My oilpainting workshop with Scott Christensen

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Scott Christensen, oil on canvas, 2017,
I am now the proud owner of one of Scotts studies.

There are times when you need your cup of inspiration get filled up. This time I decided to go to Idaho USA, and participate in a workshop with Scott Christensen even though he has a totally different  genre (mountains). And boy was I right. He is a true master but also a very humble artist and human being: a combination that shows in my eyes where the great artist can be found.

For everybody there is something different you pick up in a workshop. For me it was: stay curious, go and play with your material; make many, many small studies; different aspects of color theory; and sometimes you have to sacrifice one of the best paintings in order to become a great painter. Don`t play safe. He showed us his painting process and I still have the »No, nooo« and »oh , no, no, no« of the voices in the class in my head, when he changed parts of a painting he didn’t like but in our eyes were just fine.  A couple of times I cringed myself. But this is necessary to develop as a painter and not to play safe.

These four days were filled with lots of theory and practice and I still have to consume it all in.That will take time till I finally come around to emerge new aspects into my own painting style.

Scott is not also a great teacher but a really good listener. He asked the right questions that made my soul spin around. I still am thinking about some of his questions.

 

 

 

3 Responses

  1. Angelika Peters
    | Reply

    Liebe Astrid:
    ja, ja, ja da ist ein ganz neuer Ausdruck drin!!! Lass´ dich bloß nicht beirren!
    liebe Grüße Angelika
    das wäre doch was für Rügen……….

    • Astrid
      | Reply

      Liebe Angelika,
      das Bild ist nicht von mir!, sondern von Scott. Kein Wunder, dass du schreibst, das da ein neuer Ausdruck drinnen ist.

  2. Diane
    | Reply

    What great advice – to make many small studies. Look up the Group of Seven Canadian painters early 1900s, painted in Algonquin Park, Ontario. They painter together and their plein air challenge was – how many studies in a Day. By working so quickly one captures the moment-shadow -light -color -weather. One commits to the most important element and the painting becomes stronger. They took their work back to the studio and created larger works from their studies. Really great work. When I first saw their paintings I thought- you have been painting in my back yard! Keep painting Astrid.
    .Artliveslong,Diane

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