Workshop Up Next
Laura Pollak - Above and Below
Richmond, VA - May 17-19,2024 (In-Person)
In this workshop we will begin with the landscape. Loosen up and drill down to the foundational aspects that create successful and dramatic paintings: design, value, color, edges and mark making. As we move forward we will take what we’ve learned and look down… below our feet to the cracks in the sidewalk and mine beneath the surface; gemstones, pearls, metals.
This is a 3 day IN-PERSON workshop.
Each day there will be 1-2 Demos with several exercises. Laura will use Powerpoint presentations to share information and demonstrate concepts.
We will begin with foundational aspects of a strong painting in the landscape- Design, Notans, Value, Color, Mark Making and Edges. From there we will try to pull out our individual ‘voice’ and move towards looser more abstract towards abstraction as we move below the surface and work in various textures and shapes.
At the end of each day we will have 'art reviews’ where we discuss student paintings and possible directions for improvement.
A couple weeks before the workshop Laura will ask each artist to download the free App called PADLET and upload some of their favorite paintings and discuss what they wish to glean from this workshop. Each artists will have their own ‘column’ in PADLET where they can upload photos of works in progress during the workshop.
During art reviews, Laura will offer instruction directly on the student’s painting OR she will use an app called PROCREATE where she will make ‘live’ suggestions as to how the painting might progress without touching the actual painting.
Laura will share simple tricks to attain textures and interest in a paintings as well as exercises for loosening up; whether landscape or abstract.
Included will be several PDF art books that she will share via email.
For more information about Pollak, visit her website at www.laurapollak.com
To see Supply List for workshop click here.
For information about Lodging options during the workshop click here.
Richmond, VA - May 17-19,2024 (In-Person)
In this workshop we will begin with the landscape. Loosen up and drill down to the foundational aspects that create successful and dramatic paintings: design, value, color, edges and mark making. As we move forward we will take what we’ve learned and look down… below our feet to the cracks in the sidewalk and mine beneath the surface; gemstones, pearls, metals.
This is a 3 day IN-PERSON workshop.
Each day there will be 1-2 Demos with several exercises. Laura will use Powerpoint presentations to share information and demonstrate concepts.
We will begin with foundational aspects of a strong painting in the landscape- Design, Notans, Value, Color, Mark Making and Edges. From there we will try to pull out our individual ‘voice’ and move towards looser more abstract towards abstraction as we move below the surface and work in various textures and shapes.
At the end of each day we will have 'art reviews’ where we discuss student paintings and possible directions for improvement.
A couple weeks before the workshop Laura will ask each artist to download the free App called PADLET and upload some of their favorite paintings and discuss what they wish to glean from this workshop. Each artists will have their own ‘column’ in PADLET where they can upload photos of works in progress during the workshop.
During art reviews, Laura will offer instruction directly on the student’s painting OR she will use an app called PROCREATE where she will make ‘live’ suggestions as to how the painting might progress without touching the actual painting.
Laura will share simple tricks to attain textures and interest in a paintings as well as exercises for loosening up; whether landscape or abstract.
Included will be several PDF art books that she will share via email.
For more information about Pollak, visit her website at www.laurapollak.com
To see Supply List for workshop click here.
For information about Lodging options during the workshop click here.
Upcoming Workshops
Colette Odya Smith
Landscape Through Your Eyes: Pastel Painting from Photo to Finish
Richmond, VA - September 27-29, 2024 (In-Person)
Landscape Through Your Eyes: Pastel Painting from Photo to Finish
Richmond, VA - September 27-29, 2024 (In-Person)
Beginning with landscape as our muse, explore the possibilities for personalizing your imagery and communicating your intent. Beginning with your photos, working through watercolor as an underpainting, to a finished pastel, join us in advancing your specific aims for your art. Whether you want to improve accuracy, painterly mark-making, abstracting, color competency, or another area of interest, we will work on ways to make your painting successful. Our focus will be on working in a supportive environment to develop skills, practice techniques, and attend to your
personal artistic challenges.
A lifelong Wisconsin native, Ms. Smith is a painter of contemporary landscapes that often blur the distinctions between realism and abstraction. Art has always been her love and nature’s mysteries and hidden meanings continue to be her muse. Even puddles and cracked sidewalks caught her eye as a girl growing up in Milwaukee in a large working-class family.
