Experience our full-time program in a week-long workshop.

Students begin by drawing a plaster cast or still life in charcoal, developing their ability to render accurate proportions and value relationships. As students progress, they are introduced to the fundamentals of oil and/or pastel techniques, composition and color.

Experience our full-time program in a week-long workshop.

Life drawing is at the core of any serious program of fine arts. In the class, students draw from the figure in pencil. Each drawing is created over a period of several sessions, developing the student's eye for accurate proportions, gesture and anatomy.

This workshop introduces and builds upon the essential principles of color study and their practical application in painting. Through lectures, demonstrations, and hands-on exercises, students will deepen their understanding of how to observe, interpret, and utilize color relationships with greater sensitivity and accuracy to reflect the lighting condition, the complexion of the model and the environment. While principles regarding tonal relationship will be discussed as well, the primary focus of the workshop is the effective use of a chromatic palette.

Instruction is tailored to each student's skill level rather than following a fixed schedule. While individualized guidance is central to the course, this workshop is best suited for students with drawing foundation.

Model poses will range from 1 to 6 hours in the beginning of the workshop and will end with a 2-3 day pose. This workshop is ideal for students with basic drawing experience who are ready to deepen their understanding of color.

Demonstration for Color Study & Figure Painting Workshop

Bring More Expressive Energy into Your Work

"Good paintings always exude an energy that flows from a harmonious balance of contrasts." -Hongnian Zhang

What is it that gives great paintings their startling impact—their “Chi”? The energy in master paintings flows from the artist's understanding of instinct and exaggeration. Exaggeration is personal and intuitive, and can be a frightening idea for a classically trained painter. Yet this elusive, instinctive Chi is intimately tied to the quality of experience we artists offer our viewers!

As an artist who also teaches, Mary has felt compelled to understand and explain this phenomenon. This search has led her to study with Chinese master artists, Zhang WenXin and Jove Wang; to excursions with Jove to China, Europe, and Russia. Jove introduced her to the idea of “Chi” in great paintings. It is he who convinced her we cannot “get there” through technique and reason alone; we must understand, develop, and employ our intuitive, inward vision.

In this demonstration and lecture Mary will share her journey and takeaways thus far as she moves closer to understanding what actually makes a masterpiece.

All levels welcome.

In this workshop, students will work in the Alla Prima method to paint three still-life paintings, one each day. Alla prima translates to “in the first” and is a wet-intowet painting technique.

Students are encouraged to bring their own props to create meaningful paintings. Each morning, the instructor will do a demonstration, and in the afternoon, students will work on their paintings and receive individual critiques. An emphasis on mark making, painting loosely, expressive color, and how to make a picture will be discussed. All levels are welcome.