Renee Keil, Series, Abstracts/Abstract Expressionism: Let's Go Crazy and Create

The workshops focus is to just experiment…within the basics of design, color design, but yet to go for freedom of expression…to not be afraid to mess up.  There are really no parameters. You start it and then allow the painting to guide you as to where it wants you to go.  Sometimes the “plan” totally changes when you start putting it down on paper and that can be very good. Let’s go CRAZY and create!

• Sketch book, sketching paper
  
• Watercolor paper and/or small canvases
• Watercolors or acrylic or both
• Various brushes, at least one large
• Some pastels if you have them (I do not suggest using your best sticks- only for key accents or strokes)
• Charcoal and/or pastel pencils, colored pencils, oil pastels
• Black magic marker
• Black and or white gesso if you have it
• Textured materials: e.g., netting, screen, bubble wrap, plastic wrap
• Paper towels
• Spray bottle of water

Extras if you want to bring

• Newspaper print or magazine clips
• Letter or number stencils
• Used paper or canvas from work that you wouldn’t mind painting over
• Salt
• Small squeegee, scraper or old credit card

I will bring some gesso, texture materials, stencils, retouch varnish and spray finish varnish, spray bottle of rubbing alcohol, Modge Podge

Suggestion: Bring examples of  color combinations that you would like to use for your abstract. Then use this “scheme” to plan your work. This will prevent you from having to bring in large quantities of mediums. It will also give you a color plan to work from. I have a folder of pages I’ve pulled from magazines, of pictures of other art that inspire me (I don’t copy the design but often incorporate color schemes that excite me).

Maximum class size: 16
Minimum class size: 6