In this tutorial, learn how to paint a sunflower with watercolor! I show you two different perspectives—front-facing and a side view.

Now the varying perspectives and details on this one may look super advanced. But it's beginner-friendly, too! Why? Because I show you how to break it down into simple shapes. And the details mostly come from a wet-on-dry technique.

Ready to dive in?

Music license acquired from Artlist

Contents

00:00 – Intro
00:39 – What we’re doing and supplies to use.
01:56 – How to sketch two perspectives.
07:18 – The eraser that feels like childhood.
08:01 – Side facing sunflower sketch.
11:18 – Sketches done, ready to paint!
15:57 – Jenna’s sunflower field experience.
17:45 – Behind petals, shadow work.
18:31 – How Jenna REALLY feels about sunflowers…
18:50 – Completed unrelated talk while painting…
20:30 – Darkening tops of the petals.
21:02 – John’s encouragement.
21:52 – Now for “stemmy-stem”
22:53 – Reference photos vs. painting from basic shapes.
24:32 – Details on petals.
27:01 – What makes a strong couple? Here’s our secret.
27:47 – Jenna, where does the color yellow rank?
29:54 – Adding light shadow to the “topper flowers” haha
30:45 – Here’s a gold nugget painting tip.
32:12 – You’re kind of like lady Van Gogh rn.
32:38 – Side-facing Sunflower time!
33:46 – Let’s talk accents (question for our global viewers!)
35:50 – Anyways, back to flower talk.
36:45 – Talking blending and overlapping colors.
38:11 – Are you having fun?
38:28 – John takes over teaching.
39:03 – This conversation should’ve been on another video??
39:54 – Talking dark petals.
40:47 – Shadows, then water to blend…
42:54 – Jenna, did your morning exercise give you inspiration today?
44:29 – Now on to the green parts.
44:53 – That takes me to the barn; to the country.
47:16 – Dry brush work and subtle (yet important!) lines.
48:39 – Stamen time! Or… bulb time. Someone correct me.
50:08 – Closing thoughts on the sunflowers.
27:58 – “Nothing too crazy.” *proceeds to go crazy*
28:56 – Closing thoughts.

Links & Freebies

Free Color Wheel Guide
Get access to my list of favorite art supplies and business tools here.
My Spotify painting playlist
My Floral Watercolor E-book 

Related videos

The Complete Beginner's Guide to Watercolor
Understanding Color Theory
How to Paint Watercolor Wildflowers
How to Set Up a Watercolor Palette
10 Tips to Improve Your Watercolor

… and for even more tutorials, subscribe to my YouTube channel!

Patreon Community

Join my Patreon community! You have a variety of fun options to choose from like:

• Watch my YouTube tutorials ad-free
• Get early access to the tutorials before they're released on YouTube
• Patreon-exclusive tutorials

Head on over to Patreon to get all the fun details.