This workshop is designed to guide the students toward creating a painting from a photo reference, using both indirect and direct traditional painting techniques. It aims to instruct painters on how to use the photograph to create a painting that surpasses the look of the photograph, not simply imitates a photograph.
The workshop will explain how to create a useful photo reference, covering topics such as ideal lighting, camera settings, lenses, Photoshop, and printing. The process will begin with preparations such as choosing a composition through quick sketches from a variety of reference photos, progressive oil sketches with limited use of the photograph, and then laying in the composition with an imprimatura wash. When that is dry, the students will learn to create color relationships that portray the space and volume, creating the illusion. Emphasis is then placed on paint application and ways of activating the surface.

A sip ’n’ paint event inspired by Expressionist painter Franz Marc will be offered from 7-9 pm, Thursday, June 27, at Eastport Arts Center. Organizer Sue Riddle, who has named the event ‘On Your Marc … Get Sip … Go!’ notes “I am drawn to Marc for his fabulously colorful animal paintings—which are just juicy, glorious things. In one article I read, it mentioned that he wanted to see animals from their perspective, but he also wanted to use colors as symbols of certain qualities and emotions.” Participants in the event (a follow-up to Riddle’s Sip ’n’ Klimt, inspired by the works of Gustav Klimt, held last year) can choose to copy directly from a Marc painting or create a tribute based on an animal photo brought from home. Another option is to attempt to recreate or continue one of Marc’s ‘lost’ works, referencing images from Marc’s sketchbook, created in the field near the time of his death in World War I. All materials will be provided for the sipping painters, as well as things to sip (alcoholic and non-alcoholic) and snacks.

Escape the creative confines of a highly structured art class and participate in a unique course where each student is taught in the media and style of their own choosing. During this course, you will be encouraged to bring ideas that mean something to you. Students will have an opportunity to contact the instructor prior to the course so that he may best help you prepare for a most enjoyable "Art Escape". This course will begin with some clear, practical drawing exercises to enhance observation and portrayal skills. The remainder of the course will be devoted to individual instruction in the mediums, styles and subjects of each learner’s choosing. This is an excellent opportunity for students to expand their knowledge of their favorite medium or learn the basic skills of a new one. Students will also learn a great deal through demonstration given to others in their mediums and styles.

This course will introduce the student to a variety of watercolour techniques using flowers, fruit and vegetables for subject matter. Through demonstrations and discussions learn the wonderful versatility of watercolour while exploring the natural world. This class is designed for beginners and those wishing to improve their skills.

Join plein air landscape painter Michael Chesley Johnson for small-size outdoor painting workshops and painting retreats in Lubec, Maine, July-August 2019. Looking for a small workshop? Plein Air Painting Maine plein air painting workshops are limited typically to only 4 students. You'll get much more feedback and personal help in these small workshops. Only 90 miles from Bar Harbor, Maine! Lubec (Maine) and Campobello Island (New Brunswick) are quiet, beautiful retreats for the plein air painter. Think romantic lighthouses, cobblestone beaches, cliff overlooks, broad meadows, working harbours - and lobster! Lubec, Maine, is a historic working waterfront with many opportunities for the painter. Adjacent Campobello Island is home to both the Roosevelt-Campobello International Park and the Herring Cove Provincial Park. Both locations provide lodging and dining to make sure your workshop week is an enjoyable one! Workshops run Tuesday-Friday, 8-12 Eastern, 9-1 Atlantic. This leaves you plenty of time in the afternoons to explore the area -- or, you can paint more on your own!  Lubec, Maine, and nearby Campobello Island offer hiking, biking, kayaking, whale watch tours and more!

Expand your stone-setting skills by learning new techniques of setting various styles of gemstones in different and creative ways. We will cover a variety of methods, incorporating cast and fabricated settings for round, oval, princess and pear-shaped faceted stones, as well as pearls and cabochons, in a hands-on learning environment.

Orff based music education program combines music, movement, drama and speech in lessons that are similar to child's world of play.

The print shop is opening its doors to teens who want to explore creative process of print making. They will make their own poster and/or t-shirt that expresses who they are in a fun and nourishing environment. Snacks will be provided. July 8-12.

This workshop will combine art history with art making, exploring how landscape painting in Western art reflects the complicated relationship between humans and the environment. This course will focus in particular on changes in the conception of depth in painting and how this corresponds with the increasing separation between subject and object in Western thought more generally. We will explore ways of extending and flattening illusory space, working in a range of media (acrylic paint, charcoal, ink, pastels...) and from a variety of subjects, including collage, hand-made models, and plein air observation. We will consider the mystical space of Byzantine Icons, the development of linear perspective in the Renaissance, the concept of the Sublime in Romanticism and Modernism, and the fragmentation of space throughout the 20th century.

How do you describe the summer? It’s almost impossible not to start with the temperature and the comparative brightness of the sun and if we are lucky enough to be in a place like St. Andrews, with the water, the trees, the birds and the whales. And can you really describe what happens in the summer – say summer love -- without framing it with summer details? As a result, describing what the sky was like in the summer in a short story or essay can become an exercise in rendering emotion or opinion through detail. In this course, we will experiment with describing our summer landscape in the creation of either short stories or essays based in St Andrews.