Bringing Birds to Life: A Cobra Oil Painting Workshop with Lori McNee 🕊️
Bringing Birds to Life: A Cobra Oil Painting Workshop with Lori McNee 🕊️
May 8, 2025 – All-Day Workshop 
Royal Talens Headquarters, Apeldoorn, Netherlands
I’m truly honored to teach a special workshop at the Royal Talens Experience Centre—the heart of creativity and innovation! As a Royal Talens Ambassador, it’s an incredible privilege to share my passion for Cobra water-mixable oils in such an inspiring setting.
In this immersive, full-day workshop, we’ll focus on easy, approachable steps to create a lifelike bird painting. (Something similar to this image).
Our goal? To craft an evocative piece using Cobra oils alongside mixed media techniques that add depth, texture, and harmony.
🎨 Here’s what we’ll explore together:
🕊️ Realistic Bird Painting: Learn how to bring your subject to life with subtle details and rich color.
🌿 Limited Palette: Discover how just a few tubes of paint can achieve beautiful color harmony.
🖌️ Mixed Media Magic: I’ll share some of my favorite techniques to enhance your painting’s texture and mood.
Whether you’re new to water-mixable oils or looking to expand your skills, you’ll leave with fresh insights and the confidence to create more expressive, lifelike work.
👉 Spaces are limited—reserve your spot today!
🔗 Learn more about my journey as a Royal Talens Ambassador here: Lori McNee – Royal Talens Ambassador
Springtime Plein Air Painting Speed Demo with Lori McNee
Here's a little springtime plein air painting speed demo!
After working indoors in my studio for most of the long winter, I was excited to get outside for some plein air painting. But, springtime in the Idaho Rocky Mountains can be blustery and difficult for plein air painting. Nevertheless, I went out and did my best amidst high winds and chilly temperatures.
I hope you enjoy a quick visit in my studio and out in the field for some plein air landscape painting. As usual, I painted with my Cobra water mixable oils which really help keep things easier. In the 2 minute video demo below you can see my process.
I hope you enjoy the first of my new video series, "Lately from Lori."
Cheers,
Go Solvent-Free Oil Painting with Lori McNee!
Go Solvent-free with Lori McNee and discover the benefits of painting with water mixable oil color by Royal Talens!
After many years in the making, I am pleased to announce the release of my new exclusive Cobra Oil, “Lori McNee Special Edition Set by Royal Talens. This solvent-free set of Cobra Water Mixable oil colors includes the exact palette I use on a daily basis!
This split primary palette includes a cool and warm pigment from each of the primary colors. You can mix a multitude of colors from this simple array of tubed oil paints. Perfect for studio works, plein air painting, still life, figurative work and more!
Colors include:
105 Titanium White, 207 Cadmium Yellow Lemon, 211 Cadmium Orange, 303 Cadmium Red Light, 389 Madder Lake, 504 Ultramarine, 511 Cobalt Blue, 619 Permanent Green Deep, 227 Yellow Ochre, 378 Transparent Oxide Red.
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Paint in traditional oil techniques without the need for toxic solvents
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Perfect for Plein Air Painting (only use water!)
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Professional Artist Quality
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Fully Lightfast pigments (100 years plus in museum conditions)
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Lower environmental and health impact due to exclusion of solvents in your painting process
Purchase Now $124.95
Enjoy the benefits of painting with water mixable oil color by Royal Talens. The new Cobra Oil “Lori McNee Special Edition Set” is now exclusively available here. Go Solvent-Free with Lori McNee!!
Want to discover more about painting solvent-free? Read: Water Mixable Oil Paints: Facts, Tips & Why I use Them.
Solvent Free Oil Paint Explained with Kyle Richardson
Artists from around the world are discovering the health advantages of oil painting solvent free. Yet, solvent free oil paint still seems mysterious to some.
How can oil and water mix? Is solvent free oil paint really oil paint? These questions and more are answered in this short, informative video that we filmed at the Plein Air Convention in Monterey.
All about the benefits of using solvent free oil paint is quickly explained by North American Business Manager, Kyle Richardson of Cobra by Royal Talens.
Teaching and Speaking at the Plein Air Convention in Monterey
THE CONVENTION WAS A GREAT SUCCESS. SEE YOU NEXT YEAR!
(This event has expired) Come paint with me! It is my pleasure to be attending, speaking and teaching at the Plein Air Convention & Expo in Monterey on April 7 - 11, 2014.
Plein Air Magazine presents The 3rd Annual Plein Air Convention and Expo which will be held in Monterey-Carmel on the California coast.
I am honored to be featured in this event along with 70 of today's finest artists. I will also be working with my friends from Royal Talens and instructing in Cobra solvent free paints.
It will be a wonderful event you won't want to miss. Below is the agenda for the Plein Air Basics Course that kicks-off the convention and will help you get started painting in the field.
I will be speaking about how to pack for plein air painting (painting outdoors), using water soluble oils, and social media tips, plus branding and marketing advice.
I hope to meet you there! You can sign up for the Plein Air Basics Course, or for the whole convention. Please click this link for more information about the Plein Air Convention. where you can buy your ticket to the whole event, or only the Basics Course.
