Dale Popovich
Building a New Depth: Mastering the Fusion of Gouache or Pastel with Watercolors

Sep 28 - Oct 3

4 Teaching Days

Description

Are you ready to elevate your watercolor skills and capture the true spirit of the Great Northwoods? Join Dale L. Popovich for a transformative 4-day workshop that will deepen your understanding of transparent watercolors. Through a methodical, step-by-step changing landscapes on watercolor paper. Whether you’re painting the vibrant colors of fall or the quiet stillness of winter, you’ll gain the confidence and technique needed to create stunning works of art. This is your opportunity to push your watercolor skills to new heights and become the artist you’ve always aspired to be. Sign up now and let your creativity flourish!

Furthermore, Dale will demonstrate how to seamlessly integrate pastel or gouache into your watercolors, elevating them to new heights of expression and depth. This approach brings a fresh, compelling voice to your work, adding richness and vitality to every in brushstroke.

Before the Workshop
Dale will send you a specially crafted PDF workbook to set you up for success. He recommends printing it out and placing it in a ring binder, with some of his students even using protective sleeves to keep everything in pristine condition. If you prefer digital, you can easily upload it to your tablet for quick access during the workshop.

This workbook includes:

Reference Photos for each demonstration, giving you a clear visual guide to follow.

Pencil Sketches to recreate before the workshop, so you’re ready to dive right in.

Value Photos to help you understand light and dark in your compositions.

Color Lists for each painting, ensuring you have the right palette at your fingertips.

Supply List so you’re fully prepared with everything you need.

Subject Descriptions that break down what you’ll be painting and why it matters.

Techniques for Each Demo to give you step-by-step guidance.

What You’ll Walk Away With—a clear understanding of what you’ll achieve by the end of the workshop.SEPT 29-Oct 4, 2025 Dillman’s fall 2025 of 2 3

A Note-Taking Page in each section to capture key ideas and insights.

Recommended Reading to further your learning.

Additionally, Dale will personally call you before the workshop to address any questions you may have, ensuring you’re fully prepared and ready to make the most of the experience.

The Workshop

Teaching through a paint-along method allows the student to follow each step as it unfolds, observing the brushwork and techniques in real time. It offers a rare opportunity to pause, reflect, and recreate what has just been demonstrated—a powerful way to internalize the process. Dale encourages his students to ask questions freely as he paints, understanding that curiosity is the foundation of growth. He believes that every inquiry, no matter how small, deepens the connection between artist and craft.

And don’t forget to bring your camera. Capturing key moments along the way provides a valuable reference as you build your understanding. For Dale, the act of teaching is as much about sharing his insights as it is about fostering a spirit of exploration. In his view, knowledge shared generously leads to mastery—and that is the essence of excellent learning.

Dale Will Show You:

The Symphony of Seasons
Each season has its own voice, expressed through unique colors and temperatures.

Spring: The tender greens of awakening earth and cool breezes.
Summer: The heat-soaked vibrancy of midday light and shadow.
Autumn: The richness of ochres, russets, and fading greens.
Winter: The cool austerity of snow, softened by diffused light.

Understanding these nuances will guide us in painting the year’s cycle with truth and feeling.

The Atmospheric Perspective of Winter:
Offers lessons in subtlety.

Learn how light behaves differently in the cold season.
Observe the softened edges of snow-laden trees and hills.
Explore the interplay of warm and cool tones in a muted winter palette.

Planes and Their Values:
Nature reveals itself in planes, and mastery of their values brings depth and realism to your work.

Sky: The lightest and most luminous of the planes.
Slanted Planes (Mountains): Transitioning from illuminated to shadowed, they give structure to the landscape.
Vertical Planes (Trees): Strong and upright, they balance the composition.SEPT 29-Oct 4, 2025 Dillman’s fall 2025 of 3 3
Horizontal Planes (Ground): Anchoring the scene with the weight of shadow and light.

Building Depth with Gouache and Pastel:
Discover how gouache or pastel, when applied with balance, enriches watercolor.
Techniques to enhance the interplay of light, texture, and detail will be demonstrated.
Samples will reveal how these mediums can integrate seamlessly into your work, creating depth without overpowering the transparency of watercolor.
With an eye on nature’s truths and a brush ready to translate its beauty, let us explore these principles, seeking to refine not just our technique but our understanding of the landscape’s poetry. Please join me this fall at Dillman’s.

