Copying Van Gogh's Roses and Teaching Master Copies at the Art League this Autumn
Last day at the National Gallery of Art, Copying “Roses” by Van Gogh
This year I am offering an ONLINE “Still-Life with Oils” class taught through the Alexandria Art League. We will be diving deep into the evocative beauty of great still-lifes and how creating a master copy can inform your own painting practice.
In 2014 I was commissioned to copy Van Gogh’s “Roses”. For this painting I studied the materials Van Gogh used and set out to replicate his process through deduction and analysis. I used his color palette, replacing stable pigments with the fugitive ones he used, and set to work.
Painting this copy had an added benefit, in that the experience inspired me to experiment and explore still-life compositions I had never done before. As a result, I created three still-lifes as a response to copying the Van Gogh painting. I wanted to apply some of his bold paint handling into my work, to not be afraid of laying down thick layers of paint, and to view the picture plane as a flattened space where color and pattern prevailed. I think the influence of copying this Van Gogh still shows up in my work today. And I account my versatility in paint handling to all the different copies I have created since committing to be an artist in 2009.
My goal for the class at the Art League, is to teach ideas and concepts that are best absorbed by action. The action of reverse-engineering and problem solving, and then executing through practice.
The class is divided into three multi-week projects with the first painting effort of the term focusing on analyzing and completing a master copy. The subsequent two painting projects will be original still-life setups inspired by the master copy.
We will utilize technology and paint from photo references. The subsequent paintings in the class will be original still-life setups that continue on along similar themes of the master copy we completed. I will provide all photo references for the students to work from.
All levels are welcome, no prior oil painting experience is necessary, some drawing experience is helpful.
Also, in anticipation of the class, I am offering a free 2-hour painting demo and Q&A session on Tuesday, September 15th from 10am to noon EST. Send me your email address if you want to attend the free demonstration.
Class starts on Tuesday, September 29th. We will meet Tuesday mornings from 9:30am to 12:30 EST. Signup here.