MONDAY, APRIL 7TH |
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PRE-CONVENTION EVENTS
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Here's when I will be speaking >
2:15-3:15pm Lori McNee
Tips and Tricks to Get Started In (en) Plein Air, Online and Off
PLEIN AIR BASICS COURSE |
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| 8:00-8:15am Introduction 8:15-9:15am Gary Michael General Intro to Plein Air: What is, or is not, plein air?9:15-10:15am Larry Cannon Watercolor10:15-12:15pm Kathleen Dunphy Do's and Don'ts of Working With Oils Outside Demo12:15-1:15pmLUNCH BREAK1:15-2:15pm Anne Laddon Mark Making - How to Create Strong Pastel Sketches2:15-3:15pm Lori McNee Tips and Tricks to Get Started In (en) Plein Air, Online and Off3:15-3:30pm Wrap-up - End of Plein Air Basics Course |
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After which, I hope we can paint together during the event. Please be sure to say hello to me! ~Lori
Meanwhile, I hope to meet you on Twitter, and on Google Plus, Pinterest, and join in the fun at Fine Art Tips Facebook Fan Page! Please checkout my art too LoriMcNee.com, or find me on Instagram lorimcneeartist.
2012 Autumn Plein Air Painting & Social Media Workshop with Lori McNee
SOLD OUT!
Announcing! Autumn Plein Air Painting & Social Media Workshop with Lori McNee
October 3, 4, 5, 2012 (9AM - 4PM daily)
Location: Sun Valley, Idaho
Sponsored by Fine Art Tips and Royal Talens
*This workshop is limited to 12 people worldwide. Normally this workshop would cost $450, but because of the short notice this workshop is only $350
Join internationally acclaimed artist, Lori McNee for a special 3-day plein air landscape painting workshop. Using her art studio as home-base, paint on location with Lori in beautiful Sun Valley, Idaho, and discover why Ernest Hemingway loved it here…
On a warm autumn day in 1939, Ernest Hemingway stood in the Sun Valley Cemetery and methodically read aloud a eulogy for his friend, a publicist for the Sun Valley Resort. Many believed this to be one of Hemingway’s finest works of prose.
“He loved the warm sun of summer and the high mountain meadows, the trails through the timber and the sudden clear blue of the lakes. He loved the hills in the winter when the snow comes,” Hemingway said. “Best of all he loved the fall … the fall with the tawny and grey, the leaves yellow on the cottonwoods, leaves floating on the trout streams and above the hills the high blue windless skies. He loved to shoot, he loved to ride and he loved to fish.”
Much like the alps, Sun Valley, Idaho is nestled below its famous ski mountain, Bald Mountain. In October, the days are warm, nights are cool, it's our favorite time of year. To read more about autumn in Sun Valley, please read Sunset Magazine's article, "Sun Valley's Golden Season".
Surrounded by magical autumn colors and fellow artists, this informative workshop will balance classroom instruction, painting in the field, demonstrations, personalized critiques, and as a bonus, Lori will share her social media secrets.
You will learn:
- How to compose and design a successful outdoor painting
- The importance of value and tone
- How to use warm and cool colors to strengthen your paintings
- The importance of edges
- How to mix believable landscape color, and greens!
- How to add light and atmosphere to your paintings
- Some mixed media techniques
- How to use your plein air study and reference photos to create a successful studio landscape painting.
- Tips to use water-soluble Cobra oil paints by Royal Talens (Lori is a proud ambassador for Royal Talens worldwide)
…and much more!
During this workshop, Lori will teach you her social media branding and marketing tips! Lori is one of the Top 100 Women on Twitter, and the top working-artist in social media. She was named a TwitterPowerhouse by The Huffington Post, has been a talk show host for Plum TV, featured in the Wall Street Journal, many art magazines, and has written for publications including Artist’s Magazine, Artist’s & Graphic Designer’s Market, Photographer’s Market, and Zero to 100,000: Social Media Tips & Tricks for Small Businesses.
You will learn:
- How to drive traffic to your website or blog
- The benefits of using social media
- How tweet and what to tweet
- How to effectively use Facebook to boost your art business
- Branding and marketing tips using Youtube, Google Plus, Pinterest
- Blogging tips for artists
…and much more!
This workshop is open to painters of all levels. Oil paint, or water-soluble oil paint is recommended, but acrylic is acceptable. I will be sending a supply list.
*This workshop is limited to 12 people worldwide. Normally this workshop would cost $450, but because of the short notice this workshop is only $350.
Sign Up Below: If you are interested in taking your art and art business to the next level, sign up now by clicking the BUY IT NOW button. Or, mail a money order or cashier's check for the amount of $350 to...Lori McNee artist, PO Box 10098, Ketchum, ID 8334o
Accommodations: There are many lodging choices, but I do have a block of rooms reserved at the Best Western Tyrolean Lodge:
http://bestwesternidaho.com/hotels/best-western-tyrolean-lodge
Queen non smoking room @ $89.00 per night plus 10% tax
Double Queen Room contains 2 queen beds in room @ $99.00 per night plus 10% tax
Click here for more lodging options.
Got questions? Email Lori, lori@lorimcnee.com
Hope to see you there,
Lori :)