MANGOSTEENS – PATREON Painting Tutorial in Watercolour
Every single painting and challenge brings something unique to the table, and with it, plenty of new things to learn!
MANGOSTEENS – PATREON PAINTING TUTORIAL IN WATERCOLOUR
Welcome to this month’s PATREON painting lesson, where we explore another beautiful botanical illustration subject in watercolour together. This time we’re diving into the rich colours, textures, and tonal challenges of the Mangosteen fruits, a wonderfully vibrant and fun filled botanical study that has so much to teach us about managing watercolour in a realistic painting style.
This tutorial offers you a perfect chance to push your painting skills further while still being absolutely achievable. It’s a perfect subject for pushing your tonal balances further for maximum ‘pop’ in your work, exploring texture, and practicing the art of subtlety and boldness side by side. From the glossy, waxy outer skin to the bright pink interior and delicate fruit pulp, the mangosteen offers a complete tonal and technical workout in one beautiful package.
I’m so excited to be sharing this colourful, luxurious botanical subject with you, so let’s take a look at what’s in store!
COURSE HIGHLIGHTS
🎨 Tonal Mastery – Develop your ability to push the full tonal range, from the palest lights of the white fruit pulp to the rich, powerful darks of the outer rind.
🖌️ Layering & Glazing – Learn to build colour gradually with washes and glazes, balancing coverage and transparency to create depth and complexity.
🌿 Texture Exploration – Capture the waxy outer skin, the pink fibrous inner casing, the soft fruit pulp, and the woody tops, a complete texture playground in one subject.
✨ Detail & Refinement – Practice dry brushing, subtle lifting, and fine control to refine your study and bring all the elements together beautifully.
🌸 Creative Balance – Discover how to move between bold pigment-rich washes and the softest, lightest touches, giving you confidence across the spectrum of watercolour painting.
WHAT YOU’LL LEARN
🍈 Outer Skin & Colour Richness – How to build strong foundations, layer confidently, and refine with darks and textures for a dynamic, lifelike finish.
💗 Inner Pink Rind – A joyful “delicious nothing” to paint, allowing playfulness with drifting colours and organic textures.
⭐️ Fruit Pulp Segments – The perfect counterbalance: delicate, subtle washes that challenge your light touch and tonal restraint.
🍃 Tops & Stems – Practice technique, tonal development, and detail with washes, layering, and dry brushing to complete your painting.
🎨 Technique Balance – Wash, glaze, dry brush, and lifting methods all come together in one cohesive, step-by-step project.
WHY JOIN?
This Mangosteen Botanical Tutorial is an inspiring way to expand your skills in realistic watercolour painting. Whether you tend to be too light-handed or rush in a little too boldly to your work, this subject helps you find balance by working across the full tonal range, maximising your works potential.
It’s also a perfect project for those who love colour and texture, with the added bonus of being a stand-alone botanical study — or the foundation for Part 2, where we pair our mangosteens with the Grey Fantail bird for an advanced compositional challenge.
Wherever you’re at in your painting journey, this lesson will help you:
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Deepen your tonal understanding
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Refine your brush control
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Gain confidence in layering techniques
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Enjoy a fun, vibrant, and rewarding subject
COURSE FEATURES
✅ Step-by-Step Video Lessons – Full, in depth guidance from first wash to final details
✅ Technique Building – Practice tonal range, layering, and texture rendering
✅ Flexible Learning – Work at your own pace, in your own time and space
✅ Creative Inspiration – Connect with colour, form, and the joy of realistic botanical painting in watercolour
With our mangosteen study complete, you’ll not only have a beautiful painting in hand, but also a much deeper understanding of tonal work, texture, and balance in watercolour. It’s a fabulous stand-alone piece, but if youd like to take it further, you can step into part 2 of the tutorial next month to add the Grey Fantail to this beautiful composition… which has been a really popular offering with you all. I can’t wait to see your results which you can share on our Facebook Student Community Group, and as always, thank you for joining me on this creative journey. Happy painting everyone!
✨ Join me as we take on this month’s painting journey together into our Mangosteens – live on PATREON from the 8th! ✨
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Check out these links for more information
Get started on the MANGOSTEENS painting tutorial
See this painting in short time lapse (more on Patreon)
Watch the course introduction clip
Did you know, the SACRED KINGFISHER painting tutorial is just one of a range of bird painting, botanical illustration and natural history studies in my own realistic watercolour painting style on offer? Why not check out what else is available. Theres lots on offer and we’d love to see you there!
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