On Thursday, January 25th I had the opportunity to attend one of the Seminars and Workshops that are part of this years’ Epcot International Festival of the Arts. I booked the Still Life Watercolor Sketching workshop lead by Will Gay, a Design Director at Walt Disney World Resort. The Workshop was $39 per person before tax, although I was able to use my Annual Passholder Discount for this event and saved 15%.
I wasn’t sure what to expect from the Workshop and while I do enjoy art it’s not something that a participate in on a regular basis. I did love Art Class in junior high and I can be crafty, but definitely not an artist.
The Workshop was located in the Festival Center, set up in the normally empty Odyssey Center. I checked in for my class and was given a ticket for entry.
The Castmembers were busy setting up the area and making sure we had all of our supplies. Each participant had two sheets of watercolor paper, a pencil, a set of watercolors, a cup of water and a brush.
We were seated promptly at 11:00 and Will Gay introduced himself and explained what we’d be doing in the class. I was a bit intimidated and unsure of exactly what we’d be doing. He showed us many examples of his work, talked about technique and was helpful in explaining how to begin our sketches.
After the introduction and background we went right to sketching our designs. We were to use items set up on the stage as our focus, concentrating on one item and then filling in with background or just our imaginations. We sketched quickly for our first sketch, approximately 5 minutes, and then set to using the watercolors. Will talked about using only two colors, with darker shades of the two for emphasis or outline. I will say it was difficult to not use more but I did enjoy it and the two color theory did work. We sketched a second drawing, this time for approximately 15 minutes and then began the watercolor portion. I’ll say, the second one was easier.
I found this to be a fun learning experience. It was informative and nice to hear directly from a Disney artist. The cost was reasonable and we did get to keep our watercolors and take along our artwork. The class lasted an hour and fifteen minutes and didn’t interfere with the day of touring and eating. There are many other Seminars and Workshops available that vary in length. You can see a list here.
If you’d like to check out Will’s artwork you can do so on his Facebook page or see him in person at the Festival. Check a times guide for details.
Thanks for reading!
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Betsy Walker Travels 