The Monthly Art Club: lessons in presence and observation (and watercolour, too!)

Tracy Christina
1 day ago
3 min read

Updated: 6 hours ago

With the pace of life always seeming to run at about eleventybillion miles per hour, there's something

radical and slightly rebellious about slowing down to really look at something other than your phone.

When we actually sit with a subject, and notice the way the light plays across the surface - the way shadows aren't grey but blue and purple or green, the energy of the robin sitting on the fence, his chest puffed out territorially, the way a flower is so real but also so delicate and transparent - we start to see a little beyond and start feeling just as much as observing. My monthly postcard art subscription is all about this. How to sit with something, rather than just try to match up the colours and copy it to perfection. It's about the joyful and gentle practice of observation.

So, what is the Monthly Postcard Art Club?

Every month, subscribers receive a brand new piece of art - either a postcard print, or a digital download - painted by me, Tracy Christina, from my little floating studio on the UK canals - along with the information you need to paint it yourself.

You'll receive the line art to trace or follow, a reference photo, and a video tutorial showing you how I created it. All levels welcome.

There are two ways to subscribe:

Physical & Digital - £6 per month via StampFans. You get the postcard art printed and posted straight to your letterbox, plus the full digital tutorial bundle. There's something genuinely lovely about receiving something beautiful in the post that isn't a bill!
Digital Only - £5 per month via Ko-Fi. All the same tutorial goodness - the digital postcard, line art, reference image and video - without the physical copy. Perfect if you don't want or can't receive post.

But isn't this just another art class?

Sort of, but not quite.

Watercolor bird perched on a branch with open beak, against swirling ink doodles on a pale yellow background.

I'm not here to teach you to paint exactly like me, or produce gallery-worthy work - I've spent over a decade honing my skills and technique and hundreds of hours of practice - but I will help give you a reason to, at least once per month, pick up a paintbrush and pay attention to something beautiful, and hope to give you the confidence to find your own style, your own way of seeing the world and to translate that onto paper.

Drawing and painting are proven to improve observational skills, reduce stress, and make you more present. When you try and paint a leaf, and stare at it for long enough to realise it's not just green - something magical starts to happen and you experience the world in a different way. You realise how alive everything is, how full of energy and magic and joy. Art isn't just about recording the world - it's about experiencing it more fully.

So this isn't just an art tutorial every month - it's a little monthly ritual. A reason to slow down, and to discover a new way of seeing.

Who is this subscription for?

This is for you if:

You’ve always wanted to try watercolour painting but didn’t know where to start
You used to make art and want to find your way back to it
You want a gentle, joyful creative hobby that fits into a busy life
You love receiving beautiful things in the post
You want to learn to observe the world a little more deeply

No experience needed, and no special equipment (other than the obvious paints and brushes!) - just curiosity and a desire to play.

When you step into the subscription, I will provide you with a detailed list of the basics, if you don't already have them, and if you get stuck, I'll always be happy to advise you further on substitutes.

A little about the tutorials

Every month I break the painting down into simple steps, making it suitable for beginners, intermediate artists and beyond. We'll be covering things like: how to see colour, rather than just label it, how to simplify a complex subject, how to embrace happy little accidents, and how to find joy in the process instead of the pressure of an outcome.

And because you get the line art and the reference image too, you're never starting from a daunting blank page!