July 11-15
9am-3pm EST
@Townsend Atelier
Instructor: Elisabeth Durham
adults and 17+
all levels are welcome!
Yay! Summer art camp for adults! Come and spend a week learning all of the steps, from beginning to end, to create a photorealistic painting. Students will learn how to successfully compose a still life, execute an accurate drawing, and paint it in a photorealistic style. In addition, students will learn how to photograph their subject matter, stretch and prep their own canvas, layout their drawing in a grid technique, basic color theory and mixing in oils, and, of course, painting.
For inspiration, the beginning of the class will include a brief presentation of realistic paintings in art history centered around food. Students will work from a photograph of a still life of food related objects that they bring from home (ex: old tea bags on a chipped plate, a half-eaten piece of toast, fruit, vegetables, a sandwich, slice of pie, glass of milk, jar of olives, salt and pepper shakers etc.) We will discuss photorealism and drawing techniques after which each student will compose their still life, photograph it, then grid and draw their compositions onto canvas.
Following the drawing portion, students will be introduced to color theory through painting. Students will then learn how to oil paint through a fun mixing exercise. The last two and a half days will be dedicated to painting a photorealistic composition. On the final day, we will open up the studio during the last hour for a wrap-up party and look at everyone’s work together.
This class is perfect for anyone who wants a crash course (or a refresher) in a variety of skills centered around oil painting. Each student will complete one 12″ x 14″ painting. There will be a one-hour lunch break each day. Lunch is on your own. We have a fridge and microwave should you want to dine in!
Click here for the materials list
Click here for daily schedule
ABOUT THE INSTRUCTOR:
Elisabeth Durham is a multi-media artist and educator who works primarily in painting and fibers. She holds a Masters in Fine Arts from the University of Pennsylvania where she was the recipient of the Lawrence Shiprintz Award in 2020. She has a Bachelor’s in Drawing and Painting from Maryland Institute College of Art and a Bachelors of Science in Art Education from Appalachian State University. Elisabeth has extensive experience teaching in both public and private sectors of education including time as a teaching artist for the Young Audiences of Maryland in Baltimore, as well as an adjunct professor of oil painting at the University of Pennsylvania. Her work has been shown in numerous exhibitions along the east coast and was most recently published in the NYC based zine, WMN. Currently Elisabeth works as a freelance muralist and painter in Baltimore, Maryland.
image credit: Double Ketchup by Ralph Goings, oil on canvas
