Color Mixing For Painters

 

I  seem to be blogging about nothing but teaching lately - probably because I've been lucky enough to be doing a lot of it! Last weekend found me in Shreveport, Louisiana, mixing up a storm of paint, and enjoying some real storms, some serious humidity - and serious air conditioning.

This workshop, "Color Mixing for Painters," is designed for beginner/intermediate students, but I firmly believe that exercises like these can benefit painters at every stage in our development. I know I get something out of them each time. 

Grayscale value studies help us practice seeing the relationships between adjacent values.
You can watch a short video of my demo (on the left) on YouTube.



 Translating those values into color is the next step - and if you're familiar with my painting and teaching, you know how much I love using apples for studies like these! Check out this incredible student work:

 

 

 Thanks again, Shreveport. I will be back!

A Lovely Evening for a Portrait Demonstration

"Robin"

12x16 inches, oil on canvas

I love painting in front of an audience. I just searched my blog post history and turned up about ten instances of me painting out-and-about somewhere and gushing about it. Am I a show-off, or what?

In the last few years, I've painted for audiences at a gallery, a hotel, an art society, a conservatory, an art supply store (or two), and a church - oh and another gallery. 

Last week, I visited Shreveport, Louisiana, to teach for the third time. The evening before the workshop, I gave a portrait painting demonstration. The best part was that my subject was the teacher who organizes all of my workshops there. Her students loved watching her suffer under the pressure of my unflinching gaze.

...or maybe they were just enjoying the wine and good company!

 

Regardless, it was a blast. And check out that room! We were lucky enough to be hosted for the whole weekend by The Artist's Collective, a new gallery in Shreveport. Great spot for an art gathering, perfect place for my workshop.

 

 (The aforementioned unflinching gaze, in action)