CLASSES
SPRING/SUMMER
2026
The Fountain By John Singer Sargent
Have you ever said to yourself, “I need to loosen up in my painting”… but then tried it and it didn’t really pan out - you just ended up with a muddy mess? In this class we will focus on the various approaches that some of the greatest impressionist painters of the past used to create works that brilliantly capture the look and the beauty of nature, without the careful (and sometimes tedious) rendering of every little detail, as exemplified by the academic tradition of classical realism. Working up a painting with an impressionist approach allows each artist the freedom to experiment with brush handling, paint application, from thin washes to heavy impasto, all in service of capturing faithfully the effects of light on anything that nature presents.
We will carefully consider the different priorities for the beginning, middle and final stages of a painting, ‘spotting’ color, working the canvas ‘all over at once’, the importance of blurring the eyes, letting the image ‘emerge out of a fog’, taking care of ‘back stragglers’, and so much more.
In this class, though I will be demonstrating everything in oils, you are free to paint in other mediums - acrylics, watercolor, gouache - if you prefer. This works because everything we will be covering in this class applies to all these various painting mediums. A materials list will be sent to everyone once they have registered.
* the lower case i is intentional - I will explain at the first class session. :)
THURSDAYS 4/9; 4/16; 4/23; 4;30; 5/7; 5/14 2 - 5pm
PAINT LIKE AN iMPRESSIONIST * SOLD OUT
BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND!!
CLASS INSTRUCTOR: David Draime
CLASS FEE: $285
PAINTING THE PLASTER CAST
FRIDAYS 4/10; 4/17; 4/24 5/1; 5/8; 5/15 2 - 5pm
Painting from the plaster cast is a time-honored method of learning and represents an essential practice within the classical tradition. Specifically, it is a 19th-century academic tradition where artists render white plaster replicas of classical sculptures to master form, values and structure with paint on canvas. This practice emphasizes translating three-dimensional form onto a two-dimensional surface, focusing on light and shadow (chiaroscuro) without the distraction of color. In this class, we will be working monochromatically.
Painting the casts involves close study with insights into how the visual impression is abstracted, simplified, clarified and translated into artistic form. It is a wonderful way to improve your skills at rendering simple to complex forms. David will show you all of the steps involved in achieving a convincing likeness with a high degree of finish. In this class we will be using a simplified version of the sight-size method of painting.
While this class is perfect for intermediate to advanced painters, I highly recommend this class for absolute beginners as well. At the famed 19th century studio/ateliers of Paris, as well as at the Beaux Arts, students would begin their training by spending an entire year painting plaster casts monochromatically before they ever moved on to color.
CLASS INSTRUCTOR: David Draime
CLASS FEE: $285
PAINTING THE STILL LIFE - OILS
THURSDAYS 5/21; 5/28; 6/4; 6;11; 618; 6/25 2 - 5pm
American painter Emil Carlsen called still life “the most thorough way of acquiring all the knowledge of the craft of painting.” In this comprehensive class for oil painters, we will explore every aspect of still life painting, from choosing and arranging various objects and props, to selecting an interesting and unifying composition by using a viewfinder, lighting the arrangement, how to capture light effects off of various surfaces, working ‘from general to specific,’ blurring the eyes to sharpen one’s perception of values, lost and found edges, color mixing, setting up the palette, and much more. We will be doing a number of quick oil sketches to practice starts, as well as more finished paintings. The skills and knowledge you will get from this class will improve your painting with any other type of subject matter. This is a great class for beginners as well as more advanced painters.
A materials list will be sent out following registration.
CLASS INSTRUCTOR: David Draime
CLASS FEE: $285
Lemons by David Draime
PAINTING THE STILL LIFE - WATERCOLORS
FRIDAYS 5/22; 5/29; 6/5 6/12; 619; 6/26 2 - 5pm
Very similar to the Painting the Still Life - Oils class, but specifically geared to working in watercolors. We will explore strategies to handle the most challenging aspects of watercolor painting by doing small studies of each composition before attempting a larger, more finished work. We will explore the subject matter both with a structured, classical realist approach, as well as with a more impressionist mindset. We will practice doing paintings both with and without a preliminary drawing, working the paper ‘all over at once,’ and focusing on wet on wet versus wet on dry techniques for specific passages. Painters of all skill levels are welcome.
A materials list will be sent out following registration.
CLASS INSTRUCTOR: David Draime
CLASS FEE: $285
Roses by John Singer Sargent, 1901
PAINTING MASTER COPIES WITH WATERCOLORS
THURSDAYS 7/2; 7/9; 7/16; 7;23; 7/30; 8/6 2 - 5pm
In this weekend workshop, we will explore the rich tradition of copying master paintings and drawings using watercolors. This is a great way to expand our painting vocabulary by experiencing how another artist saw (or sees) the world. This is also a wonderful way of training the eye to see shapes, values, edges and texture, all in service of capturing the look and feel of the original. Since we will be using watercolors to copy these masterworks, many of which were produced with different media, the focus will be not so much on reproducing exactly the original, but rather using the master painting (or drawing) as an inspiration to interpret, in our own way, the beauty that we see.
All master copy references will be provided and a materials list will be sent out shortly after you have signed up.
CLASS INSTRUCTOR: David Draime
CLASS FEE: $285
PAINT YOUR PET - WATERCOLORS
SATURDAYS 5/9; 5/16; 5/23; 5/30 2 - 5pm
Have you ever wanted to paint your pet? What could be more rewarding than capturing a watercolor likeness of your beloved animal? Work with Juliette from photos of your favorite pet that you will bring to class to work from. You will do a number of small studies to get a good feel for what you want to achieve. Juliette will introduce you to a number of styles that you can try. Attention will be given to backgrounds and how they can help the animal to stand out. Study soft edges vs. hard edges, how to blend colors for a convincing likeness, as well as different approaches to capturing the look of fur. Explore different poses and angles, and various lighting scenarios when photographing your pet to see what reference material gives you the most satisfactory result.
A materials list will be sent out shortly after registration.
CLASS INSTRUCTOR: Juliette Swenson
CLASS FEE: $200
Grace by Juliette Swenson