NEW! Simplify thru Shape, Value, and Color w/ Lon Brauer, June 17 & 18
Join award nationally recognized painter Lon Brauer in the White Mountains of NH this Summer for this 2-day plein air painting workshop!
Shape, shape, shape. When we look at something we are seeing shapes. Color, value, and shapes. It’s never about the tree, or the barn, or the bridge, or the flowers…not really. Rather it is the shapes that are presented by light hitting objects. Light and dark pattern. Get the shapes right, then you are off and running. Recognize the patterns and the thing paints itself. Remember paint-by-number? Find the shapes and paint them in.
Plein air painting is about rendering what’s in front of us. We see it and we want to translate that into some form that we can put on canvas. It is in the translation where the magic resides. In this workshop I will show you ways to simplify your approach to achieve more dynamic compositions and stronger images. This will strip away some of your preconceived notions as to what makes plein air painting and replace them with fresh ways to describe the world in front of you.
This method strips away the visual baggage and opens the student up to a new-found freedom in the painting process. Your artwork will take on a dynamism and movement that only a painting can convey. I will show you ways to stretch your visual experience and how to gain confidence with your image making. Let’s find those shapes and perhaps we can make a better picture!
This is a plein air workshop so students will be outside. Lon will describe his approach thru demos each day followed up with one-on-one instruction as students give it a go with their own plein air kit.
The student will be exposed to the following:
- The limited palette
- Mixing colors – what are the possibilities as we expand the palette
- Converting a subject into shapes
- Paint application – what can a brush do
- Cropping for better composition
- Developing strategies when starting a painting
- Color and value issues
- Paint-by-number
This workshop is suitable for experienced as well as beginner. It is tailored primarily for oil painting but all mediums will benefit.
June 17 & 18, 9am-4pm, $365 Location TBA
MATERIALS LIST The following is what I have in mind for this workshop. This is a bare bones list. Beyond the requirements, you can fill in as you wish.
PAINTS I use Windsor & Newton Winton colors. They are considered student grade but are fine for these exercises. And they are affordable. However, you may use whatever brand you wish.
Titanium white
India Yellow
Cadmium Lemon yellow
Dioxizine purple
Ultramarine blue
Viridian
Sap green
Alizarin crimson
Cadmium red med
Cadmium orange
Ivory black
BRUSHES I like Princeton or Rosemary-Ivory (synthetics) and Rosemary Eclipse (softer synthetic)
A variety of flats or brights – 1in (12), 3/4in (8), 1/2in (6), 1/4in (4)
PALETTE KNIFE Any knife for mixing and spreading paint. We will be mixing paint.
SURFACES canvas panels or whatever surface you choose. 12x12 is a good size. 6 or 8 should be enough. Michaels has inexpensive panels.
MEDIUMS I use odorless mineral spirits for cleaning brushes as well as a medium. Occasionally I will also use Galkyd or Galkyd lite (Gamblin) as medium. I have of late also been using stand oil or linseed oil. Feel free to use what you prefer.
MISC
Easel – Your favorite plein air set-up (Jackson Art has a limited number of 1/2 box French easels for rent for the weekend for $35. Contact us if interested at melanie@jacksonartnh.com)
Palette for mixing paint
Odorless mineral spirits or your favorite solvent
Paper towels
Trash bag for rags.
Gloves if you choose
Hat for sun
Bug spray or such for mosquitoes
Lon Brauer is an American artist known for his work in figure and plein air landscape. Born in 1955 and coming of age in the seventies, he has roots in the abstract expressionist movement. Although a representational artist he steers clear of the overtly literal. His work is a mix of the abstract and representational bringing an expressionistic use of paint and materials to create images that challenge the viewer with new perspectives.
Lon shows his work nationally. He presents numerous workshops on painting techniques and alternative methods. He lives and works with his partner, quillwork artist Djuana Tucker, and owns Lon Brauer Studios in Granite City, Illinois.
For more info visit Lonbrauer.com
Cancellation Policy: We ask that you to give us fourweeks notice if you need to cancel for a full refund minus a $35 cancellation fee. Cancellations should be made by phone by calling (603) 387-3463. This provides us the opportunity to fill the space. We are sorry, but we cannot give refunds or issue credits for missed classes or no shows.
Available Spaces: 10
NEW! Palette Knife Painting En Plein Air in Jeffersonville, VT, W/ Melanie Levitt, June 29&30
Available Spaces: 12
NEW! Intro to Plein Air (Outdoor) Painting w/ Melanie Levitt, July 13 & 14
Have you always wanted to set up and paint outside in the beautiful White Mountains of NH? Join award winning painter, Melanie Levitt for a weekend workshop. In this BEGINNER outdoor oil painting workshop, students will enjoy the process of setting up an easel outdoors and painting the beautiful landscape “en plein air.” We will meet on location TBD. (acrylics can also be used but I suggest open acrylics that dry slower) Through demonstration and individual attention , students will learn how to distill the important information from their observation and translate it onto the canvas. Melanie will address the importance of sketching, how to create depth & light in a painting, composition, color mixing, and other tips for painting outdoors. She will do demos both days with both a brush and palette knife.
All this will be taught in an understandable step by step process which will lead students to improve their ability to see the landscape and create a finished painting in a short time. This class is suitable for the total beginner or the intermediate student who wants to learn how to paint outdoors. All levels welcome. Students will complete at least one painting each day. We rent out a limited number of French plein air easels for an additional $35 for the weekend. We will work with a very limited palette of paints and students will be responsible for bringing their own supplies. (see list below) Small class size for lots of individual attention and lots of fun.
Saturday & Sunday, July 13 & 14, 9am-4pm, $295 (This class is also open to high school students)
*In case of rain we will paint at our outdoor tent at Jackson Art Studio & Gallery or find another covered location
Available Spaces: 7