New York Academy of Art

This workshop at the beautiful grounds of Beach Plum Farms will focus on the benefits of doing an underpainting while painting quickly from life. For the sake of speed, which is always a factor when braving the elements and changing light, most artists skip underpaintings while plein air painting. However, a quick underpainting can actually save you time in the long run by solving compositional, tonal, and drawing problems up front, before getting into complex color-mixing and detail. We will discuss how to create a dynamic composition and how to alter what is in front of you to suit your own compositional vision. In our second layers, we will focus on color mixing, how to approach foliage and skies, how to create atmospheric depth, and how to vary our mark-making. This workshop is open to all full-color painting and drawing media, and will include demonstrations on how to apply these concepts to a variety of media. Demonstrations will include oils on top of acrylics, gouache on top of watercolor, and pastels on top of watercolor. If inclement weather prohibits us from working outdoors, we will apply all of the same concepts of two-layer painting from life to bountiful still lives of Plum Farm produce and available views from indoors. Workshop open to Beginner to Advanced artist working in any full color drawing or painting media. Recommended media Combinations: Oils on Acrylics, Acrylics on Acrylics, Gouache on Watercolor, Pastels on Watercolors.