DRAWING AND PAINTING, A METHODOLOGY

Bennett Vadnais, Instructor

Sign up or contact Bennett with questions: bennettvadnais@gmail.com

Open to all levels of experience, this class will explore the basic principles involved in traditional realistic drawing and painting. Students will start with simple objects then progress to more challenging subjects. Vadnais’ basic approach is a time honored method that has the advantage of being effective for almost any subject matter a student finds compelling whether it be portraiture, the figure, still life, landscape, or these elements in combination. It involves three main stages that students will experience as they learn to create a finished drawing.

Firstly: Tentative Line. In this initial stage students are encouraged to work quickly and focus all their energy on capturing the basic elements of their subject. At this stage, proportion is of paramount importance.

Secondly: Light and Shade. This is the stage where students will start to consider their drawing or painting in terms of 3-dimentional form. By first separating the masses of shadow from the masses of light, students will learn to create solidity in their work. From the large simple masses, smaller forms can be developed depending on time limitations and the skill level of the individual students.

Thirdly: Line or edge. After the solid form has been built up with light and dark values, the final stage is to assert more definitively the quality of the outline or border, adding any accents that may still be required.

Beginning students will be encouraged to deal with each stage of the work fully and separately. More advanced students will find they can develop their work more fluidly, sometimes utilizing elements of all three stages at one time.

This class is suitable for both beginning and advanced students working in drawing media, oils, or acrylics. Specific subject matter will vary depending on the skill level of the student.