Fridays, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Instructor: James Toogood
Six-Week Condensed Course (42 Hours)
Credit: Non-Credit or 1.5 Undergraduate Credits (See Below)

Enrich your knowledge of painting with an in-depth look at watercolor. Thoroughly investigate a wide range of watercolor materials and techniques from your choice of landscape, still life, portrait, and figure subjects. The course is designed to equip each participant with the knowledge and skills necessary to make accomplished, personally rewarding watercolor paintings. Open to watercolorists of all levels and to acrylic/oil painters looking to broaden their skills.

Learning Objectives

• Students will learn about color theory as applied to watercolor.

• Students will receive a comprehensive explanation of watercolor materials and tools, with particular focus will be paid to the properties of paint and pigments as they interact with the paintbrushes and paper.

• Through both discussions and demonstrations, first time participants and beginners will learn a variety of techniques that are fundamental to watercolor, presented in a systematic step by step method. Participants can expect to have regular individual instruction, given at their current skill level.

• Focus also will be paid on acquiring the skills needed to achieve a richness of color and a feeling of light.

• Participants will work from direct observations from the still life and model, or from their own source material. Those not taking the class for credit will have the option to work on landscape, still life, portrait and figure or abstraction, as they wish.

• Participants will be exposed to a variety of watercolor styles and encouraged to discover one’s own personal aesthetic.

Optional: This course is available for 1.5 undergraduate credits for $995. Select credit option with price adjustment when registering.

Register by: May 9
Materials List
Summer 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Monday - Friday, 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Instructor: Phyllis Laver
One-Week Intensive Course (30 Hours)
Credit: Non-Credit or 1.0 Undergraduate Credit (See Below)

This course is a truly intensive week of figure and portrait study, with six hours a day working from a model! Mornings will feature life/nude models, and afternoons will focus on clothed subjects, allowing students to expand their notions of figure vs. portrait drawing to a method of depiction that combines the gesture and posture of the whole body with the individual character of the face. Participants will work with a range of graphite and crayon dry materials, as well as ink, using both a brush and a bamboo pen – an exciting and freeing approach to translating the human form. Knowledgeable instruction will guide students through observation-based drawing techniques while exploring figure and facial topics of gesture, proportions, anatomy, and expression. This exceptional experience is open to everyone, for all skill levels. Note: Tuition includes a $65 models fee.

Optional: This course is available for 1.0 undergraduate credit for $660, including models fee. Select credit option with price adjustment when registering.

Register by: May 9 
Materials List 
Summer 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Wednesdays, 1 - 4 p.m. (Zoom with posted Canvas Content)
Instructor: Tony Rosati
Six-Week Short Course (18 Hours)
Credit: Non-Credit Only

Join Tony Rosati, PAFA Certificate faculty and accomplished watercolorist, in this live Zoom class designed for those with little or no experience in watercolor. Acquire a thorough grounding in basic watercolor materials and techniques, including papers, brushes and pigments, as well as transparent and opaque painting methods. Gain the confidence to progress in your skills and enjoyment in the medium, in future studies or personal expression.

Image: Tony Rosati, Ship Bottom, 2012, watercolor, 4 x 9.5 in.

Register by: May 14
Materials List
Summer 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies 
Information for PAFA CE Online Courses

Sundays, 9 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Instructor: Keith Leitner
Five-Week Short Course (15 Hours)
Credit: Non-Credit Only
Includes Rain Date: July 13

Capture the colors of summer enplein air through vibrant watercolor! Become comfortable and confident with the practice of working outdoors at picturesque Lemon Hill, Laurel Hill, and other select locations around the Philadelphia Museum of Art and Fairmount Park. Instruction will cover means of accurately and expressively depicting outdoor sites, watercolor painting techniques, color mixing, and the history and capabilities of water media. All levels welcome. Note: Students are responsible for their own transportation to painting locations.   

Learning Objectives:   

• Learn to observe and depict landscape and cityscape enplein air with attendant materials and set up

• Learn color mixing and watercolor application techniques 

• Study of pigment history and development 

• Learn about watercolor history via short discussions of painters and their motifs

See work from instructor Keith Leitner's solo exhibition at Cerulean Arts Gallery, Philadelphia, April 9 - May 4, 2025!

Register by: May 23
Materials List
Summer 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies 

Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Instructor: James Toogood
Weekend Workshop
Credit: Non-Credit Only

Interested in learning or improving your watercolor painting skills? All materials and techniques will be discussed, including the selection of papers, brushes, and pigments, as well as transparent and opaque painting methods. Students will work from still-life subjects and/or their own source material. All levels welcome.

Register by: May 30 
Materials List 
Summer CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Monday - Friday, 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Instructor: Linda Gist
One-Week Intensive Course (30 Hours)
Credit: Non-Credit or 1.0 Undergraduate Credit (See Below)

Explore flowers and other natural forms, beginning with line and value drawing and progressing to full-color rendering in watercolor and mixed media.  Topics will include sighting techniques, line quality, tone and value, creation of depth, composition, texture, and basic color. All levels welcome. Tuition includes a $15 materials fee for floral subjects, provided. 

Optional: This course is available for 1.0 undergraduate credit for $610, including models fee. Select credit option with price adjustment when registering.

Register by: June 16
Materials List
Summer 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Tuesdays, 2 - 4:30 p.m. (Zoom with Posted Canvas Content)
Instructor: Roberto Osti
Six-Week Short Course (18-Hour Equivalent)
Credit: Non-Credit Only

The natural world is an infinite and fantastic source of inspiration for the artist, and the versatility and luminosity of watercolor make it the perfect technique for recording nature in a fresh and fun way.  In this course, learn fundamental drawing techniques and essential watercolor techniques to create both quick field sketches and detailed, finished artworks. Subject matter will include flowers, plants, and animals. Reference images will be gathered through observational sketches and photography.  An ideal course for those interested in both the fine arts and the Illustration field.

Register by: July 1
Materials List 
Summer 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies
Information for PAFA CE Online Courses

Tuesdays, 6 – 9 p.m. 
Instructor: Keith Leitner 
Six-Week Short Course (18 Hours) 
Credit: Non-Credit Only

Explore both the versatility of watercolor and the exciting possibilities of color through still life painting. Learn to capture form with the freshness and fluidity of all prima techniques. Promote color in your work through instruction on color properties, mixing, and basic theory, as well as how to use hues in combination to create impactful compositions. Discussions and in-depth demonstrations will enforce all content so that students gain the facility and freedom to use color and painting techniques as means of personal expression. This course is excellent for beginners or anyone who loves color and loose, painterly techniques in watercolor.

See work from instructor Keith Leitner's solo exhibition at Cerulean Arts Gallery, Philadelphia, April 9 - May 4, 2025!

Register by: July 1
Materials List
Summer 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies