Marc Hanson Workshop Report...Day One

Concept Exercise on an 11x14 panel

Let me begin by saying that I am in workshop learning mode.  I am trying things outside of my comfort zone so I am not expecting great paintings.  I am pushing myself to learn new things so I can grow as an artist.  I'd like to share my experience with you and I'll show you the good, bad and the ugly!

I am attending a 3 day oil workshop with Marc Hanson. If you aren't familiar with his work have a look at his website HERE   I first discovered Marc's pastels a few years ago and I became a fan of his work. And now that I am interested in oils I knew that he would be a great instructor for me. I jumped at the chance to join this workshop near home.

The workshop is in Atlanta but it was anything but Hot-Lanta today. It was in the 40's, cloudy and windy all day. But we all braved the cold and enjoyed the moodiness of the day.  Marc's plan for us today was to do some exercises to get us out of our comfort zones and to help us with both the mechanical and the emotional sides of painting.

Marc showing us his Value Comparison Tool

 First we did some value studies.  We divided an 11x14 panel into 4 sections. Using only black and white paint we did a Light Value painting, a Dark Value painting, a Middle Value painting and the last one was an equally weighted all over value pattern. Below is a photo of Marc's paintings. I forgot to take a picture of mine. It was really too cold to get the camera out!

Marc's Black and White Studies

 Below is a photo of some of the artists watching the demo. It was cold! I had quite a few layers so I was actually comfortable enough. Thank goodness for long underwear and wool socks!

It's a Cold Day in Hot-lanta!

 After lunch it was back to the easel this time for an exercise that would help us tap into the more emotional part of painting.  We would also be painting in color!  The idea of this exercise was to choose one word the describes your concept for the subject you are painting. If you know why you want to paint something,,,what you want to say about it...it will guide the decision you make as you paint.

My concept word studies still on the easel

We taped off 4 sections of an 11x14 canvas.  Here are my studies. Here are my concept words from top left...Quiet, Mystery,Promise of a better day, Color Surprise.  It was a fun exercise and one that I will definitely do again!

We're up early for another day so stay tuned!