WABI-SABI WATERCOLOUR

Wabi-sabi inspired watercolour painting with Mariana Hernandez

This October, Mariana Hernandez returns to The Jamii Hub to lead a watercolour series inspired by wabi-sabi and the familiar places around our neighbourhood. Through broad brushstrokes, patient layering, and close observation, participants will paint local scenes while making room for irregularity, simplicity, and the unexpected marks that watercolour naturally creates.

Wabi-sabi is a Japanese aesthetic associated with appreciating imperfection, impermanence, and simplicity. Mariana brings this idea into the painting process by encouraging participants to loosen their approach, work with broad strokes, and allow layers of watercolour time to dry before adding more. Instead of trying to control every detail, the sessions invite participants to pay attention to what happens naturally between water, pigment, paper, and time.

The subject matter keeps the series close to home. Participants will work from scenes connected to the neighbourhood, looking again at places they may pass regularly and translating them into watercolour. This makes the workshops both a chance to practise painting and an opportunity to spend creative time thinking about the places that make up daily life in Toronto.

For older adults interested in watercolour classes, painting workshops, or visual arts programs in downtown Toronto, the series offers a welcoming setting to practise technique while developing a personal approach to painting. Participants can work at their own pace and build on what they learn from one session to the next.

Mariana Hernandez is an artist and art educator based in Toronto’s Bayside Waterfront community, where she lives and works among a collective of live/work artists. Originally from Chile, she draws much of her inspiration from Toronto’s waterfront, water, and urban spaces. She studied Fine Art at OCAD University, and her paintings are known for vibrant colour and bold line work. Alongside her studio practice, Mariana teaches with several non-profit arts organizations and has become a familiar facilitator within Jamii’s Belonging community.

Belonging participants register for the overall program once and can then drop in to the October sessions that work for them.

Support free community arts

Jamii keeps programs and events free so everyone can take part, without financial barriers. If you're able, you can support our $15 for 15 Years campaign and help us reach $15,000 by December 15 for Jamii's future programs at The Jamii Hub. Your donation moves the goal forward and is eligible for a charitable tax receipt. Donate here now.

Jamii's Belonging Older Adults workshops are sponsored by Government of Canada - New Horizons for Seniors Program, Canada Council for the Arts, Government of Ontario, and St Lawrence Neighbourhood Association.