Painting I Introductory Course in Painting Course Instructor: Brian Prugh
COURSE DESCRIPTION This introductory course in painting will address basic concepts of painting, focusing especially on the communication of space and form through color. Our consideration of painting will involve learning to see in terms of color and color relationships, heightening and directing this visual sense through the process of making paintings. Painting will be considered both historically and in relation to contemporary practice. The course will cover the basic elements of color theory and the techniques behind different ways of constructing paintings, including both direct and indirect painting methods. Students will then investigate a painter of their choice and develop a final project based on that painter’s technique, style and subject matter. The course consists of three major components: in-class work, homework and critiques.
IN-CLASS WORK In-class work will involve engagement with visual concepts and with different ways of creating paintings. Students are expected to use techniques described in class, even though they may at first seem unfamiliar, difficult, or counter-productive. Painting techniques described in class are aimed at giving the student greater expressive flexibility, but often take some adjustment and acclimation (and some bad paintings) before their expressive possibilities are realized. Please keep all in-class work, as it will be included in the midterm and final portfolios. In-class assignments will be graded based on intensity of work, engagement with concepts presented and the medium used. Steady work throughout the class period is expected: please ask for guidance if you don’t know where to take the painting.
HOMEWORK Homework assignments are designed to reinforce the concepts presented in class and to offer the opportunity for further growth and development. Students should expect to spend about 6 hours outside of class, which will include the preparation of supports and the completion of homework assignments. It is oftentimes the case with painting that one will have several paintings going at one time: students are expected to develop time and process management skills to ensure that paintings are complete for the midterm and final critiques.
CRITIQUES Students will develop a formal and technical vocabulary with which to approach painting. Critiques will offer students an opportunity to get feedback on their work and to hone their ability to talk about painting in a more considered way. Therefore, students are expected to talk during critiques. Participation grades will be based upon students’ contributions to discussions and critiques.
1
ATTENDANCE Due to the nature of this course, in which concepts are presented in classroom demonstrations and individual instruction happens during each class period, attendance at all classes is essential and mandatory. Three or more absences will result in a penalty of one letter grade; six or more absences will result in failure of the course. Three tardies are equal to one absence.
GRADING The course consists of three major components: in-class work, homework and critiques. Additionally, each student will make a 5-10 minute presentation on a painter of choice in preparation for the final project. Portfolio grades will be based on homework and in-class work. Course grades will be calculated as follows: PORTFOLIO
85% of final grade
Midterm
40%
Final
45%
PRESENTATION
5% of final grade
PARTICIPATION
10% of final grade
Students are encouraged to talk to the professor at any point during the semester if they have questions about grades.
SCHEDULE Week 1
Unit 1: Materials, Form and Color
T - Introductory Lecture, introduction to materials and the preparation of grounds. Prepare 10 panels for Unit 1: sand and gesso Masonite or MDF panels in a variety of rectangular shapes with dimensions ranging from 8-10 inches on one side and 10-14 inches on the other. R – Introduction to value, tint and shade chart. Creating form with value; getting acquainted with materials.
