The Center: Topics in Painting: Studio Practice and Critique

Embark upon an oil painting journey by learning the fundamentals of the medium and finding new ways to develop personal imagery. Emphasis is on developing the lush, nuanced surfaces that oil painting can accomplish, focusing on canvas preparation, underpainting, glazing, color, and brush stroke. Students are encouraged to consider the subject matter, narrative, and many formal concerns that support these concepts. Composition, form, mood, contrast, and surface are also topics to be explored. This rigorous course results in several paintings upon which to build and reflect.

This exploratory oil painting workshop introduces students to a technique-based and conceptual approach to creating an image in this traditional medium. With prompts, demonstrations, and one-on-one instruction, students investigate monochromatic value scale, techniques in oil painting, and working from the figure. The workshop emphasizes color mixing, composition, form, light, and a painting’s potential to tell a story. In addition to focusing on methods and techniques, the class discovers the use of painting to communicate using an exciting visual language.

This advanced painting workshop is for students working in any medium and is designed to be a catalyst for making art within a broadly-defined painting language. Students work on individual projects while digging into experimental processes that boost the forward momentum of their work. Presentations, prompts, and critiques support purposeful discussions addressing how the work is communicating. Questions and topics covered include: How can time be captured through color? What is tactile knowledge? Who are your art ancestors and what is their role in the building of your visual language? What and how does your work communicate within the context of contemporary art? Students should bring a digital portfolio of current studio work. Portfolios will be accepted on a rolling basis. Instructions on how to submit your portfolio are as follows: Submit digital images of your work in one single PDF (as opposed to individual JPG attachments) via email directly to Lindsey Yeager, Studio Coordinator of Painting, Drawing & Printmaking, at [email protected] The single PDF must be less than 10 MB to be considered. Include 5-10 images of your work with image identification that lists the title, media, dimensions and year of each image. While not required, it is helpful to see an artist statement addressing the images you send. Include “Advanced Portfolio Review” in the subject line of your email, as well as the title of the workshop for which you are applying. Please provide a phone number where you can be reached and a link to your website. Submissions that do not follow the requested directions will not be reviewed. If you are accepted, a deposit of $650 will be required within one week of notification of acceptance to hold your place. Housing will be assigned on a space-available basis upon enrollment.