Zhaoming Wu Workshop

It's been an age since I've last blogged. I've been trying to stay busy painting and so haven't had much time to write about what's been going on with my painting life. But I've done a few workshop reviews here so I think for people looking to experience a workshop with Zhaoming Wu this review may be of help. I try to do my homework when selecting a workshop to attend and it's really helpful when I can find information on a particular instructor in order to make a more informed decision. People are putting down their hard-earned money after all.

At this point I have a pretty short list of workshop instructors who I feel are simpatico with either my particular aesthetic sensibilities, or who have aspects of which I feel I would like to incorporate into my work. Zhaoming for me was right there in the top three I'd say.

I suppose there may be some terrible workshop instructors out there, but I've been fortunate in that all of the ones that I've attended thus far have been really great, this one being no exception. This was a three day workshop in rural Lowell, Michigan at the Franciscan Life Process Center. An interesting and beautiful place that seems to be growing into a workshop destination for the Midwest. The Center, as the name implies is run by an order of Franciscan nuns who work and live there. They sponsor and offer many other services which you can find on their website for peoples general well-being, but at some point the sisters felt that they wanted to support artists and the arts in general and so have begun putting together quite a list of some really outstanding visual artists to come there to teach. They have rooms there where you can stay, some of which have private baths, some where you share a bath. The rooms are simple and inexpensive but comfortable. You don't have to stay on the grounds and you can go to a nearby hotel if you so choose, but staying at the center really simplifies things as well as keeping costs down.

To continue, as I said, the workshop was three days. The first day. consisted of Zhaoming demonstrating his approach to painting a higher-key subject and after a break for lunch we would then try his approach in the afternoon. There were two models set up so it wasn't hard to find a decent painting spot, which can be a bit of an issue with some workshops. I personally felt like I struggled a bit that first day, but that will happen when you attend a workshop and are trying new things. One thing I might suggest to a prospective attendee would be to get some kind of easel light to help illuminate your work. Because Zhaoming"s work is generally very dramatically lit and higher contrast, the workshop lights have to be turned off in order to maintain the light contrast on the model. But that would make it hard to see what you were mixing on your palette at times. During breaks or lunch, when the lights would come up you could see how you badly you might be assessing things light-wise.

Zhaoming is from China, and he does retain a pretty heavy Chinese accent. Because of this there were some there that might have had a little trouble understanding him, but I'm pretty good at getting past thick accents so it wasn't a problem for me. I still think he would get his points across to most people fairly clearly. When it was our turn to paint, Zhaoming would come around and give us some things to look for and other things to avoid. One thing that was a good reminder for me is that Zhaoming would emphasize making a painting "look good" which translates to not being a slave to either your reference or the subject before you. Also doing or adding things for the sake of the design and not just because you want to add everything there. He has a kind of method that includes a number of logical steps. I won't include them here. You've got to pay for those yourself ;-). The steps are not etched in stone. They are helpful guidelines to help keep you on track to a more successful painting.

The last day was us painting the full day. He came around frequently and was very helpful in identifying problems you might be having. I think by the last day I was starting to get it a little more. One interesting thing about Zhaoming's way of painting is his choice of tools. He uses some pretty wide brushes to paint some fairly delicate areas. He also uses the fan brush quite a lot. But he doesn't use it to blend, the way a lot of artists do. He uses it to paint with, to lay down paint, and he also uses it on its edge to create thin lines. It's all really a sight to behold.

In closing, this is not a difficult workshop to recommend. Zhaoming was kind, polite, and open regarding sharing information of his methods. He doesn't get out to my neck of the woods much, or at all I think. So when I first heard the FLPC was hosting him I immediately signed up. I think you should too. But remember, attending workshops is all about attitude readjustment and learning. There were several accomplished artists there who I follow on social media. They all recognized Zhaoming's work and potential to contribute to their own styles and they all left their egos at home. This is, I think, our responsibility towards contributing to a successful workshop.

Zhaoming Wu Demo - Day 1

Demo 1 Detail

Zhaoming Wu Demo - Day 2

We Have a Winner

Way behind on my blog, but back in March I was very pleased and honored to win First Place Winner in the Emerging Artist category in the monthly on-line Art Muse Contest, with my entry Pioneer Daughter. This particular painting also won Directors Choice award in the annual BayArts juried competition in Bay Village, Ohio. Needless to say, or maybe I do need to say, that in my journey and efforts to improve as a painter, this was one painting in which a lot of things just seemed to go right. It certainly doesn't always happen, but when it does happen it feels pretty good. It was reassuring to receive the validation of what I was feeling by doing well with this painting.

