Kathleen Dunphy: Basic Edition - Essential Plein Air Exercises

Discover Kathleen Dunphy’s “Cross-Training” Approach That Will Transform Your Paintings!

Imagine having painting instruction from an artist whose workshops consistently sell out, with long waiting lists... 

…whose paintings have been acquired by collectors and prestigious museums... 

…and who was hand-selected to join elite painting organizations including Plein Air Painters of America.

After a long wait, we’re so proud to announce that Kathleen Dunphy is finally sharing her entire artistic process!

Join Kathleen in the beautiful California mountains and coastline as she demonstrates her unique “cross-training” approach.

You’ll learn the four essential plein air exercises that develop artistic intuition and confidence:

●      Design & Composition Studies — Discover how to see beyond the “postcard scene” to create designs that express your unique emotional connection to the subject…

●      Timed Quick Study — Learn to paint with decisive confidence, capturing fleeting light conditions while developing brushwork that feels alive and spontaneous…

●      Paint-Over Study — Break free from tight painting habits with this experimental approach that creates rich texture and depth…

●      Focused Study — Master difficult elements of the landscape by confronting and conquering specific challenges one by one…

Kathleen will show you how to break through artistic plateaus, develop confident brushwork, and inject new life into your paintings with her systematic approach to artistic growth. 

Whether you’ve been painting for decades or days, these four essential exercises will help you confront and conquer specific challenges in your work while developing the skills needed to consistently create compelling landscapes!

Meet Your New Instructor, Kathleen Dunphy!

Kathleen Dunphy isn’t just another art instructor — she’s a painter whose work has earned her a place among today’s most respected landscape artists.

Her journey reflects her commitment to excellence and continual growth. 

Known primarily for “capturing the light on/in her subject matter” and “using a limited palette to achieve very realistic colors,” Kathleen takes an academic approach to her work, constantly pushing herself to improve through what she calls “cross-training” — painting small and fast to excel at larger studio work, practicing drawing to enhance her painting, and continually challenging herself with new subjects and approaches.

Her credentials speak volumes about her artistic mastery:

●      Two of her works have been purchased for permanent collection by the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum (2016 and 2024) from their annual Birds In Art exhibit, “the premier exhibit of avian art with artists from all over the world”

●      Selected as the Featured Artist for the prestigious Southeastern Wildlife Exhibition in 2024

●      Invited to join Plein Air Painters of America in 2013, “when the group was very small and select and composed of all of my ’hero’ painters”

●      Holds signature status in multiple prestigious art organizations, including the Plein Air Painters of America, Society of Animal Artists, and Oil Painters of America

As an instructor, Kathleen has been teaching for 19 years with “consistently sold-out classes with long waiting lists.” 

Her teaching approach emphasizes not just technical skills but also the psychological aspects of artistic development, like:

●      How to get through slumps and plateaus…

●      How to deal with paintings that aren’t working….…

●      How to keep a positive outlook during the inevitable tough moments in an artist’s development…

●      …and so much more

When collectors describe Kathleen’s work, they consistently mention “how much light is in it” and how she “captures the unique essence of the subject, regardless of where she’s painting.” They also note “the realistic color in her work and obvious love for her subject matter.”

This is your rare opportunity to learn directly from an artist who combines technical mastery with genuine passion and the proven ability to help others break through to their next level of artistic achievement.

What You’ll Discover Inside:

●      Discover Kathleen's “musical scales” approach to painting that builds core artistic skills through targeted practice exercises…

●      Master the limited palette technique using just 3 colors + white (plus 2 “cheater colors”) to create remarkably realistic color in any landscape…

●      Learn the timed “Paint small and paint fast” method that prevents overworking while developing confident, decisive brushwork…

●      Experience the liberating “Paint-Over” practice using old canvases to create rich texture and expressive mark-making…

●      Understand how thumbnail sketches help you move beyond “postcard scenes” to find compositions that truly express your emotional connection to a subject…

●      Discover how to use “half steps” of value to create interest and depth in your landscapes…

●      Learn to establish a “focal path” rather than just a focal point to guide viewers through your painting…

●      Master the art of stopping before you think you’re done to preserve the freshness of your work…

●      See how focused practice of challenging elements (like coastal rocks or water reflections) builds confidence and technical mastery…

●      Discover efficient plein air setup and packing techniques that make outdoor painting more comfortable and productive…

●      Learn how premixing paints provides a transition into “art mode” while keeping colors clean and brushes uncontaminated…

●      Experience Kathleen’s approach to simplifying overwhelming landscapes into manageable, focused compositions…

●      Discover how to “think graphically” when planning compositions to create more dynamic, interesting designs…

●      Learn the counterintuitive tip that “you can use anything within 180 degrees of your scene and still have the same lighting” to enhance compositions…

●      PLUS: Understand why “spending the day doing a few focused studies will get you further toward success than spending the day on a painting”...

