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| Block-in for In the Winter Spotlight |
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| In the Winter Spotlight, oil, 11x14 |
When I choose a subject to paint, it’s almost never because
I want to paint THAT particular subject. I don’t go outside thinking “I want to
paint a Juniper tree” or “a clump of snow with grass coming out of it.” It’s
usually something else that tugs at my artistic voice. It could be the light.
Or the shadows. Or it could be a pattern of textures or edges that I can
envision creating in pastel or oil.
But my first order of business before I attempt to visually
create what appealed to me, is to find the shapes in my composition. To hear
the word “shapes,” it sounds easy enough. After all, as kids we start hearing
about shapes by the time we’re in kindergarten. But to look at a busy landscape
and boil it down to a few shapes is much easier said than done. We can look at an
artist’s work after the fact and see those shapes pointed out to us, but it takes
practice to learn how to create that combination of shapes on your own. And it can
be overwhelming when the subject is chock-full of busy detail.
Shown in this post are two paintings, along with their
block-ins. As with most all of my paintings, they both required some compositional
searching, editing, reproportioning of shapes, and a bit of value
restructuring.
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| Block-in for Warm Summer Day at Multnomah Falls |
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| Warm Summer Day at Multnomah Falls, pastel, 14x11 (Available at The Artful Deposit, Bordentown, NJ) |
In workshops that I teach, I find that many students are
more interested in how I finish a painting than how I start a painting. But the
truth is, what makes a painting successful at the finish, is what I do at the
very start…which is all of those things I do before I make single mark on the
painting. Sometimes this process comes together logically, and it’s just a
matter of going through the steps. Other times it takes searching and working
my shapes like a puzzle. I can honestly say that my own skill level increased
when I began to understand how to plan out a painting in this way at the start.
Students are often determined to take home successful
completed paintings at the end of a workshop. But what if you instead took a
few days to work intensively on just this important skill that’s required at
the start of each painting. And if you did indeed improve it, your overall
skill level as a painter is sure to get a boost!
Okay, so you probably know where this is headed, so let me just
say it…
It just so happens that I’m teaching my Composition Boot
Camp at two upcoming workshops this year:
Fresno, CA – Feb. 15-17, A Sense of Place Gallery (Studio
Workshop)
and
Bend, OR – May 22-24, Cascade Fine Art Workshops (Studio
& Plein Air…we’ll apply this to field studies,
too!)
(Details for each are below.)
In this workshop, I explain in detail my process for how to “see”
shapes in the landscape, and how to edit those shapes.
And if you’re not able to attend, I still encourage you to set
aside some time on your own to practice this skill. Try composing and editing “shapes”
for your paintings, rather than “subject matter,” in small thumbnail sketches. (Hint: SQUINT!!!) Then block in paintings
from your thumbnails instead of directly from your source photo. Take several
days to practice only thumbnails and block-ins. I know it doesn’t sound
glamorous, but it’s certain to help you see your paintings in terms of shapes,
and ultimately improve how you can lay the foundation for successful paintings!
UPCOMING WORKSHOPS
Fresno, CA - 3-day PASTEL/OIL workshop
Feb. 15-17, 2018
"Composition Boot Camp"
A Sense of Place Fine Art Gallery
Contact: Ginny Burdick, gburdick@sti.net, 559-392-6775
$375
Providence, RI - 3-day PASTEL/OIL workshop
March 23-25, 2018
"Painting the Poetic Landscape"
Providence Art Club
Contact: Angel Dean, angel@providenceartclub.org, 401-331-1114 ext. 16Providence Art Club
www.providenceartclub.org
$425/members; $525/nonmembers (nonmember fee includes lunch each day)
Centralia, WA - 3-day PASTEL/OIL workshop
April 20-22, 2018
"Painting the Poetic Landscape"
Contact: Jan Nontel, creativespace@therectanglegallery.com
$400
Bend, OR - 3-day PASTEL/OIL workshop
May 22-24, 2018
"Composition Boot Camp" (studio & plein air)
Contact: Sue Manley, info@cascadefineartworkshops.com, 541-408-5524
$435
There's more!!! ... For FULL WORKSHOP SCHEDULE, go to www.barbarajaenicke.com.
My INSTRUCTIONAL VIDEOS and MONTHLY ONLINE LESSONS are available at www.paintingthepoeticlandscape.com.