Which leads me to the following segue.

Should we as artists enter juried shows and competitions? What do they mean? What purpose do they serve? Are they a valid measure of skill, creativity, progress, etc? That question it turns out is a fairly personal one. Not personal in the sense that it's something that I feel I have to keep to myself, but rather that the reasons are going to vary from person to person. I can only say that for me, I feel as though they do serve a purpose. In my view when I enter a juried competition I am in a sense asking the juror(s) for their critique of my work. Granted, it's a very stark critique. I'm not getting detailed feedback on what might be lacking in their view. But I'm accepting of whatever decision they make and I don't complain. If I don't get accepted (which has up to this point been more often than not) I take it as impetus to work harder and to take a more honest look at what I could do better in the future. I find honest and qualified critique from someone I respect to be golden. I seek it out actively. I do try to self-critique, but sometimes it seems we can just be blind to our own bad tendencies. So having that second set of eyes to me is really key to learning and making progress.

Anyway, just a few of my thoughts on participating in juried shows and competitions.

Pioneer Daughter

12 x 16 Oil on Linen

Interview

While in Atlanta at the annual conference for the Portrait Society of America I was able to hobnob with a number of artists that I'd never actually met personally, which was really enjoyable. One of the artists I had the opportunity to meet was Debby Lucille Bird, a figurative and portrait painter from Kentucky. Debby was so friendly and warm and as we talked and I got to know her a little more she'd mentioned that she kept a blog where she interviewed artists who were also parents and how they kept those two thing balanced.

Anyway, for some reason Debby felt that I was worthy of being interviewed for her blog. If you're curious about my reflections on maintaining and balancing a career as an artist and being a parent you can find the interview on her website over here!

Long Overdue Update

So it's been a long time since I've blogged here. There are several reasons, and I think they're all mostly good ones.

One of the reasons is that I've been fairly busy painting, trying new things, and just trying to improve in general. Lately, anytime I finish a painting, if I think it's a keeper I've been adding it to my website  rather than blogging about it here, so there are several new paintings that I haven't blogged about.
I'm not going to go back and try to tell my thoughts about each one of those more recent paintings. Instead I'll just put up this one to give a sense of where I'm at lately. This most recent painting was a pretty fair challenge. The photo I used as reference had to be altered a fair amount compositionally and color-wise. Painting from life a lot and studying other artist's paintings whose work I admire has helped a lot in terms of color and seeing shapes. Working as a professional illustrator has gone a long way towards recognizing good composition. I still have many aspects I want to improve in but all in all things are going in a good direction. I'm hoping for even greater break-through paintings/milestones this year. Just have to keep my nose to the old grindstone.

Mother Natures Son

Oil on Canvas 9 x 15

My New Website

I haven't been all that active on this blog because lately I've been trying to get my website together.

I don't have all my images up on it yet but I have enough that I thought I'd go ahead and publish it anyway. 

Check it out here:

Hope you like it.

Tulips

Something I haven't tried much in a while are still-life. I had some flowers I had bought thinking I would use them together in a figurative piece. That one didn't work out as well as I'd hoped. I'm sure I'll return to it eventually. I don't take defeat easily. In the meantime, I thought, I had better make use of some of these great flowers, so I put together a little floral in container situation to paint. Waste not want not, right?

Sorry for all the glare. I had a difficult time getting a shot without glare. I'll eventually post a better shot, but this will do for now.

Tulips

Oil on Linen - 9 x 12

A Positive Step Forward

I think all my recent painting efforts combined with the workshops I've attended is starting to show dividends. It goes without saying that the more you practice, or put time into something, the better you will get at that thing. I'm definitely not ready to say that it's become easy, but certain aspects are becoming a bit more, natural, shall we say.

Anyway, I felt like this past Friday's open studio effort at Bay Arts was a nice step towards developing my own style. Yes, it is just a sketch, but I like it as is.

Taylor Sue

A recent 3 hour study at Bayarts. I feel pretty good about how this one turned out although there is quite a bit of glare on the photo. Taylor Sue is a great model with a great fashion sense. Although it's not necessarily my goal to always paint pretty ladies, she just has such great features that painting her was a pleasure.

A New Painter Friend --- Meet Leslie Adams!

I met Leslie Adams through the critique program of the Portrait Society of America, of which I am a member. Leslie was assigned to me when I had submitted my name for a critique. The PSoA offers this service (at a cost) to its members who wish to have their work critiqued from a qualified professional. I was thinking I needed some evaluation and critique from a good set of eyes and so signed up for the service.

