Learning to draw is learning to see,
Learning to paint is learning to imagine.
A VERY BRIEF HISTORY OF CUBISM
At about the same time as the invention of Cubism, the world was being seen and understood in significant and radical ways. Einstein was publishing his early papers on relativity, masks artifacts and ritual objects from Africa were first exhibited in Paris, and two American brothers learned to fly. Cubism was invented, in part, as a way of examining and painting stationary objects to incorporate what the object looks like as you move around it, ie from different perspectives. Cubism sought to incorporate time as the fourth dimension in the arts.
Cubism highlights painting in planes; breaking down curves into prism-like flat sides. The earth tones of the early paintings, whether landscape, still life, or portraits, are indicative of the focus of the paintings as they introduce an entirely new idea; the paintings were about form, time and perspective, and color brought an element that the movement wasn’t ready for. Color adds emotion, after all, and Classic Cubism was at least as much an analytical endeavor as it was about painting.
ONLINE FIGURE DRAWING CLASSES
To be announced
There are endless ways to define the figure, and we’ll look at a few methods and approaches that illustrate some of the fundamental approaches we can use. Using photographs of fine art models and by copying master drawings, we’ll be looking at how to see the human body so that it becomes something we can draw and paint.
Using long, curving lines we'll learn to connect the body from head to foot by finding the gesture of the movement. Incorporating the simple shapes (2-D) that make up the parts of the figure into that gestural movement comes next.
Transforming the simple shapes into simple forms is frankly, easier than it sounds. Combining and modifying simple forms is how to build complex forms. Arms, legs, necks and fingers are cylinders; the head and the torso are egg-shapes; the hips, hands, forehead, and feet, are modified box-shapes, and the shoulder, elbow and knee joints are spheres that hold the cylinders/arms in place.
Materials list: 1. Pencils: soft graphite: 2B, 3B, 4B Ebony pencils by Prismacolor are my preference. 2. Charcoal: Several sticks of soft and hard vine charcoal, and compressed charcoal such as Conte or the long square sticks. They give a deeper, darker, more permanent mark than vine charcoal. 3. A pad of newsprint or a stack of cheap, throwaway paper such as copier paper for gesture drawings. Done quickly, gesture drawings are meant for practice, not for reworking. 4. An 18” x 24” drawing pad for extended studies. 5. A kneaded erasure, a gum erasure, a few brushes, and a container of water.
To register for this class please use the contact form below.
How I teach: mostly the way I was taught to draw and paint
- How to recognize and organize 2-D shapes on the paper or canvas
- How to turn 2-D shapes into simple 3-D forms using shading, then crafting the different forms together into complex forms
- How to use a diversity of tools and materials
- How to create space
- How to mix colors and basic color principals
- An awareness of movements and rhythm within the subject and between the elements
- That the guidelines for creating abstract art are the same as for realism
- That it's important to copy
- That vocabulary matters
Classes, or lessons, last about two hours for evenings and slightly longer for daytime. The cost for group lessons is $300 for 6 lessons or $60 per single lesson (with one day notice please).
I also teach at the New Art Center in Newtonville, MA
3 mornings a week. Referrals upon request.
-newartcenter.org -