The Art of Watercolour
Like Duolingo, but for The Art of Watercolour. Tomo turns the whole topic into a game you play five minutes a day, until it actually sticks.
For the part of you with thirty open tabs that never became anything.
Free forever · No credit card · iPhone & Android
Key ideas in The Art of Watercolour
- The fundamental difference between watercolor and other paints
- Using gravity to control the movement of a wash
- The 'bead' is a reservoir of wet paint that keeps the edge from drying
- Connecting a new stroke to a dry edge causes visible lines or streaks
- The bead must be carried down the paper continuously
- Dry paper fibers act like a sponge and pull moisture in instantly
- Identifying the 'bead' as the mechanism for seamless washes
- Adding wet paint to a drying wash creates 'blooms' or 'backruns'
- Watercolor is most vulnerable to damage when it is in the 'damp' phase
- Understanding how paper dampness affects paint absorption
- Mistakes must be left alone until the paper is 100% dry to the touch
- Knowing when to stop touching a drying wash
- Wet-on-wet allows paint to bleed and spread automatically
- Adding wet paint to a wet surface eliminates hard edges
- Wet-on-wet is the primary way to create 'dreamy' or blurry effects
- Dry paper acts as a boundary that stops the flow of water
You've tried the other tabs
Thirty open tabs. Four facts you actually kept.
You watched. You nodded. By Sunday it was gone.
One answer, then back to scrolling.
Eight weeks. You meant to finish. You didn't.
Tomo gives The Art of Watercolour the Duolingo treatment: levels, streaks, and quick quizzes that test what you just learned. That game loop is what the tabs above never had, so it's the one you actually finish.
Here's what playing it feels like
A real question from this course. Take your best guess.
When you mix your paint on the palette, what should the texture look like?
Get it right to open this lesson and 20 more in the app.
Where The Art of Watercolour takes you
Learn to harness the fluid beauty of water and pigment. This course takes you from your first wash to creating luminous, professional-looking paintings by mastering transparency and light.
- 1
Making Your First Marks
- Your First Wash
- Taming the Water
- 2
Building Depth and Texture
- Layering and Glazing
- Edges and Organic Textures
- 3
Thinking Like a Watercolourist
- Mixing Without Mud
- Planning for White Space
- 4
The Science of Supplies
- Choosing Paper and Brushes
4 sections · 7 units · 21 levels. Built to play, not to enroll.
You pick the voice
The Art of Watercolour is taught in the Explain Like I'm 5 style: no big words. promise.. Want a different feel? In the app you can spin up the same topic in any of Tomo's teaching styles. Same facts, totally different vibe.
More Arts on Tomo
The Odyssey and Why It Still Matters
Discover why a 3,000-year-old poem about a lost sailor still defines our movies, our language, and how we understand the journey of life.
Crafting the Epic Fantasy Series
Master the architecture of high and low fantasy, from the gritty political webs of Westeros to the whimsical environmental storytelling of Albion. Learn to weave multi-book arcs, subvert ancient tropes, and build worlds that feel lived-in and legendary.
Writing Fantasy Series
Transform your imagination into an epic saga. Learn to build immersive worlds, design intricate magic systems, and craft characters that readers will follow through multiple volumes.
The Odyssey: The Art of the Return
Move beyond the monsters to understand the epic's complex structure, the high stakes of ancient hospitality, and the mental agility of literature's most famous survivor.
Fashion and Personal Style
Go beyond just getting dressed. Learn to see the architecture of clothing, master the science of fit, and build a wardrobe that expresses who you are with confidence.
Building Your First Cabinet
Learn the essential joinery and assembly skills needed to turn raw lumber into functional, sturdy furniture.
Start The Art of Watercolour today.
Download Tomo, search The Art of Watercolour, and play your first lesson in under a minute.