COURSE DESCRIPTION

Major, Elective credit. This class explores various painting and drawing techniques with heavy emphasis on developing methodologies of abstraction and non-representational painting.

 

COURSE LEARNING OBJECTIVES: 

1. Strengthen skills in painting techniques, color theory, and design elements and principles.

2. Develop a working knowledge on the techniques of abstraction and non-representational painting. Technical skill in the construction and preparation of a canvas.

3. Develop an understanding of the process of concept development and personal expression within one’s own artwork. 

4. Evaluate art critically, both orally and written utilizing a visual vocabulary.

5. Understand safety methods that are used in painting.  

6. Develop a basic understanding of documentation of artwork and its purpose for fine artists. 

 

COURSE LEARNING OUTCOMES:

1. Develop technical skills and practical methodologies for abstraction.

2. Understand the strategies of mixing and applying paint to represent experimental, non-representational, and abstract forms.

3. Be able to compose a well-balanced and thoughtfully executed piece.

4.Demonstrate an understanding of 2D composition and pictorial space through various drawing and painting materials

5.Students will work responsibly in the classroom using appropriate safety methods.

6.Students will produce a set of digital images of paintings created during the term.
 

Students taking this graduate level painting course are in the MEd Art Education program, it is important to note because it is a bit more rudimentary than a MFA Painting course may be, as many of the student’s primary interest may not be painting and they are often coming into the program with various skillsets and at various levels. It is because of this, that I model the class after the undergraduate Painting II course, which allows for students to tailor the course to their specific needs, whether it be to acquire traditional representational skills or perhaps more conceptual skills. The course is also taught during an abbreviated summer session in just twelve days. 

 

Digital Portfolio: 

All art and design students are required to establish a Digital Portfolio in which all artwork created during your time at Converse is documented on Google Drive and placed on your personal website. Documentation techniques will be covered in the class and students expected to document all paintings created in the course. Some digital images will be emailed to the instructor at the end of the term. 

 

Project #1: Painting and Photography.

With this project students will develop a methodology for abstracting from a photograph, using simplification, found/ arbitrary color, and distortion. We look at the history of the influence of photography on painting, read Eugene Delacroix’s Letters on Photography, and we view and discuss many examples of contemporary artists who utilize the photograph in their work either as a tool or a source. 

 

• Size and quantity: 3 Paintings any size

• Artist Inspiration: Peter Doig, Laurel Sparks, Carrie Moyer, Annie Lapin, Cecily Brown, Jenny Saville.

• Reading: “Mamma Anderson.” Anthology: Living with Substance and Style. February 28, 2011. Accessed March 19, 2015.http://anthologymag.com/blog3/2011/02/28/mamma-andersson/. Deleuze, Gilles. “Painting Forces.” In Francis Bacon: The Logic of Sensation, 63. New York, New York: Continuum, 2003.

 

Find any image that you consider to be visually interesting and using tracing vellum, trace the image editing out any unnecessary/ information.

Then find another image that you feel has interesting color and single out the colors and values to reveal its ratio. 

Ex. Take the photo and cut out each color, glue each color into a cluster on a clean white sheet of paper.

 

Painting #1: Make one painting that maintains proportions from a line drawing and found color ratio.

Painting #2: Make the second painting that distorts proportions of the line drawing and uses the same palette in a totally different ratio.

Painting #3: Make a third painting that distorts the proportions of the line drawing, uses the same palette but exaggerates value, working in a high key or low-key range.

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