Anyway, Leslie responded and we had a nice long discussion about my work. During our conversation, to my surprise, I found out that she lived in Ohio. I have met a couple of artists in my area that were doing portraits and figures, but other than the ones I had already met I really didn't think that there were very many other serious figurative and/or portrait painters anywhere near me. I had just assumed that the person that was assigned to me would live somewhere cross country.  What a delight to find that Leslie was (practically) a neighbor. During our conversation I had mentioned that I was driving up to Wisconsin to attend Dan Gerhartz' workshop. Being a curious person and one who enjoys seeing the studios of other artists I had asked Leslie that since I was driving through Toledo anyway, if it would be okay if I stopped by on my way through to just meet personally and to see her studio. She said it would be fine and so on my way back home after the workshop I got to meet Leslie. It was a such a nice meeting and she has a really great studio space in downtown Toledo. She is such a warm, sweet, and lovely person and was so welcoming to me when we met. We had a great conversation regarding many aspects of my art and hers. I hope to do it again sometime. Aside from seeing some stupendous institutional portraiture in her studio, Leslie had some truly epic fine art pieces that included some of the most amazing and ambitious charcoal drawings I had ever seen in person.

If you are ever looking for a true heirloom portrait done by a real pro, Leslie is your lady.

Thanks again Leslie!

Daniel Gerhartz Workshop - Day 5

So, sorrow of sorrows, the last day of our workshop has finally come. The day I'd been dreading.

On this last day Dan had us paint one setup for the entire day, or around 6 hours. Each day prior to this we essentially had just concentrated on portraits with basically only a little regard to supporting environment. In this case Dan had taken some time prior to our arrival to set up a more involved design. While we were there he moved things, changed and added things, pulling from his extensive collection of props, furniture, fabric, etc,  from around his studio until he felt that he had come up with something that complimented the model and that had lent a kind of narrative quality to the setup.
This was a lot of fun and it gave me many great ideas for future paintings.

Some personal reflections on my experience of this workshop.

Full disclosure, this workshop for me was a bucket-list experience, I'm a big fan of Daniel's work. Not all of it mind you. Dan's subject matter can veer into the sentimental and to me, sometimes the color can go to the overly sweet or appear Thomas Kinkade-ish. This is not a criticism. Far be it from me to critique Dan Gerhartz. Even in the pieces of Dan's that I've seen that might fall into this category there is great merit and remarkable things to admire and take note of, if one has an open mind.

I think when Dan is "on" there are few that can match his chosen bravura/alla prima style or his grasp of light and color combined with his sense of composition and design and his strength in drawing. I could go on. He really has it all.

But in terms of the actual workshop experience Dan and Jennifer set the bar extremely high. Yes as workshops go it ain't cheap, but it is most definitely worth every penny, in terms of what you get back. Dan is a very giving and open teacher. There isn't a trace of guile or pretense or holding back of information with him. From his books, his instructional videos, and now after meeting him I feel that he is one of the most genuine people that you might ever want to know or meet, and that is refreshing. The degree of hospitality, warmth, and welcoming that both he and Jennifer show to all the attendees is very special, to say the least. Also, for all the praise and adulation that Dan consistently gets he remains an extremely humble and grateful man. 

Which brings me to one last thing that comes through clearly with Dan. That being that he is a person of faith. Dan has a profound sense of gratitude that bubbles over and once or twice during the workshop he would share his thoughts on gratitude to the One that is the ultimate source of beauty that he feels so compelled to express and share in a world where far too much darkness exists. I'm personally with him there. There is enough darkness in the world, and there are more than enough people that choose to represent it in their art. We are constantly bombarded with negativity and it seems you can't get away from it. Let there be at least some artists that still point to something more noble, higher, and greater than themselves.  

When Dan expresses his faith he is never obnoxious and he isn't proselytizing. People love his artwork and want to know what motivates him, and so he shares that motivation clearly but graciously. And unless you happen to be a person that is devoid of a generous spirit, or are among the seemingly increasing number of people that are always looking to be offended, in which case this workshop is not for you, I think it is virtually impossible to be offended, given Dan's caring and sensitive nature.

I could say lots more, but I hope my enthusiasm and high praise of this workshop experience comes through to which others might be considering applying.

Happy painting!

Daniel Gerhartz Workshop - Days 3 & 4

Days 3 consisted of Daniel doing another one of his informative and insightful, not to mention stunning, demos. The young lady he used for this demo was one I had recalled seeing before that had recently been published for the cover of one of the big oil painting associations conferences.  Can't recall which one. As Dan does his demo he gives a blow-by-blow of everything he is doing and thinking, which is helpful. When you combine good teaching with expert hands on help the concepts start to take hold,  little by little. 

