Although he has many painting books and instruction videos to his credit, in the beginning William Blackman wasn't sure he wanted to teach.

But he needed a job, and his friend Gary Jenkins, who taught art classes, suggested he give it a try.

Blackman's first class was at a studio in Chatsworth.

"I was not sure of myself," he said. "I had been home, painting by myself for 15 years." But eight people signed up for the class, filling the studio.

"It just evolved from there," the Thousand Oaks artist said. "I was going all over the country, word of mouth, teaching 15 students at a time." He crisscrossed the country, from Connecticut to Florida, Washington to Texas, giving workshops.

"It was a new life for me," Blackman said. "I just did it by myself." He also published books on oil and acrylic painting through Schweewe Publications in Oregon and later came out with videos.

Blackman describes his style as impressionistic but realistic.

"I might use a photograph for some elements, but the clouds and water come out of my head," he said.

"I use a very limited palette," he said.

"I use cadmium yellow light, alizarin crimson, thalo or ultramarine blue, yellow ochre, burnt sienna and white," he said. "With those colors I can mix any color."

Growing up in San Diego and Culver City, Blackman did pen and ink drawings as a child, switching to oil painting by the age of 12.

"In high school, I took all the art classes I could because it interested me," he said. Seascapes were always a favorite subject, and he remembers going to the beach to body surf with his friends.

"The Red Car (Pacific Electric Railway trolleys) would pick you up in Culver City and take you right to Santa Monica Beach," he recalled.

"I am always amazed by the movement of the water, the beauty of it," he said.

In 1950 he went into the Navy.

"They had a one-year program at that time, and I went into the reserves afterward," he said. "I wanted to get into the arts in some way, so I thought about graphic arts."

He went to Woodbury College in Los Angeles and then got into the advertising field, where he met his wife. He worked in advertising for about 10 years, advancing to production manager at BBDO advertising agency. He worked with art directors at the agency, and at lunchtime they would visit galleries.

"I got inspired," Blackman said. He painted at home in his free time and then met a coworker's husband who was vice president of the wholesale division of Aaron Brothers. That division, Aaron Brothers Gallery, contracted with artists to produce paintings for showrooms around the country for purchase by furniture stores and art galleries.

"He said he might be able to use my seascapes," Blackman said. "I would moonlight at night, painting," he said. "He would take a couple, they would sell, and he would ask for more." When they asked for landscapes, he started doing those.

"After a while it seemed they would take just about anything I could paint," he said. So he quit his day job and painted for Aaron Brothers Gallery for 15 years.

"It was quite a different lifestyle, more relaxed environment," he said.

But in 1980 the company was sold and the wholesale division eliminated.

"What to do now?" he wondered. "A few galleries had my paintings, and I worked with them." It was about that time that his friend suggested he try teaching.

"I do enjoy teaching," Blackman said. "I was wary of it in the beginning, but it's kind of gratifying to see the results people have."

Blackman's workshops are usually scheduled through art studios and retail stores. In a four-day workshop, he will cover a different subject every day, he said. Aspiring artists who can't get to a workshop can order instruction kits through his Web site: www.billblackmanart.com. The packets include an 8-by-10 color print, an 18-by-24 sketch that can be transferred to a canvas and detailed instructions for completing the painting. The instructions include what colors to use, how to mix them and what brushes work best. But each artist has a unique style.

"Not everybody is going to paint the way I do," Blackman said. "It brings out their personality, how they see things. Sometimes I like theirs better than mine."

— To recommend an artist to be profiled in this section, contact Nicole D'Amore at ArtProfiles@roadrunner.com or 405-0364.