Acrylics Week One

Having tried a basic drawing class at Barnsdall Art Barn, I'm ready to move on to more specific techniques.  I loved my instructor at Barnsdall, but he takes summers off of teaching to return to Europe.  

Since I'm still learning fairly universal and basic skills, I decided to look closer to home at Burbank Parks & Rec for summer classes, and chose two:  a Watercolor class, and a class in Painting with Acrylics.  Both are only ten minutes down the street from me at the Betsy Lueke Creative Arts Center classroom.  I missed the first watercolor class due to work, but was able to make it to the first session for the acrylics course.  The goal of the acrylics class is to "create paintings that explore your artistic vision and discover techniques with the help of a visionary artist with three decades of professional experience."  Our instructor, Johnathon Gallagher, was warm and welcoming to our first class, even making popcorn for the group.  The class is no more than 10-15 students, sitting in a u-shaped row of tables.  The materials list included a tabletop easel, canvas, and starter set of acrylic paints and brushes, some of which I already had.  The eight-week course was $88, with an extra $10 fee because I am not a Burbank resident (I live in the neighboring area of North Hollywood).

I made it to the first class, but was really burnt out from six straight days of work.  I didn't have an easel yet.  The materials list mentioned a canvas no bigger than 16x20.  Because I don't have much wall space in my apartment, I decided to start small, and just bought a package of four 8x10 canvases.  Most folks in class seem to be working on bigger projects.  

The Betsy Lueke Creative Arts Center building is a beautiful studio with professional showings of community work.  The classroom is an open space in the corner of the studio.  There's a small courtyard in back, and a separate smaller outbuilding housing the pottery studio.  The CAC is adjacent to a park, so there's a sizeable parking lot and greenspace out front.  It's a bright, cheery place to come to learn. 

  

I did have something in mind--it's time to do a portrait of Caitie, the pup I lost last September to a bee sting.  Since she was only five when she passed, I hadn't yet gotten a painting done of her.  And I'd love to match ones I have of Chance and Claire, done by a professional artist.  Those are 8x10 so that's who I bought the size of canvas that I chose.  

Anyway, I went to the first class expecting a bit of an introduction, lecture, inventory of what supplies were needed for what purpose.  Instead our instructor Johnathon works by allowing us to paint, and offering help only where needed.  It seemed most of the people in the room were continuing students that knew the plan.  I took some time to pick the photo that I wanted to work from, and tried to sketch it out with his help.  I didn't bring the printed out photo to sketch from, but was instead trying to draw from viewing the photo on my tiny phone.  That was the biggest mistake.  While I liked my first instincts, there were a few parts of my drawing I was unhappy with.  When I asked for advice, the instructor erased the parts I was most happy with, and drew his own version of the face that I didn't think showed her personality.  I felt the drawing was taken over and I wasn't happy with the results.  So I scrapped it in favor of sketching in the quiet of home.  

My goal with the homework assignment was to sketch out my portrait of Caitie so that I can start painting in class tomorrow.  A Sunday afternoon is a perfect time to sketch.  But I think my new pup Callie understood that I was sad, missing Caitie, as I studied her photo.  She stuck to me like glue, even sitting on my chest, making it difficult to draw.  So I took a break for some puppy snuggles, and finished a bit later.  I was glad I chose to sketch in daylight.  I'll feel good going into class tomorrow prepared.