Magical Landscapes from Art and Soul

Before I head off to Art and Soul in Virginia Beach, I want to share some of the lovely landscapes my students made in "Landscapes of Dreams" at Art and Soul in Excelsior Springs MO. These were all done with painting knives on acrylics. Students loved the freedom the knives gave them to paint boldly.

Class at Troy Laudry Studios

I'm pleased to announce that I'll be teaching a painting and mixed media class called "Wabi-Sabi Wonder"on Saturday, April 28. This workshop will be at the historic Troy Laundry Studios at  1025 SE Pine here in Portland. Artist Julia Gardner is sponsoring the workshop in her spacious studio. For more information and registration, visit my site.

In this class you'll get a head start on learning several of the techniques and styles that will appear in my North Light book next spring. We'll use my special re-inker glaze, paint, papers, embellishments, and some unexpected items to create gorgeous pieces. You'll receive haiku to use as inspiration. It'll be relaxing and fun!

Here are some examples of the kind of pieces you can create:

Field at Night

Aide-Memoire

The Time Before

Contemplative Chaos

"Learning to See" Class Work

Two courageous and talented women visited the studio on Saturday. Alison said she hadn't picked up a paintbrush in 20 years, despite having gone to design school years ago. She hadn't used acrylic before. Kelly is new also to acrylic painting, though she has taken encaustic classes from me.

We started out painting pears from realistic looking models and then moved on to painting portraits. I'm so happy to be able to share this exciting work!

Alison's Pear

I love the three dimensionality of this pear as well as the way the red of the background is reflected in the pear. The shadow is delicious!

Kelly's Pear

This was Kelly's first experiment with using a painting knife. The pear is vibrant and alive--a great  example of a Fauve-like piece! Love the reflective shadow also.

 

Alison's portrait of Victorine after Edouard Manet

 Alison captured Manet's use of strong light and shadow. She also captured the model's imperious gaze. She brought her own style to the piece as well, creating her own interpretation. A very strong piece!

Kelly's interpretation of Gwen John's self-portrait

 
Isn't it amazing that this is Kelly's first portrait ever? She hasn't quite finished it, but she has done a very nice job in rendering Gwen John's challenging face. Kelly's woman looks like a real person with real thoughts and feelings.

Thanks for a wonderful afternoon, Kelly and Alison. You really learned to see!

Art and Soul Virginia Coming Up!

I hope all of you have had and are having a wonderful holiday season! 

I'm using the time between Christmas and New Year's to plan for my first art retreat of 2012. This will be Art and Soul in the gorgeous Virginia Beach! 

The retreat takes place in March which will be here before we know it. I'm teaching three classes and want to share with you a short slide show for one of them, "The Forgiving Medium." This is one of my favorites to teach because the students always amaze themselves with what they are able to do in this acrylic painting class. 

I hope you'll join me if you are attending this fabulous retreat!