First Painting Class

After searching for two weeks for an art studio that offered painting classes to fit my schedule, I finally found one. Today was my first class.

When the art teacher finally called me back to discuss classes she mentioned that she taught oils, acrylics and water colors. Being relatively inexperienced I decided on acrylics. She informed that this was a six week class that met Tuesday evenings and since I had missed the first class I would only be charged for five plus an additional fee if I used her supplies, which she advised so in case I changed mediums I wouldn't be stuck with things I may not use. This worked out well for me because art supplies are not cheap and I was unsure about acrylics. My art experience was limited to basic classes in elementary and high school, where the teachers paid little attention to those who did not display much talent. I am the type of person who thrives with one on one teaching. This class seemed like a good fit for me.

Upon arriving to class I was not sure what to expect, seeing as I missed the first class. Everyone else there was much older than me and they had been painting for several years, about eight or so. Like anything this takes practice and patience and I am determined to stick with this. To start with my teacher showed me pictures of nature landscapes in order to explain light, shadow, warm and cool colors. She said that warm and cool colors can coexist due to light and shadow. Then we went over the basics: primary and secondary colors and how the opposites on the color wheel are complimentary. After this she let me know that in her class we mix our own black since black does not occur naturally and she also taught me that black is the absence of color. So for the duration of the class I learned how to use colors to make black. First she had me mix ultramarine blue and burnt sienna. This I found to be hard since it kept coming out muddy. Next I mixed crimson and emerald green, which I found was easier and the black came naturally. Throughout this I discovered that acrylics dry pretty quickly so you can not really dawdle. After class I discussed this with her we decided that my first assignment would be acrylics and if I then decided I did not like, I could switch to oils, which takes longer to dry out.

Sadly next week there is not class. Just as I was getting into it. However, I learned that my first assignment will be drawing pears. This is seen as a right of passage. Luckily for me my mom has some fake pears lying around so I will be getting a jump start on this and will be displaying my progress on here from the start to the finished product.