Week 2
Unit 1: Materials, Form and Color
T – Introduction to temperature. Still lives with value and temperature. HOMEWORK: Still life with tint and shade Make two paintings of a still life using only one tint and one shade for each panel. Use a warm shade for one painting (burnt sienna) and a cool shade for the other (terre verte). R – Using temperature to create form: Still lives with temperature. 2
Week 3
Unit 1: Materials, Form and Color
T – Introduction to hue: Color wheels and observed color grids. HOMEWORK: Still life with value and temperature Create a more complex still life and use both value and temperature to create form and space. Things to consider: the relationship between figure and ground, and the spatial relationships between objects in the still life. For this exercise, use titanium white, burnt sienna and terre verte to create a range of values and temperatures. R – Still life in color. Week 4
Unit 1 Critique / Unit 2: Painting Directly
T – Critique. In-class paintings and homework assignments to date. HOMEWORK: Still life in grays Make two still life paintings based on a set-up in which there is relatively little variation in value. The predominant color in the still life should be gray. In this assignment, use changes in hue to create form (temperature will be important here, but so will relationships between colors on the color wheel). Prepare 5 panels and 5 canvases for Unit 2. Create supports of various rectangular shapes with dimensions ranging from 10-14 inches by 14-18 inches. R – Introduction to painting directly. 30-minute paintings. Week 5
Unit 2: Painting Directly
T – Painting directly: landscape. HOMEWORK: “Paint by Numbers” Make two still life or landscape paintings in which you simplify the forms to a minimum number of colors. In the first painting, limit your palette to four colors and try not to blend the color together—allow juxtapositions of color to create a simplified, abstracted image of what you are looking at. In the second painting, limit your palette to eight colors. R – Painting directly: the figure.
Week 6
Unit 2: Painting Directly
T – Painting directly : the figure. HOMEWORK: Self-Portrait Paint your self-portrait using direct methods. Think of Cézanne and Matisse here, creating form through strong juxtapositions of opposing colors rather than through smooth transitions of hue. R – Painting directly. Sign up for critique times for next week. 3
Week 7
MIDTERM CRITIQUE
MIDTERM PORTFOLIO Bring all paintings completed to your critique. Also, please upload digital images of your paintings onto ICON for the professor to review. For Unit 3, prepare 5 canvases of various rectangular shapes, with dimensions ranging from 16-20 inches by 18-26 inches. **BREAK** Week 8
Unit 3: Painting Indirectly
T – The process of painting indirectly. Building up form: still life. R – Building up form: the figure.
Week 9
Unit 3: Painting Indirectly
T – Glazing on color: still life. HOMEWORK: Three indirect paintings You will be working on three paintings for the next three weeks: one still life, one landscape, and one self-portrait. For Tuesday, build up the forms of the painting using the methods discussed in class. As these are the lower layers of the painting, remember to keep them “lean.” Use either a burnt sienna or terre verde ground. R – Glazing on color: the figure.
Week 10
Unit 3: Painting Indirectly
T – Highlights and deep shadows: still life. HOMEWORK: Three indirect paintings For Tuesday, the three indirect paintings should have arrived at an intermediate state with the major areas of color blocked out. R – Highlights and deep shadows: the figure.
Week 11
Unit 3 Critique / Unit 4: Final Project
T – Critique: indirect paintings – in class and homework paintings. HOMEWORK: Three indirect paintings The three indirect paintings should be completed by class on Tuesday, with the final highlights and deep shadows applied. R – Introduction of the final project. A brief history of painting. 4
WEEK 12
Unit 4: Final Project
T – Painter Presentations / work day HOMEWORK: Final project research The final project is twofold: you will research a painter you are interested in and choose a painting to copy. You will then make a painting of your own “after the manner” of that painter. For Tuesday, complete your initial research. Each student will make a five-minute presentation on their painter, discussing that painter’s technique and the painting that will be copied. You will need to do some investigating into how the painter worked, so that you can approximate his or her method of constructing the painting. For the copy, build a support that is the same size as the original, and use what you have learned about the painting method to build up the canvas as the painter might have done. The final paintings should be larger than two feet square. For your own painting, choose a subject that is related to that of the painting you copied, but feel free to use your source imaginatively. The painting (even the copy) will be yours because you made it; allow the painter you are emulating to help you through the process of creating the work. Remember, if you are working indirectly, you will need to start your painting early.
Week 14 - 15
Unit 4: Final Project
The remaining two weeks in the semester will be work days. The professor will be available to talk to each of you as you progress on your projects.
Final Exam Week
FINAL CRITIQUE
FINAL PORTFOLIO Bring all paintings completed to your critique. Also, please upload digital images of your paintings onto ICON for the professor to review.
5