Susan's Artist Workshops
2008 Workshops Due to commitments, Susan's workshops are rare. Therefore places are booked very quickly. - New Zealand workshops can be booked directly through Susan: susan@susanart.com - Maine USA workshops can be booked through Gail: gribas@adelphia.net
Maine, USA - Acadia Workshop Centre: I look forward to being in Maine again and to sharing all I know about watercolor with you all.
June 2008 (2 workshops.)
Please contact Gail directly for these US workshops. The places for Susan's workshops are taken very quickly so if you are interested in securing one it is advisable to do so as soon as possible.
Click here for more details: Acadia Workshop Center Feel free to contact Susan (harrison-tustain@clear.net.nz) or Gail (gribas@adelphia.net) for more details
Classes: "In these classes I teach 'everything I know about watercolor' - all the things I wish I had known many years ago, but didn't have anyone to teach me. Trial and error eventually brought me to today - so now I enjoy sharing and watching the joy on artist's faces when they realize that they can do it too ". Due to the high demand for Susan's classes, they have to be run on a first-in-first served basis. Susan will send out notification of impending workshops by email. The places are taken up very quickly, so if you are interested in attending a workshop, it is advisable not to hesitate. For overseas students, feel free to contact Susan and she will be happy to hold a place for you for to enable flight arrangements to be made. Feel free to Email Susan with your queries or to be placed on Susan's workshop waiting list. USA: The Acadia Workshop Center is located on Mount Desert Island, Maine, USA, home of Acadia National Park. It is situated on the ocean at Seawall, a natural sea stone barrier.
Acadia Workshop Center
 Teaching/Workshop philosophy - "Watercolor: Naturalistic Realism" 
My philosophy in teaching is not a 'step by step' method. I teach 'why' we do things, and why things work - or don't work. We see many applications for different methods and become familiar with the extraordinary potential of watercolor. I want my students to leave my workshops with a good understanding of the reasons behind my methods and techniques. To really understand not only WHAT happens when you use particular methods - but WHY it happens - and this opens a whole new world of creativity, versatility, possibility and confidence. Best of all - the lessons are remembered as the studies and demos teach you to identify these things for yourself. My classes suit artists of all levels, but a little experience in watercolor and drawing will be an advantage. We will divide our paper up into sections and work on several small studies which aid in understanding watercolor and it's properties - how to tame it and use it to express emotion, atmosphere and create a naturalistic realism. My goal is to have my students leave with the courage to "think out of the square" and to understand how to adapt the methods and techniques I will show them so they can create almost any subject. Most of all they will have a good appreciation and understanding of how to give their paintings a true three dimensional 'presence'. There is much I could teach - but here are just a few topics we may cover- do keep in mind that a class may not necessarily follow this exact description - I tailor-make classes to suit the stage of the artists attending. This is just to give you an indication of some of the things I may cover in my workshops:
We can take what we learn from all of the studies I demonstrate and translate them into numerous other subjects. That's what my classes are all about - making you think for yourself so you can take your art to a new threshold. As I mentioned - there are numerous things I can share with you all. The above is just a sample of things that come to mind. I put together a comprehensive workshop, incorporating all of the 'essential knowledge' and breakthroughs that I believe are the necessary ingredients to create a real 'presence' in your subjects.
Susan Harrison-Tustain is an internationally acclaimed New Zealand artist enjoying a highly successful career in watercolor and oil painting. Totally self-taught, Susan believes learning from trial and error has forced her to think 'out of the square'. She has become so familiar with her medium and understanding of how each pigment performs, that she is able to create paintings that reach out of the paper to captivate the viewer and create emotion within them.
Susan has had numerous sell-out exhibitions - with queues beginning to form up to 10 hours before the doors open. Susan's best selling, North American published book "Glorious Garden Flowers in Watercolor" has over 1.2 million dollars of sales. Demand for her to produce videos and DVD's forced her to consider this option and these too have proven to be overwhelmingly successful:
Susan's work has featured on numerous international magazine covers and within the pages of many books and magazines including the Splash Series from North Light Books. Susan and her work have also been seen on three television features. Susan is fortunate that she can sell whatever she chooses to paint so therefore she rarely accepts commissions. Susan's teaching philosophy is to share a good understanding of the full potential of the watercolor medium. By applying this knowledge, and coupling it with intelligent composition and good observation skills she introduces her students to a winning combination.
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Susan shares her methods and techniques that will allow you to create a magical 'Naturalistic Realism'. Her philosophy is not only to show you 'how' - but to teach you to understand 'why'. Susan nurtures her students - extends them so when they leave her workshops, they feel as if they have grown in skill, observation and inspiration - ready to take on almost any subject.
Susan Harrison-Tustain
