Cheng-Khee Chee: Traditional Watercolor Approach

In The Traditional Watercolor Approach, Cheng-Khee Chee paints an active street scene.

Master painter Cheng-Khee Chee develops his diverse styles in response to his subjects. In this workshop, he teaches his traditional watercolor approach, a flexible style that lends itself to complicated scenes.

Chee emphasizes design in all phases of painting. He guides you through the process of building a scene from photo reference to sketch to study design. After sharing his tools and methods, Chee begins his painting on a wet surface, allowing him to edit his work late in the process.

Chee displays his novel approach to color, beginning his sky with raw sienna and imposing cool blue over the warm first layer. He repeats this color building technique across his canvas. Chee then teaches you how to double- and triple-load your brush to achieve realistic lighting and subtle warm-to-cool gradations. As Chee blocks in color, the double-loads create striking design elements.

He transitions to rich, dark pigments to vary his value patterns and lay the foundation for figures, cars, and other detail. Chee's experience as a teacher shines in this workshop. As he paints, he offers a steady stream of philosophical tidbits and reminders about workflow and design. You'll begin to understand the effects of small strokes on the painting as a whole and how to plan for effective refinement later in the process. He demonstrates while placing telephone poles and other strong lines, explaining how to work them onto the canvas without disrupting the overall composition.

After completing a draft of the painting, Chee hands you the final keys to the traditional watercolor approach: editing and lifting. He offers tips on evaluating a draft then demonstrates practical methods for perfecting your work. Chee lifts pigment with sponges, stencils and brushes then rebuilds tones and puts the finishing touches on his intricate city scene. By the time Chee places his last strokes, you'll understand the first of his signature styles. Join Cheng-Khee Chee for the second volume in his workshop series, the Many Styles of Cheng-Khee Chee: the Traditional Watercolor Approach.

Chee reveals his heart in the first half of the workshop and his mind in the second half.

The first half of the video workshop Cheng-Khee discusses how he creates the scene using combined reference materials. He develops and transfers the painting onto the large-size paper, expresses emotional content, use of strong color and brush work and blocks in large areas, working toward detail. In the second half of this watercolor video workshop Cheng-Khee Chee analyzes his painting and makes bold adjustments to create a cohesive, strong design with activity and atmosphere. He explains his rationale for each of his actions.

Watercolor painter Cheng-Khee Chee (AWS DF, NWS) is a master of painting and design and the synthesis of Eastern and Western philosophies and styles. Chee has stretched the boundaries of watercolor media through this synthesis. This art video presents a rare opportunity to learn from a man who has been described by people who know him as A Modern Day Master, a Complete Artist.

Volume 2 of the 6-volume watercolor instructional video workshop series.