ART TIP: Holiday Party idea
Monday, December 16, 2019
My Students! What can I say....
they are my tribe
And my inspiration!
And so for the second annual holiday party at my home, I planned a little art project this year. (I’ve been teaching going on 6 years this coming January...don’t know why it took me so long to add the holiday party to the end of our year, sorry about that, but it is now a highlight of the year. 😊)
Anyhoo, a lovely gathering of artists and delicious foods, lots of wine, hot spiced cider on the stovetop, and so many groups of kind souls sitting here, standing there, everywhere, the house was full and artwork on every wall, a jolly time was had by all.
After some munchies and a glass of wine, the art began. Here’s what we did:
Everyone upon arriving picked out a little rectangle of art, which was cut out of a large full painting. Then the objective was to copy the little art rectangle onto a larger watercolor paper piece. Everyone contributed their little painting to the whole, even the couple of non-painters who attended. Aha!
The paint above is a very inexpensive gouache set, from China, I believe. The perfect consistency nice and moist and ready to go, for this project. For sketching and journaling and just all around fun, this gouache is a blast to work with. Here’s the link if you are interested in checking it out. There are 18, 24 and 48 sets.
After the little paintings were done, we set them aside to dry. With almost 30 people here it took awhile for everyone to find a place in my studio and the two tables to work on. There was a paint station at one art table, and an assortment of dry art supplies at the other desk. No rules!
Watch a master use these gouache for a still life painting:
_____________________________
Be Creative. It's Good for the Soul!
Blessings, Joanie
To subscribe to this newsletter,
Simply click here!
they are my tribe
And my inspiration!
And so for the second annual holiday party at my home, I planned a little art project this year. (I’ve been teaching going on 6 years this coming January...don’t know why it took me so long to add the holiday party to the end of our year, sorry about that, but it is now a highlight of the year. 😊)
Anyhoo, a lovely gathering of artists and delicious foods, lots of wine, hot spiced cider on the stovetop, and so many groups of kind souls sitting here, standing there, everywhere, the house was full and artwork on every wall, a jolly time was had by all.
After some munchies and a glass of wine, the art began. Here’s what we did:
Everyone upon arriving picked out a little rectangle of art, which was cut out of a large full painting. Then the objective was to copy the little art rectangle onto a larger watercolor paper piece. Everyone contributed their little painting to the whole, even the couple of non-painters who attended. Aha!
The paint above is a very inexpensive gouache set, from China, I believe. The perfect consistency nice and moist and ready to go, for this project. For sketching and journaling and just all around fun, this gouache is a blast to work with. Here’s the link if you are interested in checking it out. There are 18, 24 and 48 sets.
After the little paintings were done, we set them aside to dry. With almost 30 people here it took awhile for everyone to find a place in my studio and the two tables to work on. There was a paint station at one art table, and an assortment of dry art supplies at the other desk. No rules!
Watch a master use these gouache for a still life painting:
The next day I gluesticked down each piece in its proper order, covered with a bunch of deli papers (parchment or waxed paper works fine, too) then covered with a large piece of plexiglass and weighted with my old books, also collage sources.
Now for the REVEAL!
Henri Matisse’s Basket with Oranges Still Life
And I even found a little Frames app with this gilded frame. Fun, eh?
I give my students, and myself, a 3 week refreshment time in December, so I won’t be back teaching until the week of January 6th, 2020. Meanwhile I am putting together another 12 month plan of instruction and inspiration for the new year. I also leave for Seattle tomorrow for a week with my younger daughter. Can’t wait!!!
Happy Holidays, Solstice and a Very Merry Christmas to you all.
PS - As most of my students are returning I have maybe 1 or 2 openings so if you are interested, please let me know asap so I can reserve you a seat. I teach Mondays 10 to noon, and again on Mondays 1 to 3. And on Wednesday mornings 10 to noon. I teach at Riley Street Art Supply in Santa Rosa, CA. More class info here.
_____________________________
Be Creative. It's Good for the Soul!
Blessings, Joanie
To subscribe to this newsletter,
Simply click here!