Class options: June 6, 10am-3pm or June 7, 10am-3pm
Class Format: These single-day workshops are apart of a larger retreat. You will sign up for one day with Amanda, one day with another teacher. There are other events and happenings during non-class hours. Food, lodging and location are spectacular.
Class Description: What does it mean to create a painting that is informed by the natural world around you, but is not exactly representational? How do you extract the elements of the beauty you are gazing upon and bring it to the canvas so that the essential feeling and energy is captured and expressed? Well, if that is something you would like to explore, Amanda is here to get you on your way. This class highlights the importance of process and research in creating an abstract work that truly captures the essence, experience and emotion of being at Squam Lake. Given the extraordinary setting of this workshop, this class will focus on abstracting the natural landscape of Squam Lake.
We will begin the morning outside, after briefly assembling our own hand bound sketchbooks.
Using the beauty of our surroundings as inspiration, you will fill your sketchbook with local color swatches, textural marks, and gestures that capture the feeling of our surroundings. In the afternoon, we will go back to the studio and transfer our findings onto a canvas.
Amanda has a series of terrific exercises that help both to loosen you up as well as to help you bring forward your personal perspective on the landscape around you. With her guidance, you will spend the afternoon referencing your drawings, gestures and colors in your notebook to create a more involved painting on canvas, showcasing the full journey of introduction to abstract painting.
Experience Level: All levels welcome