Class Notes: Manitou Workshop

My weekend in Manitou included a one day workshop in the lovely space at the Fare Bella gallery,  run by Patti Filler and right next to the TracyMiller gallery.
Because this was not an outdoor (plein air) workshop we worked from photos brought by the artists.
My focus, as always, is on design, and in this case how to bring out the strengths of your reference material.





This black and white photo was the reference for the demo.  My sketch below shows how I ALWAYS start by simply dividing the space into thirds and moving shapes to strengthen the composition.
As a class we all took part in deciding how to break up the space:
#1 We chose to move the horizon to the upper third line.
#2  We connected the major elements:  the large tree and the barn, moving them to the third line on the right- thus creating a strong focal point.
#3  We placed a balancing group of trees to the left side.
#4  Even the division of the foreground follows the grid.
Below the sketch is my quick 9x12 demo.



Compare the demo sketch and the demo to the plein air piece below, done at the same location as the reference material. 
In both cases I make use of the Rule of Thirds by dividing my sketch area into thirds both vertically and horizontally.
This is a classic compositional idea that deals with both the composition and placement of the focal point - meaning,
it helps you organize the space and position subject matter to be visually balanced.

You can see how I clearly made very different, and important choices about - the horizon line, the major elements and the secondary shapes.
Both compositions are strong because they are governed  and held together by the Rule of Thirds.
Read more about the Rule of Thirds by going to LABELS on the right side of this blog, scroll down and click on Class Notes: Rule of Thirds.

. . . and this is a good place to
 plug the benefits of doing a sketch, no matter how simple.

Class Notes

Oil Painting class(es) started this week with a good group of, mostly experience painters and we will be focusing on Basics. Gee!- would that be important for those of us who have been painting for awhile?
In the spring we addressed technique and brushwork, and this summer we spent a lot of time looking at the landscape and learning how to design a painting around good compositional ideas.
This fall we are going back a step or two to work on things even more foundational like how to start a painting, drawing and placement.
Mustard, anyone?

Class Notes - The Big Idea

Painting is the artist's attempt to communicate a personal impression about a subject. If you love the landscape, then like myself, you probably stop in your tracks daily to study natural phenomena; a rising thunderhead or the way light plays in and out of the trees along a shady trail. Funny how a snap-shot of the same scene tends to disappoint us. Why?
Because our eyes focus on one thing at a time and our brain says "Wow. Look at that", while everything else fades in importance. The camera, on the other hand, reduces the whole scene to the same level of importance. The very thing that inspired us to shoot the photo is lost in all the other elements of the landscape.
So, what's your BIG idea?
Simple ideas, communicated in the most simple way, are the most powerful: that really big tree, a boat on the river, the derelict lounge chair in front of an old cabin.
Take that kernel of inspiration and see if you can fit it to one of the compositional themes previously discussed. A sound compositional idea is the very thing that will hold your painting together and keep you from making arbitrary choices that confuse the viewer and detract from the big idea.
Unless you are painting the Sistine Chapel, there isn't room for more that one big idea in a painting. Communicating it clearly is the result of strong and simple composition.