The model our group got to paint in the afternoon was the one that Dan used for his demo on the first day. A very lovely young lady with porcelain skin that had many very subtle hues of color cast throughout her features. Today I felt as if at least some of the things that Dan was attempting to impart to us were starting to sink in. Typically the paintings one does at a workshop are not the best. They're usually kind of crude, at least for me, and that's mainly because you're trying to work in a new way that you're not familiar with. Not to mention maybe feeling a little anxious and overwhelmed from witnessing a living master do his thing and then trying to follow that up with your own feeble attempt. Even though by this third day I felt that I was starting to see improvement and getting a better understanding of some of the concepts that Dan kept repeating I don't think I'll be sharing my efforts here. As I said they are rough and I feel that they don't necessarily reflect well on either myself or the teacher.

That "living master" moniker by the way is no joke. What Dan does with a brush, Beethoven does with music. It's truly a sight to behold.

Day 4 was a really great day. We painted 2 models today. One in the morning and one in the afternoon. Dan is good about getting around the whole group and commenting on and laying down a few strokes of your painting to point out where your painting might need help or to try to illustrate some of the concepts that he talks about and where they could be incorporated. He usually gets around to each person twice during each session with the model, so you never felt ignored.

I really was starting to feel some good progress today. Dan is positive and generally complimentary to everyone, no matter their level of experience and it's a great thing, but he combines his encouragement with good solid criticism that rings true when you hear it. Mostly as I'd mentioned  before, he's showing you where your paintings might improve rather than telling you what you are doing wrong.

The best part of all today though was the fact that Dan and Jennifer invited the entire group over to their amazing, lovely, and warm home for dinner and to meet their family, including Dan's kids, his mom, and Jennifer's parents, all of whom are lovely people. Their home as I said is amazing. Every corner in every room has somethings beautiful and interesting to look at and every wall has several of Dan's stunning paintings hanging. It's like being in a top notch art gallery. Jennifer whipped up an amazing dinner, complete with adult beverages---and dessert! Amazing! I know I keep saying that but I don't know what else to say and am at a loss to describe the whole thing.

Daniel Gerhartz Workshop - Day 2

Note: I'm a day late in posting. I was extremely exhausted after the second day because I barely slept the night before, being overly-stimulated from all the great artwork I was privy to and all the great information and just the experience in general. So sue me.

Today, our second day, consisted of Dan using the morning to talk about the works of past masters and what we might glean by studying their work. He talked about the value of doing master copies, in order to learn and problem solve. I'm personally a big believer of doing these kinds of exercises. I've done some in the past and intend to do it more from time to time. The great painters of the past are our teachers. They are there and they are available for us to learn from. Dan talked about how, if you really appreciate how an artist does something well, look to that artist and try to copy them.
When talking about all these great artists Dan made use of his computer hooked up to a pretty large monitor which made the images easy to see and discuss. He also showed us many examples of his own work and talked some about his process of doing larger scale paintings meant for his galleries.
He talked about the use of photographs for his paintings and their limitations. Essentially, the way he explained it is that he will often set up his model for, let's say, a pretty involved composition that takes place outdoors, take some photographs of the setup, go back to his studio and work out the composition and design and pretty much all the essential elements onto his canvas. Then, now that he's ready to go he will bring the model back on subsequent days so that he can paint her from life outdoors without wasting time, in order to capture the essential qualities of light that just cannot be derived from copying a photograph or looking at a computer monitor.

Dan is amazingly prolific. The amount of work he seems to put out is beyond me. And these are not teeny tiny works. Not that he does only large works. But what he can accomplish, and has accomplished is amazing and truly jaw-dropping.

In the afternoon we had our second turn to do another portrait. Again we had great models. If I didn't mention it on day one, Dan had a nice way of getting 14 artists to share the studio space and not get in each others way or fight over space. He did something I wish more workshop instructors would do. He assigned each artist a spot with a designated number, and after each time with a new model we would move one spot to the right. That way everyone got a fair shot at a decent view of the model. If you're a workshop veteran you know how people get really territorial and love to come early and fight over the best spots, leaving the shyer or less assertive (or less savvy) people in the lurches. This eliminates that kind of unfortunate scenario, which is great. He uses 2 models at once and divides a rather large model stand in half with a different setup, lighting, and model on each side. Clever I'd say!

