Contemporary Watercolour, from Figurative to Abstract
The course offers a comprehensive journey exploring watercolour as a contemporary visual language, capable of moving between technical control and free expression. Through a theoretical and practical approach, participants will delve into the history of the medium, fundamental techniques, and experimental possibilities, alternating between classroom lessons, educational outings, and workshops. From figurative drawing to the deconstruction of form and the creation of abstract compositions, the course guides students through a process of image analysis and transformation. Topics explored will include:
-Basic techniques and experimentation: transparencies, glazing, and water control;
-Form and abstraction: from life drawing to visual deconstruction;
-Colour and perception: using colour as an expressive and emotional vehicle;
-Material and texture: exploring surface and the physicality of the mark;
-Visual synaesthesia: translating sound into image and chromatic rhythm.
Course type: group – in person
Participants: Max 15
Schedule: weekly, on Saturdays from 9 AM to 1 PM
Duration: 10 lessons – total 40 hours
Cost: €590.00 in a single payment or two instalments of €300.00
Materials: to be purchased by the student
Requirements/supports: none
Language: Italian
Instructor: Giulia Di Pasquale
Location: RUFA – Via Degli Ausoni, 7 – Rome, Room B13
Registration opens: 1 August 2025
Registration closes: 3 October 2025
LESSON 1 – SAT 4 OCTOBER, 9-13
-Introduction to the course.
-INTRODUCTION TO WATERCOLOUR: History of the medium and its supports, characteristics and behaviour, with references to art history; practical demonstration.
-Preparing a canvas for watercolour → Exploratory exercises: transparencies, glazing, and saturation on canvas; control and loss of control in water usage.
LESSON 2 – SAT 11 OCTOBER, 9-13
OUTDOOR LESSON → DRAWING AT THE MUSEUM; STUDY OF FORM
LESSON 3 – SAT 18 OCTOBER, 9-13 | FORM
-Theory: from Cézanne to 20th-century abstraction → Deconstructing reality: form, colour, and composition as autonomous elements.
-Select one of the works drawn (and studied) at the museum and transform it into an abstract composition.
LESSON 4 – SAT 25 OCTOBER, 9-13 | COLOUR
Colour as an autonomous language: colour theory and the psychology of perception → Study of artists who use colour as an emotional vehicle (e.g. Mark Rothko, Helen Frankenthaler)
-Exercise: create a chromatic composition without using figures.
LESSON 5 – SAT 8 NOVEMBER, 9-13
Paul Klee – Sign, colour and poetic construction: Key theme: Art as serious play and deep structure; In-depth study of Klee’s thought: sign, colour and poetic narrative; Study of his works on paper and mixed techniques.
-Exercise: create an “inner map” inspired by Klee.
LESSON 6 – SAT 15 NOVEMBER, 9-13 | SOUND GENERATES IMAGES
-Translating sound into image: rhythm, vibration and form (References: Kandinsky, Len Lye)
-Exercise: create a work exploring the dialogue between sound and colour.
LESSON 7 – SAT 22 NOVEMBER, 9-13
LIVE MODEL DRAWING – Study of the human figure as a field of forces and volumes.
LESSON 8 – SAT 29 NOVEMBER, 9-13
-Figure and texture – In-depth exploration of the body and surfaces → materiality in watercolour textures
-Exercise: interpretation of the human body working on transparencies, density and material surfaces.
LESSON 9 – SAT 6 DECEMBER, 9-13
From historical to contemporary art – Transforming a masterpiece
-Reinterpretation of a work of art history
LESSON 10 – SAT 13 DECEMBER, 9-13
-Complete final project
With references to masters such as Cézanne, Klee, Rothko and Kandinsky, the course also encourages a critical reading of the artwork and a conscious practice of the pictorial language.
MATERIALS:
Materials for drawing: Sketchbook, graphite pencil grades: 2B or 4B; white eraser; kneaded eraser; pencil sharpener; charcoal and sanguine; fine black marker (Pentel Brush Sign Pens are excellent, but any will do); a roll of yellow masking tape.
Materials for technical experimentation: 3 watercolour sheets (300 g/m², fine/medium grain) at least 30x40cm; 6 canvases 60x50cm on stretcher. Acrylic gesso; ox gall; WATERCOLORS (tube ones recommended, but pan sets are also fine). “Cotman” by Winsor & Newton are perfect; white gouache; soft round brushes in various sizes (16/14 – 8/6 – 4/2); Da Vinci or Tintoretto brushes have great quality/price ratio. One flat soft-bristle brush and one large flat brush for gesso; natural sponges; droppers/pipettes.
+cloths to clean brushes and two bowls/glasses for water.
OCTOBER
04/10/2025
11/10/2025
18/10/2025
25/10/2025
NOVEMBER
08/11/2025
15/11/2025
22/11/2025
29/11/2025
DECEMBER
13/12/2025
20/12/2025
Possible make-up dates*
10/01/2026
17/01/2026
*“Make-up dates” refer to additional sessions proposed by RUFA in case of cancellation due to circumstances related to the instructor, the Academy, or force majeure. Make-up sessions are not provided for student absences.
Giulia Di Pasquale is a visual artist born in 1999 in Rome, where she currently lives and works. She earned her BA and MA in Painting with top marks at RUFA, and subsequently qualified to teach graphic, painting, and scenographic subjects at the Academy of Fine Arts of L’Aquila. From 2020 to 2023, she was a collaborator and member of the collective project KHLAB Laboratorio Kaspar Hauser.
She currently works as an academic tutor for a student with Down syndrome at RUFA and teaches painting disciplines to students at the private high school Spazio Studi Flaminio in Rome.
Since April 2024, she has been assisting professors Guido D’Angelo and Fabrizio Dell’Arno at RUFA; in 2025, she is also collaborating on the Short Courses programming, proposing a course titled “From Drawing to Painting,” focused on mixed media techniques.
She has participated in several solo and group exhibitions throughout Italy, from Palazzo Costantino in Palermo to the MAS in Bologna, as well as in historic galleries in Rome such as KOU Gallery, Studio Buccia, Spazio Y, and La Nuova Pesa. She also won awards such as the “Morlotti – Imbersago” prize and “A Contemporary Look at the Farnese,” curated by the Institut Français.
RUFA Students and Alumni: 50% discount
Former Short Courses and RUFA Summer 2024–25 students: 10% discount
University students: 5% discount (upon presentation of student ID)
Course packages/groups/family: contact corsibrevi@unirufa.it for customised options
For all enrolled participants, regardless of specific requirements, discounts are available based on the registration date:
Very Early Bird: by 21 August 2025 → €501.50 (–15%)
Early Bird: from 22 August to 4 September 2025 → €531.00 (–10%)
All students with certification under Law 104/92 are entitled to a 20% discount on the registration fee, regardless of the time frame selected. To apply, please send the documentation to the secretariat at corsibrevi@unirufa.it.
Enrolment in a short course entitles students, for the duration of the course, to access a number of partner offers with local businesses.
The discounts apply both to the purchase of creative materials and to lunch breaks at establishments near the campus.
Each year, the Short Courses Office will provide a list of affiliated businesses.
For information about the course please fill in the form and we will contact you.