Burridge Workshop, Day 5, October 5 ~Mendocino Art Center ~ Art Blog

Dancers
11x15 acrylic on gessoed paper
This was an end of the day exercise and I gave my girls some colorful clothes.

On the student slide show on the previous post, I’ve added two new students. Merry decided she would hold up her table cover as it was so attractive after her paint splatters. Marcia holds up her canvas painting and if you see it anywhere please let us know as when she got ready to pack up she couldn’t find it. Marcia, I do hope its safe at home with you now.

Oh, how we hate to pack up and leave on the last day of this wonderful experience: beautiful workshop in a beautiful setting. I planned to paint, but never got my brush wet on Day 5. We had a group meeting in the morning and Bob answered questions and gave advice on photographing work, getting into shows, copyright, signature, how to approach a gallery, framing, matting, marketing. He cautioned us to remember we’re not in the framing business, but in the painting business. His advice on matting got a big laugh when he said when he judges shows, one of the first things he does is look at the mat and if it looks like it’s been cut with a butter knife, out it goes. He complimented our group and said we’d been a good class and that boils down to not having to deal with a bunch of prima donnas. From the first day he wanted us to have a good attitude. This is not the time to paint your masterpiece but time to have fun experimenting with new techniques and soar outside our comfort zone. I beamed when he complimented my drawings as I don’t consider myself a good drawer. Now I’ll try even harder.
I’ve felt like I was in a protected art cocoon and didn’t hear a radio or turn on the TV all week. We left about 3:00 and took off towards Willits and Sacramento on California 20 and saw many of those twisty, curvy signs again telling drivers to stay within 10 to 25 MPH and “Slower traffic use turnouts”. I was still in a art haze until Williams and we stopped at a convenience store for a snack. Here was a fellow on a cell phone leaning over his truck engine trying to figure out what was wrong, Mothers with hungry children in line to pay for their fast food so now I’m forced back out into the real world dealing with everyday human problems, traffic, and flight schedules. Art hibernation has been complete with the exception of my must have email news from my Canvas by Canvas painting group.
Regrets? I would say there would be one. There are numerous galleries in each town and I didn’t have time to check out each one of them. Instead we drove south on Saturday after arriving, towards Mendocino and Point Arena and then Anderson Valley to the wineries. On Sunday called for a drive towards the redwoods, taller than any other living thing, so we could to see the country. We stayed at the Ebb Tide Lodge in Fort Bragg.


If some wanted a workshop break and they could walk into town for a quick lunch. Everyday was sunny with perfect temperate coastal weather and warm enough if you were sitting on the patio eating in the sun. Flower gardens and plants were blooming in this most picturesque of cities to entice us away from our day’s project.
If you ever travel this way, the Host airport hotel in Sacramento is right across the street from the airport. Friday evening after turning in our Budget rental, we grabbed a luggage cart and pushed it to our room to load it down Saturday. It was easy work from what could have been a daunting task for 2 seniors. Because I was afraid of having overweight baggage, one bag was 50 and one 51 pounds on the way out, we got a thrift store bag and loaded it up with art supplies. It is a challenge to fly and take an acrylic drawing/painting workshop, but Bob said “You don’t have to bring everything on the list”. Oh, you don’t understand, Bob. I want to bring everything on the list.
On the flight home in the early morning we saw the Grand Canyon and the first light dusting of snow on the mountains, then lots and lots of crop irrigation circles and I sketched some to use in a future painting. Good to be back in Texas and we got our bags loaded up and turned on a good country station looking for some Willie Nelson. Bob brings his “own” I pod music and plays it during painting and he tells us or maybe “warns” us to get prepared as “It’s my sandbox”. Oh, yes, a stop at a favorite barbecue café for some sliced brisket and sausage, beans, potato salad, and lots of iced tea for our nearly 90 degree day with hope of scattered showers.
All I want to do is go home and paint on some of the starts from the workshop but suitcases never made it in the house as I loaded them in the back of my Rav4 minus a few washables for a trip to Lubbock Texas the next day, Sunday, October 7, and a week at a Carla O’Connor workshop. I know. I know. But that's just how they were scheduled and I wanted to take both of them. I'll rest another day. More to follow.