Daniel Gerhartz Workshop

Day one

So one thing I have to say and apologize for right off the bat is that I am not able to post any of the amazing artwork that Dan has hanging in his studio, and there is a lot of it. His work is incredible and really has to be seen in person to be appreciated fully. He asked that we not post any pictures of his work for the benefit of his galleries and so I wanted to respect that.

Dan's studio is in Kewaskum Wisconsin. It sits near the rear of of 20 acres of heavily wooded property. It's a gorgeous and amazing studio. Here are a few shots of the inside.

As the first photo shows, today was a very overcast and foggy, which really kind of gave the place an  interesting sense of mystery, at least today that is. I know it sounds sappy and maybe a little fan-boyish, but the place really does have a kind of magical feel to it. There is amazing detail in the architecture and the surrounding landscaping. He really spared no expense to make it as special of a place as he could, and it truly is.

Dan has an amazing collection of objects, props, fabrics, furniture, that he has collected over the years and you can find interesting and beautiful artifacts in nearly every corner of the studio. Most of which eventually find their way into one of Dan's paintings. 

This first day started out with Dan telling us about his philosophy toward painting, fielding questions, and then doing a roughly 3 hour demo. I wish I could show you the demo. it was stunning. 

After lunch it was our turn. Dan had 2 great models lined up. Much of Dan's emphasis on this first day had to do with maintaining structure through tight value control and accurate observation of edge relationships. Another point that he emphasized often was turning form through shifts in temperature. This is long to describe but is better understood through a demo which Dan would point out frequently when he did his demo.

Dan was very patient taking and answering many questions thrown at him throughout his demo.

One of the big things that I personally have wanted to get a better feel for, is a little better handle on application of paint, as simple as that sounds. After today I feel like I'm already making some positive strides in this aspect of my painting.

Day one for me did in no way disappoint.

Keeley

Doing some things with the background for fun. I read somewhere recently that backgrounds are the punishment for painting being so much fun.

Keely

12 x 16 - Oil on Canvas

Another Day

I gave this painting the title - Another Day, because the models expression said to me that she was thinking about her day and the things that she might be planning in her mind.

The values here were pretty dark which made it a challenge to get a sense of form and volume. I feel pretty good about the overall result. Good enough to maybe enter a show or two.

The light I have to work by isn't really the best either, but hey, I'm blessed to even have a place to paint. I'm curious, if there are any painters out there that happen to be stopping by, what kind of lighting do you work by?

Anyway, I hope you like it.

Another Day

Oil on canvas - 10 x 18

Oh, and another thing. I recently got some amazing news on another workshop which I will be attending and reporting on here.

For the last few years I have been submitting my name to participate in a 5-day workshop with Dan Gerhartz. Dan's workshops are so popular that participants are chosen by lottery. As I said, the last few years I have tried to get in but my name was never chosen. This year I decided to give it one more try, as I was beginning to think that it was perhaps not meant to be and was ready to move on. 

Well guess what?

Anyway, of all the (living) artists whose work I admire and love to look at, Dan's is right at the tippety-top, so this will be very much a bucket-list experience for me.

Stay tuned!

Lydia

I revisited an old portrait and decided I'd try getting a little bolder with some of the color. I'm pleased with the result here. It's always a back and forth, experimenting, trial and error, etc., just to find that place where you feel satisfied, or at least somewhat more satisfied.

Oil on Canvas 11 x 14

Emergence

This is my most recent and possibly my most ambitious effort. This painting goes 2' x 2'.
I'm feeling good about this one but see it as a springboard for even better things. Each painting is a learning experience and slowly but surely I feel like I'm becoming less inhibited. I still want to do more and see where things take me. I have some ideas and thoughts about what that means but I'll just keep those thoughts to myself for now. I hope you like this one.

Springtime Emergence 

Oil on Canvas 24" x 24"

 

Detail 1

Detail 2

Robert

This Friday's study is Robert. He's a well known, long time model in the Northeast Ohio art scene.

Robert

Oil on Canvas  11 x 14

More Experimentation

Some more playing around with glazing and texture from the same pose and model as the previous post.

Oil on Linen Panel 12 x 16

Some Experimentation

I was revisiting a recent Friday open studio portrait that I had done, and was pondering some of the things that Stanka Kordic was trying to get across to us in her recent workshop that I attended.
I think I may take this portrait and do a little experimentation. I've already done some on this one by doing some glazing, which I don't ever do since my preference is to try to paint more directly.

But what the heck. If i wreck it, it's only a painting, right? And I will have learned something in the process.