8925 Maverick Park
Jerry Yarnell – Inspiration of Painting PBS Television Series

A gently flowing stream winds through a vibrant natural setting, surrounded by colorful grasses, rocky banks, and dense forested hills rising into soft distant mountains. In this beginner level acrylic painting lesson, Jerry guides you step-by-step through creating this peaceful outdoor scene in a 104 minute session on an 18x24 canvas, capturing the richness of nature with depth and balance.

You’ll learn how to build a strong composition using the flowing water to guide the viewer’s eye into the painting, while placing rocks, foliage, and trees with proper perspective. Jerry demonstrates how to block in large shapes first, then refine them with controlled brushwork to create believable structure and natural flow.

Special focus is given to painting water movement and reflections, using horizontal strokes and subtle value changes to suggest motion and depth. You’ll also explore how to paint grasses, shrubs, and forest textures with layered color and loose brushwork, creating a sense of fullness without over-detailing.

By the end of this lesson, you’ll gain confidence in painting natural landscapes, handling color variety, and creating depth through layering and perspective. This is an excellent project for beginners looking to develop foundational skills while producing a vibrant and immersive woodland stream scene.