Biography

Dale L. Popovich IWS, an award-winning watercolorist and teacher, is renowned for his ability to capture the essence of the American landscape with the fluid stroke of a brush. More than 49 years ago, Dale lost 80% of his vision. He learned to rely on his mind’s eye to sustain himself. He underwent a nine-hour major brain surgery to remove a cyst on his optic nerve. Afterwards, he had to relearn how to walk, climb stairs, and write again. Despite the challenges, Dale persevered, and with his vision finally restored, he discovered that he could see more clearly than before efficiently filtering out the visual “noise” around him to focus on a subject’s essentials. Dale’s paintings began to reflect a certain purity of perception, and this “way of seeing” became the hallmark of his work. Spending his childhood summers in the Northwoods of Wisconsin, Dale learned to love its colors, textures, denizens, and moods – and developed his holistic approach to watercolor. Today, his paintings celebrate these American landscapes and man’s humble efforts to tame them. Dale received his training at The American Academy of Art in Chicago, where he was deeply inspired by past Director and President Irving Shapiro AWS, a great American twentieth-century watercolorist. Dale later taught at the same academy for 22 years, passing on his knowledge and passion to aspiring artists. Dale is currently an esteemed faculty member at the Palette & Chisel Academy of Fine Arts in Chicago, an institution of great renown established in 1895. As the second oldest artist organization in the United States, the P & C has a longstanding tradition of excellence. Dale’s instructional services include weekly virtual studio classes via Zoom platform, as well as workshops and demonstrations across America. He and his wife, Marilee, have also launched an online art school called ToweringWindsAcademyOfFin- eArts.teachable.com, which aims to share Dale’s knowledge and passion with a broader audience. One of his passions is to Teach People to Truly SeeTM. Dale’s professional teaching career began in 1978, and he has since trained over 4500 students, many of whom have gone on to become accomplished artists. Dale is a member of several organizations, including: • The Illinois Watercolor Society (signature member) • The Palette & Chisel Academy of Fine Arts in Chicago, IL • Indiana Heritage Arts in Nashville, IN • Watercolor Society of Indiana in Indianapolis, IN • Plein Air Painters Chicago, IL. Dale, together with his wife Marilee and their Pembroke Welsh Corgi named Miss Poppy, reside in a charming log cabin situated in the Great Northwoods of Wisconsin. Dale is an accomplished artist and educator whose works have been widely featured in several collections across the nation. His exceptional artistic skills, coupled with his extensive teaching experience, have earned him a reputation as an expert in the field.

Fees

If 12 or more students attend class (all teaching days): $540
If 11-10 students attend class (all teaching days): $545
If 9-8 students attend class (all teaching days): $550
If 7-6 students attend class (all teaching days): $580
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Room & One Dinner Fee plus tax: $485
(There are 4 nights’ accommodations included in the “Room & One Dinner Fee” listed above.)

Itinerary

Sunday, Sept 28
Check-In to your unit at Dillman’s (check-in time is 3:00)
5:00 Welcome Reception (included in package)
6:00 Dinner at Dillman’s (included in Room and Meal Package. $28 additional for day students.)

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, & Thursday – Sept 29- Oct 2
Breakfast On Own
9:00 a.m. – Noon Class in Session
Lunch On Own

Meals are on your own. All accommodations have cooking facilities. You may preorder box lunches and dinners for meals to be taken alone or with your group in: your studio, the lodge deck, cafe, or your accommodation. (Pre-ordering for lunches and dinners is required.)

1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. Class in Session

Thursday, Oct 2
9:00 a.m. – Noon Class in Session
NOON Champagne Toast & Dessert (included in package)
Lunch On Own
1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. Class in Session

4:00 Class ends

Friday, Oct 3
Depart – check-out time is 10:00

Optional Events – Sign Up Required / Subject to Change:
Monday 5:00 p.m. Dine-Around Dinner (Depart from Lodge Lobby)
Monday 7:00 p.m. S’more Roast (no charge)

Tuesday 7:30 a.m. Yoga
Tuesday 5:00 p.m. Dine-Around Dinner (Depart from Lodge Lobby)

Wednesday Noon  Pontoon Ride on White Sand Lake (no charge)
Wednesday 5:00 p.m. Moondeer & Friends Gallery Tour (no charge)
Wednesday 6:00 p.m. Dine-Around Dinner

Thursday 5:00 p.m. Dine-Around Dinner (Depart from Lodge Lobby)

Dine-Around Dinners: Registration required at the front desk, meet at 5:00pm in the main lobby for carpooling.

Day students are welcome to attend the Welcome Reception and Farewell Reception (included in your package). You are also invited to join the class dinners (additional fee). PAL’s (Participants at large) can vacation at Dillman’s for $40 per night for accommodations. Costs for box lunches and dinners are additional.