Homage to the Masters: Art Book Still Life

Description - Of course you love art. And you can probably list 10 famous artists whom you would have loved to have had a cup of coffee with, just to soak up all that inspiration. Well, you can’t have lunch with Monet, or a glass of wine with Magritte, but you can channel their spirit in your work by incorporating their paintings as shown in your art books into your still life painting. Let me help you do that. Using your art books opens up a world of possibility in still life, with the opportunity not just to create a master copy, but to be creative with elements, allowing your painting to have a narrative that can be entertaining, mystical or thought provoking, I am delighted to offer a 3 day workshop to introduce you to this genre. The workshop will start about a month before the workshop starts! We will get together via Zoom for a session where I will present some information on how I design my still life paintings in general, and then what the considerations are for including art books and related elements. This will give the student the opportunity to choose one or two images they want to paint, and then afford them time to gather the elements they wish to include in their paintings prior to the in-person workshop. Day 1 of the workshop will be a warmup. After introductions, I will present my process for creating my paintings, including a short demo. After that, students will have the chance to create a small painting using some of the elements they plan to use in their final painting with the art books. This will be a chance to practice color mixing, brushwork, attention to edges, and exploring how best to paint the objects that will be included. Days 2 and 3 will focus on the creating of a still life painting (or 2, for those speedy painters) incorporating an art book. We will focus on design, drawing, values, color mixing, brushwork and edges. I will help students at the easel. At the end of day 3 , we will have a critique session. I always learn the most at workshops from the critiques, including the critiques of other people’s paintings. This workshop is for the intermediate painter. You should have comfort with the elements of painting I listed above, and be familiar with your materials. Students can expect to create 2 or 3 paintings. Painting time on the first day will be limited, so a smaller panel or canvas is appropriate (8 x 8, 8 x 10, 9 x 12, 10 x 10). To create the painting that incorporates artbook images, it is helpful to have enough space to be able to reproduce some of the details in the painting you are including, so a bit larger may be better. 9 x 12, 10 x 10 would be minimum sizes, and up to 16 x 20 or 18 x 18 may work for you as well. You know your temperament, and how fast you paint. The goal is for your to complete one painting (or 2) incorporating your art book, so don’t go too big. I use oil paints, but this workshop can also work with acrylic paint. This is not suitable for watercolor.