Class Description
Anita believes that the landscape is a gentle way of exploring the elements that are integral to making meaningful work: line, value, color, shape, edges, composition. She also believes that drawing connects us to our experience with an intimacy not otherwise possible.
In this 6-lesson class we will use our study of landscape to work at finding our unique mark, learning and reinforcing design concepts, drawing with intent, and simplifying.
The joyful and fun exercises will include experimental mark making, design studies, grid paintings — all working up to larger paintings. We will work with an small “orchestra” of simple materials to help maintain a loose and more abstract mindset.
Are you ready for an adventure into the beautiful unknown?
Class Itinerary
Lesson 1 – Your Mark: a Media Exploration
Let’s keep loose. Discover new marks and, more importantly, your mark. We will be using all the supplies listed, different papers and tools. We will respond and interact to music, perhaps draw with your non-dominate hand while keeping in the moment. Explore and see what happens. We will work within a ‘design field’ in which to play.
Lesson 2 – Design Elements and Motive: a Playing Field with Pears
Let’s continue our mark-making looseness as we learn about space: powerful notions of negative and positive space; key to beautiful and strong design within your art. We will become familiar with our ‘tool belt’ of design elements and create eight small “Pear Shape” studies and explore each of the following design concepts: Shape, Value, Space, Texture, Edges, Line, Composition, and Color.
Lesson 3 – Design Elements and Motive: a Playing Field with Landscapes
In Lesson 3 we move from a simple shape (a Pear), to “Landscape Shapes.” The landscape may be slightly more complicated due to additional shapes to contend with. Again, we’ll create eight small studies with various media, each focusing on a Design Element. In our ninth study, we pull it all together into one piece.
Lesson 4 – Value + Space + Shape, all that, in Landscape
When I look at scene through a photograph or real life, I begin differentiating the 3 main layers of space with foreground, middle-ground, background shapes. We need to simplify this chaos (at times, chaotic) and begin to discern the beautiful shapes creating no more than 5-7 shapes. Keeping it simple is key today as we create several small paintings.
Lesson 5 – Driving Through Paintings
In this lesson we will “pack light” and continue to stay abstract as long as we can, thinking in terms of our design elements, drawing from memory and creating beautiful landscapes, simply, in a grid of up to 25 small squares. A fun, satisfying and surprising exercise!
Lesson 6 – Putting it All Together: Intentional Expressive Landscapes
In this final lesson we will be working incrementally to a larger format painting. We will progress from 6″x 6″ then 8″x 8″ and finally an 10″x 10″. Selecting an image from Lesson 5 squares, you’ll discover the obstacles and opportunities of working larger and therefore, as a result, becoming more intimate with your work. Enjoy the process, the rewards will be mighty fine.