Color Explorations Notes

JULY 13 - AUGUST 17; Every Monday

COURSE NOTES

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CLASS 1: Where did color come from?
Color before art theory

CLASS 2:  Can color imitate nature?
The Renaissance search for believable light

CLASS 3: Can darkness be beautiful?
Baroque color and the drama of light

CLASS 4: What if color is light itself?
Romanticism, Japanese prints, Impressionism

CLASS 5: What if color expresses emotion instead of reality?
Van Gogh, Gauguin, Munch, Fauves

CLASS 6: Episode 6 — What if color becomes the subject?
Abstraction to digital color

Class 1: Precision & Expression: Advanced Wash Control & Layering

Building control and transparency to set the groundwork for clarity and atmosphere.

REFERENCE IMAGES:

Sailboat on a calm lake with mountains in the background and trees on the shoreline.
A rustic stone barn with a metal roof in a lush green field, surrounded by a stone fence, with rolling hills and misty clouds in the background.

LINE DRAWING:

A faint pencil sketch of houses and trees on textured paper.

DEMONSTRATIONS:

A watercolor chart titled 'Washes' displaying different watercolor techniques and their color effects. Techniques include 'Flat,' 'Gradated,' 'Gr. Quick,' 'Variegated,' 'Var. Quick,' and 'Atmospheric,' with a 'Puddle' color sample at the bottom.
Watercolor painting of a sailboat on calm water with mountains in the background and a colorful sunset or sunrise sky.
Watercolor painting of a farm scene with a large red-roofed barn, a smaller building, and a dirt path, set against distant green hills and trees.

Class 2: Form & Light in the Figure

Using light and value structure to express mass, gesture, and presence.

REFERENCE IMAGES:

Sequential photos of a shirtless man in black shorts standing in different positions, showing his physique from multiple angles against a plain background.
Four silhouette images of a human figure in different postures against a plain background.
Series of four digital illustrations showing front, side, and back views of a male nude figure against a beige background, with each figure in a different standing pose.
A four-panel series showing a shirtless young man in black shorts, viewed from different angles: front, left, side, and back.
Side profile of an older man wearing a black straw fedora hat with a white band, a dark gray jacket, and sporting a gray goatee, standing outdoors in front of a red building.
An elderly man with a beard and a beige knit cap sitting on a concrete barrier near the water, wearing a green scarf, black sweater, beige pants, and brown shoes, with a ship visible in the background.
An elderly man in a blue jacket and pants, wearing a gray cap and holding a walking stick, stands outdoors holding two baguettes under his arm.
People waiting at Bedford Avenue subway station in New York City, some looking at phones, with advertisements and station signs visible.
A woman at a market stall with fresh vegetables, including carrots, white turnips, cherry tomatoes, and greens.

DEMONSTRATIONS

A watercolor painting of people and mannequins in various poses. There are five standing mannequins in shorts and no shirts, viewed from the back, with different skin tones. Above them, there are small silhouettes or headshots of people in different colors. To the right, a man with gray hair and a mustache is holding bread loaves, wearing a blue blazer and striped shirt. In front of him, a seated man with a beard, glasses, and a beige beanie is sitting, while another man with a hat and gray hair looks down.
Watercolor painting of five people walking on a sidewalk, some wearing backpacks.

Class 3: Color Mastery: Color with Purpose

Limited Palettes, Glazing & Nuanced Neutrals

REFERENCE IMAGES:

A pear and a peach placed on a flat surface.

LINE DRAWING:

DEMONSTRATIONS:

Sunset over Monument Valley with two large buttes and desert vegetation in foreground
A market stand displaying fresh vegetables including red, yellow, and green bell peppers, radishes, carrots, onions, and green onions, with people shopping in the background.
A pencil sketch of a woman with earrings, smiling and leaning over a large tray or container filled with fruit, possibly apples or oranges.
Watercolor painting of two paintings of pears and an orange, one in color and one in black and white, with color swatches above.
Watercolor painting of rock formations in a desert landscape with a blue sky.
Watercolor painting of a person with dark hair in front of a colorful assortment of vegetables, including carrots, radishes, and leafy greens.

Market (in progress)

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Market (finished)

Class 4: Landscape - From Plein Air to Studio Clarity

Taking spontaneous studies and elevate them into intentional, atmospheric compositions.

A black and white sketch of a small, quiet village with houses along a winding road. There is a car parked beside a building, a bridge over a river, and mountains covered in trees in the background. Handwritten notes mention Eptahori, a village near the Albanian border, home to Dora's grandfather.

Plein Air sketch examples:

A landscape sketch of distant hills and a few trees, with some notes and smudges in pencil and watercolor on paper, attributed to Jun-Pierre Shiozawa.

Demonstrations showing different thumbnail compositions, color fields and the finished images:

A series of landscape sketches and watercolor paintings depicting mountainous scenery, villages, roads, and a bridge in a rural area.
A series of watercolor and pencil sketches and paintings depicting a tree in outdoor landscape scenes during different times of day. The bottom image shows a large tree on grassy land with a sunset sky.

Optional landscapes if you’d like to try from a different image:

A wooden covered bridge in a forest with colorful autumn leaves, yellow and orange, surrounding it.
Tropical beach with white sand, clear turquoise water, and lush green palm trees against a partly cloudy sky.
A peaceful landscape of rolling green hills with scattered trees under a bright, slightly cloudy sky.

Class 5: Conceptual Composition: Storytelling Through Form & Expression

Using abstraction, form and design to create meaning beyond realism.

REFERENCE IMAGES:

Cityscape of a historic coastal town with stone buildings and red-tiled roofs, overlooking a harbor with yachts and modern high-rise buildings in the background.
Stone bridge arching over a river with lush green trees and grassy landscape on a cloudy day.
A large, sprawling tree with hanging moss on a grassy field.
A small creek flows over rocks in a lush green park with trees and grassy areas.

Demonstration Images

Watercolor painting depicting three stages: hope in yellow, loss in blue with a silhouette of a person on a boat, and arrival in pink with a stylized rainbow.

Compositions based on Prompts

A watercolor sketch of a house, trees, and a branch with leaves, labeled 'Line' and 'Mass.' Handwritten notes explain sketching techniques: overlapping or glazing to clarify shape, line work, interrupted marks, and context.

Notes on defining from abstraction

Watercolor painting of a stone bridge over a stream with trees in the background.

Bridge demo: First rendered then abstracted

Watercolor painting of a bridge over a river with trees and a cloudy sky in the background.

Bridge demo: First abstract then defined

Watercolor painting of a large tree with a thick trunk and leafy branches, set in a green landscape with grass and foliage.

Mossy Tree demo: Intention, abstraction and definition