Class 3— Mar. 31 – Jigsaw Painting

Using a photograph of a landscape subject we’ll reduce it to jigsaw puzzle pieces, defined by value, in order to better see the underlying shapes. Bring identical prints of your photo (**one in color, and two reduced to grayscale, i.e. black and white prints of it), scissors, tape, a grayscale finder, a sketch pad a little larger than your photo and your materials and paper with you. We’ll cut and paste today. 

This class is completely explained in Chapter 24 of my book, Landscape Painting in Pastels, "Make a Puzzle Painting", if you would like to look over the entire concept ahead of time. There are illustrations of all the materials needed there. I'm a bit reluctant to point you to the chapter because too often students try to do the whole lesson at home ahead of time, and then come to class to show the results. Those who are not participating in the weekly classes will most likely benefit from doing the experiment shown there, of course, and I urge you to give it a go, but those enrolled in the class will find additional information and help at class, plus we'll be doing things slightly differently.

So, for my enrolled students, I suggest you look over the chapter and come prepared to do the work in class. I'll do an extensive demonstration showing you how to find the values of the colors you'll use, and we'll make one finished piece derived from ALL the colors you found, rather than making three color sketches, as is shown in the chapter. 

Find a good photograph, one you have taken yourself. Be certain it has at least 3 values represented clearly. However, you may use this photo if you prefer.

permission for class use granted

Bring with you to class:

• color photograph of a landscape subject with an excellent range of values
• grayscale copy of that photograph to cut up (blurred, if you want to)
• grayscale copy to view (not required, but helpful)
• sketchpad
• a few sheets of copy paper
• value finder
• scissors
• tape

You'll find it easier to do this with a clean palette of pastels, so that you can view your colors clearly.

(If anyone wants to, you most certainly can adjust and apply the principles used here to oils, acrylics, watercolor or gouache, using the time honored tradition of making color charts. It will aid you in determining the mixes of colors used, and their specific values, before applying them to a painting. I suggest painting alla prima, of course, rather than mixing colors on your canvas or paper. Think "one stroke = one color".)

Please also bring your tree threesome from last week, to show in class, and any other paintings in progress that  would benefit from a 'curbside critique' (not the same as the final critique.)

See you on Thursday, gang. 

Deborah