●      …and a bunch of amazing painting tips!

Your Lesson Plan for Exercises in Plein Air!

Introduction:

In this introduction, Kathleen shares her “cross-training” philosophy of artistic development, explaining how the four targeted practice exercises you’ll learn — Design & Composition, Timed Quick Study, Paint-Over Study, and Focused Study — will help you break through plateaus and develop confidence in your painting. Each exercise addresses specific artistic challenges and helps you build skills systematically, similarly to how musicians practice scales to master more complex pieces.

Gearing Up:

Learn Kathleen’s practical approach to plein air preparation that makes outdoor painting more enjoyable and productive. She shares her field-tested tips for what to pack and how to organize your supplies so you can focus on painting rather than logistics. You’ll discover how to travel light while still having everything you need, avoiding common mistakes that lead to frustration on location. This efficient approach to plein air setup will save you time and energy, allowing you to maximize your actual painting time when the light and conditions are perfect.

Color Mixing:

Discover Kathleen’s surprisingly simple limited palette approach using just 3 colors + white (and 2 “cheater colors” ) that creates remarkably realistic color in any landscape. Learn how premixing colors provides a valuable transition into “art mode” while keeping your brushes clean and your palette organized. Kathleen demonstrates how this streamlined approach allows for more accurate and personal color mixing without relying on countless tube colors. You’ll see how this simplified palette is especially valuable when painting outdoors, giving you consistent results with less equipment to carry.

Design & Composition Study:

Join Kathleen at the historic Douglas Flat School House, where she demonstrates how to create compelling compositions that express your unique emotional connection to a scene. Learn to see beyond the obvious “postcard scene” by using gray marker sketches to explore multiple compositional possibilities quickly. Kathleen shares her approach to simplifying overwhelming landscapes by focusing on what truly speaks to you, using contrast to draw the eye, overlapping shapes to show depth, and creating a focal path that guides viewers through your painting. Discover why “the most interesting designs are usually the ones that don’t fit into a standard format.”

Timed Quick Study:

Experience Kathleen’s transformative “Paint small and paint fast” approach at beautiful Mosquito Lake. Learn how working within the constraint of timed sessions (three 20-minute segments) develops decisive brushwork and prevents overworking. Kathleen demonstrates her complete process — establishing the “bones” of the painting with basic shapes and values, developing depth and relationships in the middle stage, and completing the study with attention to edges and focal paths. You’ll discover how this method helps capture fleeting light conditions while training your artistic reflexes to work efficiently and confidently.

Paint-Over Study:

Liberate your brushwork with Kathleen’s experimental paint-over technique that creates rich texture and expressive mark-making. In this playful demonstration, you’ll learn to paint over an old canvas (turned upside down to minimize distraction) with thicker paint and more expressive brushwork. This approach forces you out of tight painting habits, encouraging you to “work without a net” while developing your artistic instincts. Discover how this method creates interesting surfaces with both literal and visual depth, helps avoid muddy color, and encourages the freedom to ask “I wonder what would happen if...” without fear of failure.

Focused Study:

Join Kathleen at Pebble Beach, where she demonstrates how to master challenging elements by focusing practice on specific aspects of the landscape. Rather than attempting a complete painting, Kathleen shows how to zero in on elements you might typically struggle with — in this case, the light and shadow values of coastal rocks against the ocean. Learn how this targeted approach builds confidence with difficult subjects by removing the pressure of creating a finished painting. Kathleen shares her insight that “spending the day doing a few focused studies will get you further toward success than spending the day on a painting.”

Extra Bonuses:

●      Exhibit of Kathleen Dunphy’s works for your creative inspiration

●      Interview with Kathleen Dunphy by Eric Rhoads for insights and motivation

●      Kathleen’s process for critiquing your work