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GRASBY ART INSTRUCTION

BEGINNERS WATERCOLOUR PAINTING WORKSHOPS CALGARY

BEGINNERS WATERCOLOUR PAINTING WORKSHOPS CALGARY

BEGINNERS WATERCOLOUR PAINTING - Workshops at Grasby Art in NW Calgary

Begin your journey as an artist with us. Our art school has 15 years of experience coaching beginners, with instructors with formal art education. Our leveled approach has been refined over the years and is designed to ensure your success as a watercolourist. At each workshop/level you will gain confidence and capability as you complete the series of small paintings and exercises.

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Three scenes from a beginners watercolour workshop — a landscape painted from reference, a pear still life, and a student painting aspens, Grasby Art Studio, NW Calgary

Class details

Details

Each level is a 3 hour workshop. The workshop sessions are offered fall, late fall, new year, spring. There are 8 levels — Levels 1-4 (this page) cover the basics; Levels 5-8 go beyond the basics. You may take individual workshops or take all 4 at a discount.

What you'll learn — Levels 1-4

  • Level 1 | Colour Theory, Mixing & Palette Management — mix any colour with confidence and set up your palette like an artist.
  • Level 2 | Wet Techniques — master luminous wet-in-wet washes, soft blends, and glowing skies.
  • Level 3 | Dry Techniques — build crisp detail, texture, and control with dry brush and layering.
  • Level 4 | Mixed Techniques — combine wet and dry techniques

What you'll make

Technique exercises, a studio full of people working, and the paintings that come out of it.

Watercolour painting of aspen trees in autumn, a beginners watercolour exercise at Grasby Art Studio, NW CalgaryAspens in autumn — a finished exercise
Wet-in-wet watercolour technique exercises labelled on a leaf study sheet, Grasby Art Studio, NW CalgaryWet-in-wet techniques, labelled as you go
Beginners watercolour student painting aspens in the studio, Grasby Art Studio, NW CalgaryWorking through a demo in the studio

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Dates & Times · Levels 1-4

Three intakes a year. Each one is four weekly workshops — pick the day that suits you.

FallSeptember – October 2026
  • FRISept 11 · 18 · 25 · Oct 29am – 12pm
  • SUNSept 13 · 20 · 27 · Oct 49am – 12pm
  • WEDSept 16 · 23 · 30 · Oct 7Evenings 6 – 9pm
Late FallNovember – December 2026
  • FRINov 6 · 13 · 20 · 279am – 12pm
  • SUNNov 15 · 22 · 29 · Dec 69am – 12pm
  • WEDNov 18 · 25 · Dec 2 · 9Evenings 6 – 9pm
New YearJanuary – February 2027
  • FRIJan 8 · 15 · 22 · 299am – 12pm
  • SUNJan 10 · 17 · 24 · 319am – 12pm
  • WEDJan 13 · 20 · 27 · Feb 3Evenings 6 – 9pm

Every course runs four consecutive weeks — no sessions fall on holiday weekends. Each workshop is 3 hours, in Studio A at 6520 Bowness Road NW.

Ready for more? Watercolour Levels 5-8 — beyond the basics — runs in between these courses (October and February), so you can continue straight from Course I into Course II.

Finished beginner watercolour exercises at Grasby Art Studio

Location and parking

Where

Grasby Art Studio A, 6520 Bowness Road NW, Calgary. Free street parking (no 2-hour enforcement) plus 5 fenced alley stalls.

Watercolour student mixing colour swatches at Grasby Art Studio, NW Calgary

Mixing and testing colour at the studio bench.

Supplies

Supplies

We provide the surface you work on — watercolour paper — plus any specialty tools the class needs.

You'll need the Beginners Watercolour Kit ($88). The kit is required — you'll use it in every workshop and for the practice work between sessions. Purchase it on workshop day, or buy it ahead of time online or in the studio. The kit includes a #10 or 12 round, a 3/4" flat, and a script brush, a palette, plus three primary colours: Cadmium Yellow, Quinacridone Red, and Phthalocyanine Blue.

Beginners Watercolour Supply Kit


Cost — choose your commitment

  • $95 — single workshop (one level, one date)
  • $360 — full four-workshop course (save $20 vs booking the four workshops singly)
How to register

How to Register

  1. Choose your commitment — Full Course I (Levels 1–4) for all four workshops ($360), or Single Workshop to book one date ($95).
  2. Pick your Dates & Times — Fall, Late Fall, or New Year; each single workshop shows its level.
  3. Add to cart. No experience needed. Booking more than one single date? Add each one to your cart separately.

Already finished Levels 1–4? Register for Beginners Watercolour Levels 5-8 — beyond the basics — same choice of full course ($360) or single workshops ($95).

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