18 Watercolor Challenges That Develop Your Artist Eye and Color Confidence

After 18 years with my wife, I've learned that healthy relationships require consistent attention, honest communication about what's not working, and the patience to work through challenges together. Developing your watercolor skills follows the same principles.

These 18 watercolor challenges build genuine artist eye development and color confidence through intentional exercises that focus on observation skills, value relationships, and color mixing mastery. Whether you're new to watercolor or looking to strengthen your foundations, these challenges address the core skills that separate confident painters from frustrated beginners.

👉 Want step-by-step lessons? Visit the Watercolor Hub for tutorials and free courses.

You'll work through color theory, visual perception training, value hierarchy, and advanced techniques like negative space painting - all designed to nurture your artistic growth without the tension that kills creativity.

How to Use This Course

This isn't meant to be binged in one sitting. The 5-hour video below contains your complete journey, but approach it like building any healthy relationship - with consistency and patience.

• Watch the foundation lessons first (Color Mixing, Observation, Values)
• Practice each challenge before moving forward
• Pause the video to work, then return when ready
• Use the written breakdown below as your roadmap and reference, each lesson is timestamped.
• Bookmark your progress for easy return

Ready to develop that artist eye? Here's your complete watercolor relationship-building course: Watch Video below.

Core Color Foundations (8:14)

Learn how saturation, intensity, and water dilution affect the value of a color. This is the foundation of every strong painting.

• Color mixing
• Split primary palette
• Value scales
• Basic wash techniques

Observation Skills (35:38)

These watercolor challenges will teach artists why it's important to slow down to see your subject before painting will make every brushstroke count. Learn why chasing exact colors can hurt your work — and why values should guide your decisions.

• Slowing down
• Visual sensitivity
• Artist eye development

Value Work With Still Life (2:23:27)

These challenges will introduce working from life as opposed to stagnant images with multiple objects. This presents a new set of challenges that require you to connect objects through value, thus simplifying how you approach paint them.

• Light/dark identification with grouped objects
• Grayscale challenges for simplifying grouped objects by connecting values
• Devoting value connections using color
• Refrigerator challenge for painting from life as opposed to images

Color Theory & Application (3:35:13)

My personal favorite set of color theory ideas for manipulating colors into certain preconceived palettes. This has helped me more than you could imagine and I'm sure it will do the same for you.

• Chromatic vs tonal palettes
• Color manipulation exercises

Advanced Integration (4:07:27)

You will build upon the previous sections by introducing different ways to approach and see your subject. And it ends with a fun challenge that will encourage you to mix and match various skills covered along the way.

• Object relationships
• Negative space
• Upside-down challenge
• Kitchen sink" mashup challenge

What You’ll Need

Here are the materials I use all the time and have for decades. I only buy from Blick Art but feel free to shop where you prefer.

Recommended Watercolor Materials

• Holbein Professional Watercolor Paints – 8 Essential Hues
  Yellow Ochre, Cadmium Lemon Yellow, Ultramarine Blue, Cerulean Blue, Alizarin Crimson, Cadmium Red Light, Neutral Tint, Burnt Sienna
• Fabriano Artistico Watercolor Paper – 140lb Cold Press
  Buy full sheets and cut into quarter sheets for best value
• Silver Jumbo Wash Brush
  Great coverage, excellent quality for the price
• Princeton Neptune Point Rounds (No. 12 & 6)
  Reliable and affordable detail & wash brushes
• Princeton Neptune Dagger (1/2")
  Versatile size for lines, edges, and detail work
• Masterson Aqua Pro Palette
  Durable, with deep wells for generous mixing space
• Gator Board
  Lightweight, long-lasting painting support board
• Holbein White Gouache
  Optional for highlights and fine details
• Miscellaneous: plastic water containers, paper towels, masking tape

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Continue Learning

👉 Next stop: check out my Free Watercolor Painting Course or browse the Watercolor Tutorials Hub to keep building your skills.
👉 Follow me on Pinterest for daily watercolor inspiration!

If you enjoy these kinds of raw insights and loose watercolor demos, you’ll feel right at home here. Subscribe to Crafted by Robert and follow along as I share painting inspiration, tips, and behind-the-scenes stories straight from my garage studio. 👉 Subscribe to Crafted by Robert