I'm in the middle of guiding another workshop, this time for painting a classic portrait. I'm showing the steps necessary to build the image up, along with the little tips to overcome some of the common pitfalls.
Putting the outline of image on the canvas is one thing, but simply apply paint to it is not as simple as you might believe. The way one holds the brush and the angle, direction, rotation and pressure all play a role in whether you end up with a muddy blur or something that is recognizable.
It is one thing to show my students the steps, but it is another to keep an eye on their progress and try to redirect them before they wander too far off the path, all the while I have to also make progress on my demonstration piece.
Often I'm have to use my peripheral vision and hearing to intuit when something is going wrong. For instance, on a drawing exercise, I knew that the student wasn't shading correctly simply by the sound of the pencil rhythm on the paper.
When the classes scale up, I feel that I need multiple heads or clones. It makes for a rather demanding day.
When planning the workshop, I try to plan for exercises that will be of benefit to the student as well as myself. I look for something that is new to myself so I too might discover something along the way.
Having some one else to explain things to really makes me think things through, and often I come to new perspectives.
Keep your eyes open for the finished version of this painting soon.
Leave a comment below, upvote and share if you like it.
More of my artwork can be found on my website. LeoPlaw.com
Wanting to have an original artwork, take a look at this list.
And if it takes your fancy, subscribe to my newsletter.
I'm available for lessons and mentoring.