Naturalist Illustrations with Watercolors: Drawing and Composition
A course by Cristina Cilloniz , Botanical Illustrator
Joined November 2017

Learn illustration techniques to give life to animals, insects, and botanical elements
Watercolor painting is a versatile method that requires strict attention to detail while also providing peace of mind to those who practice it. This is reflected in the work of Cristina Cilloniz, a naturalist illustrator specializing in watercolor who uses the nature around her as a form of personal growth.
In this course, learn how to draw and compose a naturalistic watercolor illustration by combining an animal or insect with botanical elements. And if you’re interested in adding depth to your paintings, Cristina teaches the proper techniques in her first Domestika course: Negative Watercolor Painting for Botanical Illustration.
What will you learn in this online course?
20 lessons & 18 downloads
- 99% positive reviews (734)
- 11,952 students
- 20 lessons (3h 41m)
- 18 additional resources (10 files)
- Online and at your own pace
- Available on the app
- Audio: Spanish, English
- Spanish · English · Portuguese · German · French · Italian · Polish · Dutch
- Level: Beginner
- Unlimited access forever
What is this course's project?
Create a naturalistic illustration with watercolor, combining an insect or animal with botanical elements. Learn to digitize your work and use your illustration to design a notebook.

Projects by course students
Who is this online course for?
To anyone passionate about nature who is looking to disconnect from their day to day, learn new creative techniques, or deepen their knowledge of watercolor painting.
Requirements and materials
To take this course, some basic knowledge of watercolor and Adobe Photoshop is recommended.
As for the materials, you will need pencils, sketch paper, tracing paper, watercolor paper, brushes, some color palettes, and watercolors. Also, to digitize your work, you will need a scanner and a computer with Photoshop installed.

Reviews

Cristina Cilloniz
A course by Cristina Cilloniz
For Cristina Cilloniz, watercolor was a source of creativity and growth at a crucial moment in her life. An architect by profession and passionate about nature, she decided to change the trajectory of her life in 2016, when she began to dedicate herself exclusively to botanical watercolor illustration and turned it into a tool to explore, heal and share.
He has collaborated with renowned brands such as L'Occitane, Patagonia and Faber-Castell in different formats: stationery products, wallpapers, fabrics and wood.
Content
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U1
Introduction
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Presentation
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Influences
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What will we Do in This Course?
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U2
Materials and different techniques in watercolor
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Materials
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Colour
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Layers and transparencies 1
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Layers and transparencies 2
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Textures and details 1
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Textures and details 2
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Lights
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U3
Create and paint
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Inspirational mood board
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Drawing exercises 1
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Drawing exercises 2
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Composition and sketch
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First layers of color
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Shadows and volume
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Details and lights
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U4
Watercolors turned into a notebook
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Image digitization
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Notebook design
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Mock-up
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FP
Final project
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Naturalistic drawing and composition in watercolor
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What to expect from a Domestika course
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Learn at your own pace
Enjoy learning from home without a set schedule and with an easy-to-follow method. You set your own pace.
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Learn from the best professionals
Learn valuable methods and techniques explained by top experts in the creative sector.
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Meet expert teachers
Each expert teaches what they do best, with clear guidelines, true passion, and professional insight in every lesson.
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Certificates
PlusIf you're a Plus member, get a custom certificate signed by your teacher for every course. Share it on your portfolio, social media, or wherever you like.
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Get front-row seats
Videos of the highest quality, so you don't miss a single detail. With unlimited access, you can watch them as many times as you need to perfect your technique.
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Share knowledge and ideas
Ask questions, request feedback, or offer solutions. Share your learning experience with other students in the community who are as passionate about creativity as you are.
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Connect with a global creative community
The community is home to millions of people from around the world who are curious and passionate about exploring and expressing their creativity.
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Watch professionally produced courses
Domestika curates its teacher roster and produces every course in-house to ensure a high-quality online learning experience.
FAQs
Domestika's courses are online classes that provide you with the tools and skills you need to complete a specific project. Every step of the project combines video lessons with complementary instructional material, so you can learn by doing. Domestika's courses also allow you to share your own projects with the teacher and with other students, creating a dynamic course community.
All courses are 100% online, so once they're published, courses start and finish whenever you want. You set the pace of the class. You can go back to review what interests you most and skip what you already know, ask questions, answer questions, share your projects, and more.
The courses are divided into different units. Each one includes lessons, informational text, tasks, and practice exercises to help you carry out your project step by step, with additional complementary resources and downloads. You'll also have access to an exclusive forum where you can interact with the teacher and with other students, as well as share your work and your course project, creating a community around the course.
You can redeem the course you received by accessing the redeeming page and entering your gift code.
arakhmet
I definitely recommend this course. The teacher explains everything clearly and her voice and pace are pleasantly calming. I love her approach to watercolors which gives control back to you, though at the cost of time and patience )) The English voice-over is a bit unexpectedly scary due to some sound problems, but whatever! - I bought this course to learn the content.
roche-mariejo
Cours extremement precis tout est parfaitement expliqué merci
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audrybj
Excelente, todo bien cuidado y explicado
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artypharty
ein meditativer kurs und schöne art zu malen.
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zorobabelflores
Muy bueno☺️
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