How to Register for Art Club Classes
Go to SBRartclub.clubexpress.com.
Current members: Log into your account that you have established on Club Express. Click on the class under Upcoming Events. This will take you to the payment page and provide information for registering and paying by credit card for the class.
New members: Click NEW MEMBER SIGNUP on the home page and register as a new member. Log into your account to see Upcoming Events to register and pay by credit card for the class.
If you have any problems, please contact Nancy Worby at [email protected] or Donna Mains at [email protected].
Reminder: All participants are to be a member of the SBR Art Club and have an account on SBRartclub.clubexpress.com. To become a member of the SBR Art Club, follow the instructions for new members above. SBR Art Club membership is only $25 for 2025.
Illustration of oil painting created by a student of instructor Christine Lytwynczuk (photo provided by Christine Lytwynczuk)
New Class: Introduction to Oil Painting Over Three Sessions Starting February 12
Dale Farland
Have you ever wanted to try oil painting but were intimidated with the thought of purchasing all the materials and then deciding this medium was not for you? Well, this is the perfect class for you. The instructor, Christine Lytwynczuk, is returning to teach a 3-week class (three sessions), each 4 hours in length so there is plenty of time to learn techniques in a relaxed atmosphere.
Class Description: Join Christine for 3 weeks of fun–filled artistic development in this introduction to (non-toxic) oil painting. She will gently guide you with baby steps through essential foundational skills and techniques overlooked in most art classes. Learn the basics you need to begin painting with oils. In this class, she will cover preparing and setting up your palette, mixing different paint consistencies, effective brush handling, mixing colors, blending and layering techniques, and brush cleaning and care.
You will be able to go from novice to knowledgeable in this most fulfilling medium. Oil paint is the easiest, most versatile, and a forgiving painting medium when you learn how to properly handle it. This is a way to learn how to oil paint risk-free in a nurturing, supportive environment. See if oil painting is right for you!
Christine graduated cum laude from the Maryland Institute, College of Art with a BFA in Painting, and graduate classes in Art Teaching. She has over 25 years of teaching. She now teaches both privately and at an art center.
Dates for Class: Wednesdays, Feb. 12, 19, and 26
Time: 1 to 5 p.m.
Class Fee: $205. This includes instructions and all materials. No need to purchase materials.
You must be a member of the SBR Art Club and have an Art Club account on Club Express. You will be registering for the class and paying by credit card on this new platform.
Class Size: Minimum: 5, Maximum: 24
Registration Deadline Date: Wednesday, Feb. 5
Materials the Instructor Will Provide: Instructor will provide all materials.
Participants to Bring: An interest in learning how to paint in oil.
Example of landscape to be created with watercolor pencils (photo by instructor Rebekah Vermeulen)
Creative Landscapes with Wet and Dry Media
Dale Farland
Artist Rebekah Vermeulen is returning to SaddleBrooke Ranch to teach a different dimension of watercolor pencil art on Thursday, Feb. 13 from 1 to 3 p.m. Rebekah previously taught an earlier class utilizing watercolor pencils and it was well received by the students. It was a new art medium for many of us. This class is open to beginners as the landscape drawings will be through the individual interpretation vs. exact realism. So, prior experience is not necessary. Using watercolor pencils presents a different aspect of watercolor drawing. Many people think it is easier.
Rebekah Vermeulen is a mixed media artist who started drawing after being diagnosed with and battling an autoimmune disease at age 18. She is a graduate of Milan Art Institute where she learned to combine both traditional and contemporary painting techniques with her own expressive style. In addition to a solo art show at Oro Valley’s Artist & Makers Studios, her work has been featured in local businesses, gallery exhibitions, and fundraising events.
Class Description: In this class, you will be making landscape drawings that capture the beauty of nature using watercolor pencils alongside other drawing tools of choice. Students will follow along with a step-by-step demonstration by Rebekah as to how to use watercolor pencils to map out drawings on paper and from there gradually layer different colors and shades to build up the picture and add expressive marks for a fun and dynamic look. Therefore, the drawing is both wet and dry. This class is beginner friendly as it emphasizes creative interpretation rather than exact realism.
Date for Class: Thursday, Feb. 13
Time: 1 to 3 p.m.
Class Fee: $30
Class Size: Minimum: 4, Maximum: 15
Registration Deadline Date: Feb. 6
Materials the Instructor Will Provide: Instructions and watercolor brushes to be used with the watercolor pencils.
Materials Participants to Bring: Watercolor pencils, which can be purchased at Walmart, Amazon, or any craft store. Optional items are pens, markers, paint markers, water soluble crayons, or any other drawing tools of choice. If you have the brush from the first class she taught, bring that brush.
Photo by Liz Iverson
Watercolor—Tree Landscape Class
Erin Newman
A Watercolor—Tree Landscape workshop is coming on Thursday, Feb. 27. Liz Iverson is an experienced watercolor artist and instructor who spent 27 years teaching English and general education in the school system before retiring from K-12 education. Liz is now happily helping adults discover the joy and satisfaction of watercolor painting by making it fun and easy. Liz has her paintings displayed in several locations in Tucson and Oro Valley, including the Southern Arizona Watercolor Guild (SAWG).