She earned her degree in Fine Art, Humanities, and Education at Macalester College in St. Paul, then taught public school art and raised two children. A pastel class at MIAD, the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design set her on her career path for nearly 30 years now. Ms. Smith works from her home and studio in Wauwatosa, WI, not far from where she was raised. While her extensive travels nationally and internationally have expanded her vision and insights, she remains at heart a midwestern girl in love with the richness of the landscape she is grounded in. She has pursued her career with commercial galleries and by actively exhibiting in prestigious juried competitions and invitational curated shows in public art venues.
Her paintings have been featured in several books and art publications and exhibited widely in the United States, France, Germany, and China. They have received over 70 regional, national, and international awards. Ms. Smith has written articles and juried for the Pastel Journal and The Artists Magazine. She has judged the prestigious international exhibitions of the Pastel Society of America and the International Association of Pastel Societies. Additionally, she teaches workshops, offers critiques and demonstrations. She has been honored as a Maître Pastelliste by the Societe des Pastellistes de France, Master Pastelist and Advisory Board Member by the Pastel Society of America, Eminent Pastelist and Masters’ Circle member by the International Association of Pastel Societies, and Distinguished Pastelist by the Pastel Society of New Mexico. Her work hangs in public, corporate and private collections, including the Ming Gallery Museum of Pastel in Suzhou, China.
She offers her work in the spirit of service.
Her website is http://www.coletteodyasmith.com
personal artistic challenges.
A lifelong Wisconsin native, Ms. Smith is a painter of contemporary landscapes that often blur the distinctions between realism and abstraction. Art has always been her love and nature’s mysteries and hidden meanings continue to be her muse. Even puddles and cracked sidewalks caught her eye as a girl growing up in Milwaukee in a large working-class family.
She earned her degree in Fine Art, Humanities, and Education at Macalester College in St. Paul, then taught public school art and raised two children. A pastel class at MIAD, the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design set her on her career path for nearly 30 years now. Ms. Smith works from her home and studio in Wauwatosa, WI, not far from where she was raised. While her extensive travels nationally and internationally have expanded her vision and insights, she remains at heart a midwestern girl in love with the richness of the landscape she is grounded in. She has pursued her career with commercial galleries and by actively exhibiting in prestigious juried competitions and invitational curated shows in public art venues.
Her paintings have been featured in several books and art publications and exhibited widely in the United States, France, Germany, and China. They have received over 70 regional, national, and international awards. Ms. Smith has written articles and juried for the Pastel Journal and The Artists Magazine. She has judged the prestigious international exhibitions of the Pastel Society of America and the International Association of Pastel Societies. Additionally, she teaches workshops, offers critiques and demonstrations. She has been honored as a Maître Pastelliste by the Societe des Pastellistes de France, Master Pastelist and Advisory Board Member by the Pastel Society of America, Eminent Pastelist and Masters’ Circle member by the International Association of Pastel Societies, and Distinguished Pastelist by the Pastel Society of New Mexico. Her work hangs in public, corporate and private collections, including the Ming Gallery Museum of Pastel in Suzhou, China.
She offers her work in the spirit of service.
Her website is http://www.coletteodyasmith.com
Adrian Giuliani Zoom Workshop - Richmond, VA (Winter 2025)
Aline Ordman
Creating Dynamic Pastels
Richmond, VA - May 2025 (In-Person)
Creating Dynamic Pastels
Richmond, VA - May 2025 (In-Person)
Painting is learning to see. Often, we paint what we think we see because we all have preconceived notions of what something looks like. However, to really paint what you see, you must break down everything you are looking at into just abstract shapes. Don’t see a “house”, see a series of interlocking shapes.
Working from their own photo references, students will transform these into pastel paintings using the principles of color, value and design. Along with a painting demonstration, Aline will talk about understanding color in terms of temperature, intensity and value while translating those ideas using pastel technique. She will also emphasize the concept of creating shapes and carving back on them in order to achieve a painterly finish. Her demo will be figures in an environment.
Aline grew up outside New York and received her early education at Cornel University in Ithaca, NY graduating in 1975 with a BFA. She subsequently moved to the San Francisco Bay Area and eventually attended The Academy of Art College (now University) in San Francisco receiving an additional BFA in illustration. Upon graduation she taught figure drawing there for about 8 years before moving to New England, specifically the Upper Valley of Vermont and New Hampshire.
