I taught a 7-day Color Study and Figure Painting workshop at Studio Incamminati in Philadelphia last week.
I had a group of dedicated and talented artists in the workshop. Everyone came with different experience and expectations and everyone needed something slightly different. I was impressed by how everybody was willing to adapt to a slightly different way of working than them normally do in order to learn what the new process can teach them and the progress they made as a result of taking the leap over the period of a week.
Teaching a workshop like this is essentially putting a group of random strangers together in one classroom, give them the difficult task of painting the nude and have someone barking seemingly random and new instruction at them periodically. It sounds like a bad idea for a reality tv show. I don’t always know exactly how and if the workshop will progress and unfold the way I had planned. And I’m always amazed and deeply grateful when it’s a group of serious artists joining the workshop. Together they created a very unique experience for themselves and for me.
I was never in a band or orchestra. I wonder if a successful workshop experience is akin to the experience of a band or orchestra playing at a live concert. It’s a lot of work for everyone involved but quite magical to be part of when it goes right.