Discover the wonder of watercolor painting, where we explore the fundamentals that make up a landscape painting. Paint several different types of trees, as part of a landscape that includes a beautiful sky, other foliage, and water, using top-quality professional grade supplies, which include a watercolor palette carefully curated by Liz. Discuss and compare different types of watercolor paper, brushes, and techniques such as wet-in-wet, textural elements, and simple tools that make watercolor paintings dynamic and so much fun to paint. You will learn watercolor brushstrokes that create beautiful botanical shapes and natural looking foliage. In the class, students learn how to paint a complete landscape featuring trees. The general principles of Landscape Composition will be introduced, and students create a finished 9 x 12” watercolor painting suitable for framing. This class will leave you wanting to continue with your watercolor journey.
Date for Class: Thursday, Feb. 27
Time: 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Class Fee: $50
All materials provided, which include paints, brushes, water vessels, texture-producing elements, and 100% cotton 140 lb. watercolor paper.
You must be a member of the SBR Art Club and have an Art Club account on Club Express. You will be registering for the class and paying by credit card on this new platform.
Example of acrylic painting techniques presented during the four sessions. (Photograph provided by instructor, Lisa Larrabee)
Beginner Acrylic Painting Classes in Four Sessions Starting March 5
Dale Farland
Whether you are an absolute beginner, or someone who paints with a lot of questions, you will develop a deeper understanding of painting by focusing on one specific challenge at a time. In this class we will break down the process of painting by starting in black and white. A grayscale underpainting is a forgiving way to block in simple shapes and values. You will learn painting techniques to refine and add details prior to adding color. Once we have a solid foundation to build on, you will learn how to layer colors using a very limited color palette. Although this class will be taught in acrylic, this is a classic process that can be applied to oil painting as well.
Lisa Larrabee is a Tucson native who began teaching adult art classes shortly after graduating from the Kansas City Art Institute in 2001. She has worked over the years with a variety of students ranging from the absolute beginner to students earning their bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Fine Art. As an instructor, Lisa finds incredible fulfillment helping each student take their art to the next level regardless of their painting experience.
Class Description: With each of the four sessions, Lisa will be teaching you the process to understand how to layer acrylic paints. Students will initially learn grayscale as a way to block in basic shapes and values. Then, the students progress in layering in colors with the ultimate step being a detailed picture.
Dates for Class: Four sessions on Wednesdays: March 5, 12, 19, 26
Time: 1 to 4 p.m.
Class Fee: $160. You must be a member of the SBR Art Club and have an account on Club Express.
Class Size: Minimum: 4, Maximum: 16
Registration Deadline Date: Feb. 26
Materials the Instructor Will Provide: Neutral Gray Gesso, photo references, and transfer paper
Materials Participants to Bring: 10” X 10” Gesso board or panel, acrylic paints, brushes, and palette. A detailed materials list and how to obtain materials will be provided upon registration.
Photo by Gale Sherman
Zentangle on Desert Gourds!
Erin Newman
The SBR Art Club is Bringing an advanced Zentangle Experience—Learn to Zentangle on Desert Gourds!
For those Zentangle artists who have experience, this is the class for you! This class builds upon having at least a few Zentangle classes under your belt, so no beginner Zentangle artists—sorry! The instructor, Gale Sherman, actually taught our regular instructor, Val Barsevich, and is an accomplished certified Zentangle instructor. Gale will be teaching how to Zentangle on gourds. Therefore, with this unique medium, it is necessary to have intermediate Zentangle experience.
Art has always been a part of Gale Sherman’s life. Three of her grandparents and her mom were artists. Nine years ago, she picked up a Zentangle book while waiting in a checkout line. She bought the book and tangled about 8 hours a day for the next several days. Gale, local to Tucson, has experience as an early childhood librarian and university instructor in Children’s Literature, which deepened her connection to illustration. She has earned a Nature Art Certificate at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum Art Institute and is a Certified Zentangle Teacher (CZT). Gale has taught Zentangle, bookmaking, and other mediums at the Art Institute, but now primarily teaches online Zentangle classes from her art studio. Her website is: LostStarrArt.com.
Class Description: This class is oriented towards students with intermediate Zentangle experience on paper. They will explore drawing Zentangle patterns on locally grown gourds using black and colored pens. Students will learn about selecting and preparing gourds as well as how to work on a curved surface. Experienced Zentanglers need to bring samples of the tangles they want to use on their gourds as no new tangles will be taught in this class.
This is an all day class starting at 9 a.m., adjourning for lunch at the Ranch House Grill (cost of lunch not included in class fee) and returning to complete the class until 4 p.m.
Date: Thursday, March 13
Time: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. This time period includes lunch at the Ranch House Grill
Class Size: Minimum: 5, Maximum: 14
Registration Deadline Date: Thursday, March 6
Class Fee: $60 Fee includes gourds; however, not lunch. You must be a member of the SBR Art Club and have an Art Club account on Club Express. You will be registering for the class and paying by credit card on this platform.
Materials the Instructor Will Provide: The fee includes the gourds students will be working on during class. Gale will have additional gourds available for purchase.
Materials Participants to Bring: Please bring your basic Zentangle drawing materials, and reference sources of your favorite Zentangles. Also, bring Sketch book or paper to record notes and to practice tangles.