Still working on Understanding Perspective…

One more class to go in the current course of six “Understanding Perspective” classes! I have LOVED teaching these LIVE Zoom classes and “meeting” so many people from all over the world… Afghanistan, Australia, UK, USA, Canada, Malaysia, Holland, Dubai, and even Tanzania! These classes and connecting with other sketchers who want to learn more about perspective and painting is what is keeping me sane during this pandemic isolation, and I think the same goes for the workshop participants too. I am so grateful to these groups of wonderful, eager students — I can’t thank you enough!

That said, this is no mere workshop, but more of a deep dive college course into all kinds of perspective topics. The first three classes focus on general perspective sketching and watercolor with a one hour Powerpoint interactive lecture followed by a 2+ hour demo that we sketch and paint together. But it’s the second set of three classes that really cements things… multiple vanishing points (like in the Piazza San Marco in Venice), unpacking how ellipses work in perspective (they defy common sense!), and using ellipses and circles to accurately draw arches (do you know why arches typically have big feet?), like in the demo sketch from class shown above. Next week we “look up” to sketch domes and towers!

We learn how to paint in layers, starting with an underpainting of warm “solids” and cool “voids”. Then there is the wonderful glow of bounced light that we get from Daniel Smith’s Quinacridone Burnt Orange, together with my “Magic Gray”! You get to see what I am drawing and painting from about 10″ away–you have a better view than I do! And we go into lots of detail, with no question unanswered.

Some want to take the course a second time, and the first groups wanted the classes to continue, so we added three more sessions to make it a course of NINE classes! I’m planning on launching another series of classes again in January 2021. Stay tuned for more information~~