Welcome to the highlights from Essential Techniques Day at Realism Live!
We’re thrilled to kick off this inspiring week with energy and purpose, bringing together artists of all levels, from seasoned creators to those picking up a brush for the very first time. This week is all about helping you reach your artistic goals and expand your creative skills.
Five years ago, Realism Live started as a response to the pandemic, offering artists an accessible, online way to learn and connect. Despite doubts, the event has thrived thanks to artists like you who value the flexibility and accessibility of virtual learning. Whether you can’t travel or prefer to learn from home, Realism Live is here to support you.
Hosted by Eric Rhoads and Peter Trippi, we explore techniques with a lineup of exceptional instructors, each one focused on making artistic concepts easy to grasp. Our advice is that as you participate, stay fully present—try to avoid distractions so you can catch every “aha!” moment. Eric says to remember that this is your time to soak up valuable knowledge, even if you’re simply observing and not painting along.
Today’s sessions included workshops by Kristy Gordon, Sarah Sedwick, Mark Pugh, Carol Peebles, Yana Beylinson, and Suzie Baker, plus an exciting evening paint-along to wrap things up. Over the next few days, we’ll also hear from Michelle Dunaway, Matt Ryder, Michael Mentler, and many others.
Eric said to take advantage of every aspect of Realism Live: meet other artists, learn from one another, and, of course, explore our art auction to support both your growth and our talented faculty.
Highlights from Realism Live 2024 Essential Techniques Day:
The composition can make or break a painting, so Kristy Gordon likes to give this element its due attention. In her demo, she explained how to compose a painting, how to analyze elements of a composition, how to make changes to strengthen the work, and more.
Keeping it basic for beginners, Sarah Sedwick led a “Mixing and Understanding Color” workshop that focused on how to mix color for shadows using a split primary palette. She painted the same orange using several different backgrounds to teach concepts on cast shadows, pointing out that light strength and temperature affect the colors as well.
Mark Pugh began creating art at a very young age but did not pursue a career as an artist until later in his adult life. After earning a degree in psychology, Pugh decided to change course and develop his artistic skills with help from his mentor, Jeffrey Hein. For his Realism Live demo, Mark taught a lesson on value, particularly its relationship with form and light, and how to use it to create a more realistic portrait.
Carol Peebles went over the basics of how to approach a realistic portrait with charcoal. She used a photo reference but encouraged us to work from life. Carol added, “Remember when you’re working to always humble yourself to observational tools, your quadrant sheet, your sighting stick, plum lines, horizontal lines, and comparative measurements; those are the things that will help you with a likeness. If you find yourself kind of looking and guessing, then just remember, go back to your structure, and slow down. That will help you every time.”
Originally from Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Yana Beylinson is a painter based in New Jersey today. She says that if you’re using a photo reference, make sure your painting surface is the same size as your reference, and mount it at the same height. “I recommend grounding your surface with a bright, chromatic color — preferably red, magenta, or yellow,” she says, adding, “It would also be helpful to lay in your underdrawing. I keep my underdrawing light and general, using only straight lines.”
Suzie Baker led an oil landscape painting demonstration. If you catch the replays of her workshop, she says for the drawing portion, start with a sanded gesso panel to work on. To follow along with the color portion, have a bit of drawing done and sealed in order to take advantage of the color and brushstroke exploration.
We want to give a huge thanks to today’s sponsors, Blick Art Materials and Sennelier/Raphael/Fabriano/Cretacolor, for making this event possible. Let’s keep the momentum high and make this week transformative! Join us now at RealismLive.com.
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