munro
The Watercolour diploma was my first course and I feel I have learned very much. It covered so many elements, I loved going through all these in a systematic way. This was exactly what I had been looking for. I found the Material very helpful, as well as the many additional informations and ideas given by the tutor. So I am fully content and happy with this course. I needed almost 2 Years. I can't imagine how I could managed to do earlier. Thank you!

C Marwitz
I found this course to be very beneficial in improving my understanding of watercolour. The tutor was both encouraging and helpful in their comments.

G Lyon
I thoroughly enjoyed the course and receiving Steven’s feedback on my efforts. The assignments removed the ‘what shall I paint’ question and pushed me to try things I would normally avoid. I now want to continue to use watercolour as a medium and hopefully improve further as I go along. The only thing is that I was so eager to do it, I finished far too soon and felt a bit lost when it ended.

C Hawkins
It was a great experience. My tutor's feedback was very quick and that helped a lot in keeping up the momentum of the course. Also his constructive feedback and encouragement gave me confidence in working and in striving to produce great work in my assignments. Thank you!!!

M Georghiadou

A brilliant watercolour course!
I found this course very rewarding.  I have learned a lot from my tutor Ida. Her feedback and website suggestions were very helpful.

C Lan Lee 

I have enjoyed the course immensely and have tried things that I probably wouldn’t have done. Ida has been extremely helpful and constructive and I thank her very much.

P Martin 

I benefited greatly from this course, and the tutor Ida was excellent. I am writing this before I find out my grade, as I don't wish to be swayed....... by possibly the result.   After each assignment, I received a very full report  and sometimes, I admit I felt disappointed ,  but ultimately I knew that Ida had assessed very objectively and when I took time to reflect on her comments and to "mull over " her comments, I felt I could take the next step and take on board her suggestions.  As a veteran of non distance art classes , and being new to a distance art course, ( which left me technologically challenged on occassion). I  think her feedback has been one of the best I have received in many years.  Anyway, I am very grateful to Ida for her support and advice over the 18 months I participated on this course.  I hope this feedback is passed on to her. 

M Sampson