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Burridge Workshop, Day 1 ~ Mendocino, CA ~ Art Blog

Mendocino, California October 1 – 5, 2007

I’m not in Texas anymore! I’m taking an acrylic painting class, "Contemporary Abstract Figurative Painting" in Mendocino, California and Monday, October 1 was the first day. Robert Burridge is the instructor.

The class description:

"This is a class for drawing and painting the contemporary nude. You will learn expressive painting techniques for the modern painter. If you have ever wanted to learn how to paint the free style abstract figure, this workshop is for you. Color theory explained and explored. You will learn the 12 Design Compositions for a successful painting. “Drawing the nude” skills are not a prerequisite. Variety of poses with the undraped model. Lots of paint sketching, gestural wet drawing and finger painting techniques. Be prepared to paint loser, bolder, freer, lighter and more intuitively. Plenty of time for action-filled painting exercises, demos and personalized attention. All eater-soluble paints are welcomed.”

ROBERT BURRIDGE paints almost every day in his country barn studio located on California’s Central Coast along the beaches of San Luis Obispo County. His style explores and interprets “real life” in his own passionate, painterly voice. Art critics describe his work as “vibrant, beautiful, masterly done and just a little tweaked;” and “His use of bold, rich color and adventurous texture, while complex, is uplifting and Pop.” His current subjects feature “the Good Life,” as seen through his life as an artist. He is the President of the International Society of Acrylic Painters. His work is featured on Starbucks Coffee mugs, Pearl Vodka bottles and on eight commercial tapestries.

The class is being held in the Mendocino Art Center and it is an educational, exhibition, and resource center for the visual and performing arts founded in 1959 and it overlooks the Pacific.

Mendocino County’s most visited city, Mendocino, a quaint New England style town with many of the buildings dating to the turn-of-the-century. The Mendocino Coast is one of the most picturesque areas of the state. Main Street is filled with dozens of shops on one side as the other side is left for a spectacular ocean view. There are art galleries and lots of restaurants and B&Bs. Many of the small towns along the Northern Coast region had their beginnings because of the logging and sawmill industry. Mendocino started as a logging town and has become an art colony and in the center of the village is the Mendocino Art Center, which hosts classes and seminars each year.

Classes run from 9:30 to 4:30 each day. Our model, G., arrived about 10:00 a.m. and we drew and painted all day except for a lunch break and short model breaks. These sessions ran anywhere from 2-3 minute poses to two 45 minute drawing and painting sessions. The room set up is not ideal. There are 2 adjoining rooms and the model stand is in between. The class is full with about 20 students and 30 on a waiting list. My biggest concern is there is not a table and chairs set aside for Bob to do demos – the main reason I take a workshop is to see the instructor paint. I hope this situation improves. We are the only class this week in session and I hope later we can have a demo set up on the patio area.

Some Bob instructions:

1. Maintain a GOOD attitude. Don’t expect to do a great painting. Paint the way you’ve always wanted to paint. If you end up with a lousy painting so what. Do hundreds of paintings and drawings.
2. Try to find a theme or series. For example, at present he’s doing a circus theme. He’s just finished a Wingland/Lovers theme. He recommended the book “Water for Elephants”. A theme is something closest to your heart. Know and trust your heart and develop a theme and place a model in your theme.
3. Nothing is original. Everything has been done before BUT not by you. That’s what makes it your original.
4. Experiment with your drawing. Draw with twigs, paper towels, big brushes, pens, charcoal. You can include more than the model.
5. For the gesture drawings, do not put in eyebrows or fingernails.
6. Most people make the head too large. Try to exaggerate a feature.
7. We used very little color and started with black and white paint or gesso and then added one color, and later added one more color just as a highlight color.

After the class, I visited 2 local art supply stores and just looked. You never think you have enough supplies but I restrained myself and settled for a wonderful dinner, upstairs and overlooking the city, in Fort Bragg at the Mendo Bistro. for fresh pasta and wine. Too tired for any homework and fell asleep reading my handouts. I'm being courageous posting this initial attempt but I'll work on her later.