Helen Frankenthaler, Riverhead, 1963
In this course, you will apply learning in every class session. Beginning with the introduction to the rudiments of painting, students will accumulate knowledge of tools and experience using them. Eventually, you will produce a personal project of intentional paintings that can exhibit your learning.
Phase 1: Orientation to Painting
| Aug 29 | Week 1: Tools |
| Sept 5 | Week 2: Media |
| Sept 12 | Week 3: Surfaces |
IN THIS PHASE OF THE COURSE, STUDENTS ARE INTRODUCED TO THE BASIC EQUIPMENT OF PAINTING. THESE TOOLS ARE ENTIRELY INTERDEPENDENT. TO LEARN ABOUT MEDIA, FOR EXAMPLE, IT IS NECESSARY TO APPLY IT TO A SURFACE WITH TOOLS. WE WILL GIVE EACH ITS DUE FOCUS.
Self-Portrait, Rembrandt Van Rijn, 1628, Oil on Canvas
Phase 2:Experimenting
| Sept 19 | Week 4: Scale |
| Sept 26 | Week 5: Time |
| Oct 3 | Week 6: Marks |
IN THIS PHASE OF THE COURSE, STUDENTS USE THEIR NEWLY ACQUIRED KNOWLEDGE OF PAINTING TOOLS TO EXPLORE AND LEARN THE RUDIMENTS OF PAINTING. YOU WILL LEARN IN THIS PHASE BY ADDING ONE ELEMENT TO YOUR SKILL SET EACH WEEK AND EXPERIMENTING WITH IT OVER SEVERAL PAINTINGS. THIS PHASE HELPS YOU DEVELOP AND UNDERSTANDING AND USE OF SOPHISTICATION AND SUBTLENESS IN YOUR PAINTING PRACTICE.
Cerith, Gary Hume, 1998, Enamel on aluminum
Phase 3: Watercolor project
| Aug 29 | Week 7: Colour |
| Sept 5 | Week 8: Opacity |
| Oct 24 | Week 9: Mixing media |
| **OCT 17-18 MID TERM BREAK** | |
THE WATERCOLOR PROJECT ALLOWS STUDENTS TO SPEND 3 WEEKS EXPLORING WATERCOLOR AS A MEDIA FOR PAINTING. THE FIRST TWO PHASES OF THE COURSE HAVE PREPARED YOU WELL FOR THIS PROJECT. HAVING THIS AMOUNT OF TIME TO DEVOTE TO ONE MEDIA WILL MEAN YOU CAN EXPLORE, EXPERIMENT, AND COMPOSE IMAGES IN A WAY YOU CANNOT OTHERWISE. THERE WILL BE A DIFFERENT THEME EACH WEEK.
Portrait of Liegh Bowery, Lucian Freud, 1991, Oil on Canvas
Phase 4: Acrylic Project
| Oct 31 | Week 10: Luminosity |
| Nov 7 | Week 11: Viscocity |
| Nov 14 | Week 12: Mixing media |
ACRYLIC PAINT CAN BE MORE CHALLENGING TO MANIPULATE THAN WATERCOLOR BECAUSE THERE ARE SO MANY MORE WAYS TO EXTEND THE PAINT. IT CAN BE AS THIN AS WATERCOLOR, OR AS THICK AS IMPASTO. DESPITE THE COMPLEXITY, YOU ARE READY TO LEARN ABOUT THE BEHAVIOUR OF THIS MEDIA. UNLIKE WATERCOLOR, ACRYLIC IS NOT AS IMMEDIATELY PERMANENT; CHANGES AND CORRECTIONS CAN BE MADE.
Francis Picabia, 1930, Transparency – Head and Horse, Oil on Canvas
Phase 5: Personal project
| Aug 29 | Week 13: Preparation and experimentation |
| Sept 5 | Week 14: Beginning final paintings |
| Dec 5 **Last Class** | Week 15: Completing final paintings |
| **THANKSGIVING 11/25 – 12/1** | |
YOU WILL USE YOUR LEARNING THROUGH THE PREVIOUS 12 WEEKS TO DEVELOP PAINTINGS OF YOUR OWN. YOU HAVE VERY WIDE LATITUDE IN CHOOSING YOUR SUBJECT(S) YOU USE AS THE CORE OF YOUR PAINTINGS. YOU ALSO CHOOSE THE MATERIALS YOU FEEL ARE MOST APPROPRIATE FOR THIS PROJECT. OTHER ELEMENTS SUCH AS SURFAE AND SCALE ARE IN PLAY HERE ALSO. WHEN WE COME TO WEEK 12, WE WILL DISCUSS ONE-TO-ONE THE IDEAS YOU ARE MOST INTERESTED IN, AND DEFINE A PROJECT.
Kehinde Wiley, Dacia Carter, 2012, oil on canvas