Aline is a Master Pastelist with the Pastel Society of America, an Eminent Pastelist with the International Association of Pastel societies, A Signature Member of The American Impressionist Society and a Signature Member of the Oil Painters of America. Her work has appeared in various publications, receiving Awards in the Pastel Journal’s including the Founders Award. In 2017 she received the Prix de Pastel in the International Association of Pastel Society’s National Juried Exhibition.
Aline currently lives in Vermont and teaches workshops throughout the country and Europe. Her studio is in Quechee, Vermont and her work can be seen in Camden Falls Gallery in Camden, Maine and The Blue Heron Gallery in Wellfleet, Massachussetts. Her website is www.alineordman.com
Working from their own photo references, students will transform these into pastel paintings using the principles of color, value and design. Along with a painting demonstration, Aline will talk about understanding color in terms of temperature, intensity and value while translating those ideas using pastel technique. She will also emphasize the concept of creating shapes and carving back on them in order to achieve a painterly finish. Her demo will be figures in an environment.
Aline grew up outside New York and received her early education at Cornel University in Ithaca, NY graduating in 1975 with a BFA. She subsequently moved to the San Francisco Bay Area and eventually attended The Academy of Art College (now University) in San Francisco receiving an additional BFA in illustration. Upon graduation she taught figure drawing there for about 8 years before moving to New England, specifically the Upper Valley of Vermont and New Hampshire.
Aline is a Master Pastelist with the Pastel Society of America, an Eminent Pastelist with the International Association of Pastel societies, A Signature Member of The American Impressionist Society and a Signature Member of the Oil Painters of America. Her work has appeared in various publications, receiving Awards in the Pastel Journal’s including the Founders Award. In 2017 she received the Prix de Pastel in the International Association of Pastel Society’s National Juried Exhibition.
Aline currently lives in Vermont and teaches workshops throughout the country and Europe. Her studio is in Quechee, Vermont and her work can be seen in Camden Falls Gallery in Camden, Maine and The Blue Heron Gallery in Wellfleet, Massachussetts. Her website is www.alineordman.com
Karen Marguis Workshop - Richmond, VA (Fall 2025)
Barbara Jaenicke Workshop - Richmond, VA (May 2026)
Barbara loved drawing and painting as a child, but her artistic journey was launched more so from stubborn determination rather than any innate giftedness. Her grandmother was an accomplished oil painter, and although she didn’t directly encourage Barbara to follow in her footsteps, Barbara’s childhood was surrounded by her beautiful paintings.
She studied painting outside of her regular classes during high school and college. However, not realizing that a career in fine art could be a possibility, she steered her initial career choice toward another art-related field, receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1986 from The College of New Jersey, majoring in Art with an emphasis in Advertising Design. Her early career was spent in advertising as an art director, then later in corporate marketing communications. Without much time for painting during these earlier careers, she always knew she would eventually continue her original artistic passion, and in 1999 she gradually but intensely began to do so. Finally, in 2002, she was able to turn her focus to a fine art career, pursuing it full steam ahead.
Working in oil and pastel, Barbara strives to capture light-filled landscapes in a painterly, impressionist style.
Born and raised in New Jersey, Barbara also lived in Atlanta, Georgia for many years until she yearned for snow and mountains for her landscape subject matter, which prompted her family’s move to Bend, Oregon in 2015.
She studied painting outside of her regular classes during high school and college. However, not realizing that a career in fine art could be a possibility, she steered her initial career choice toward another art-related field, receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1986 from The College of New Jersey, majoring in Art with an emphasis in Advertising Design. Her early career was spent in advertising as an art director, then later in corporate marketing communications. Without much time for painting during these earlier careers, she always knew she would eventually continue her original artistic passion, and in 1999 she gradually but intensely began to do so. Finally, in 2002, she was able to turn her focus to a fine art career, pursuing it full steam ahead.
Working in oil and pastel, Barbara strives to capture light-filled landscapes in a painterly, impressionist style.
Born and raised in New Jersey, Barbara also lived in Atlanta, Georgia for many years until she yearned for snow and mountains for her landscape subject matter, which prompted her family’s move to Bend, Oregon in 2015.