We are delighted to showcase the beautiful watercolours of Clare Roberts, a student currently studying on the Watercolour Diploma Course, tutored by Steven Hersey. Clare has been working on landscapes, drawing inspiration from her visits to both the Mawddach Estuary and the coastal town of Aberystwyth in Wales.
The contrast between these two locations gave Clare plenty of scope to experiment. The Mawddach offered vast, open scenery with striking natural light, while Aberystwyth provided the bustling, detailed view of a seaside student town. Clare explained that she used her phone camera as a viewfinder, applying the grid setting to help with composition. This thoughtful approach helped her to decide on her subject matter and balance the different elements within her work.
In her Mawddach painting, Clare focused on tone and contrast. She explored counterchange in the grass and shadows, as well as in the clouds, and deliberately simplified the mountain forms to avoid overworking them. A single cow in the foreground provides a subtle focal point, giving the painting a sense of life and scale. Clare admitted that resisting the urge to add too much detail to the grass was a challenge, but she took it as a valuable lesson in restraint. The result is a painting that feels spacious, dramatic, and full of atmosphere.
Her Aberystwyth painting, viewed from Constitution Hill, provided a very different challenge. Clare found herself getting caught up in the many details of the town and coastline. On reflection, she felt it inspired her to keep things simpler in future paintings, focusing more on atmosphere and composition rather than detail alone. Interestingly, the painting demonstrates effective use of compositional “arrows” to guide the viewer’s eye across the scene – a strength Clare noticed when revisiting her work later.
Clare commented that she thoroughly enjoyed the assignment, even though it was frustrating at times. She appreciated the challenge and recognised that the process of trial, error, and reflection is part of artistic growth. Her notes reveal a keen awareness of her working habits and a thoughtful, self-critical approach that will serve her well as she continues her artistic journey.
The Watercolour Diploma Course is designed to help students like Clare explore the possibilities of this versatile medium, from building confidence in washes and colour mixing to tackling more complex compositions. With one-to-one guidance from tutor Steven Hersey, students learn to balance detail with looseness, developing their own style while building strong foundations in watercolour technique.
We are excited to see how Clare develops her painting further, and we wish her every success with the remainder of the course.
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