Location: WildCraft Studio School (1439 NW Marshall St, Portland, OR). Date and time: Thursday, April 8, 2027. 6-9pm. Cost: $135. Click here to register.

Description: Developing confidence with color: that’s the purpose of this class! Artist Jenna Lechner will draw on the history of color theory, from Bauhaus artists like Johannes Itten and Josef Albers to 19th-century French chemists, demonstrating that knowledge as she guides students through a series of low-stakes studies and diagrams. Along the way, students will learn watercolor basics — brushes, palettes, and what colors to stock a starter palette with — plus the vocabulary that makes color decisions easier to talk through and repeat: color versus hue, pigment versus dye, and the relationships between primary, secondary, analogous, tertiary, and complementary colors. This workshop will also cover different types of watercolor paper and how to make mixing decisions based on the specific pigments in your palette. By the end of class, students will have a stack of color studies to take home, along with a more finished piece — a simplified landscape painting built from what they've learned. Everyone receives a detailed handout with terms, explanations, and resources for continued study. All skill levels welcome. You don't have to be a watercolor painter to benefit: embroiderers, knitters, photographers, and weavers will find plenty to use here too.