HAVE A WONDERFUL THANKSGIVING

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving celebration today.......

TODAY'S PAINTING

Today I took my small piece that Ovanes worked on the first day at the workshop in Pacific Grove last weekend. I re-painted it using similar colors. I tried to keep it simple and create the same kind of light. I think it is still a little dark. It looked the same up in my studio, but when I brought it downstairs and put the two side by side, the little one was quite a bit lighter. Oh well, back to the easel as they say.... if I do decide to lighten it up I will post it again.
Have a nice weekend......

Ovanes Continued

It's nice to be home today. I get to paint in between my chores of course. I'm working on a special Christmas project with an actual deadline, but also I'm starting with some seascapes from last weekend. Just practice while I can remember something.
On Day two at the workshop Ovanes was kind enough to do another demo and then continue to paint 5 paintings in a matter of about 2 hours. Amazing. He didn't talk about his process as much as the day before and used a little different approach, with no under painting this time.

I painted a little larger and bit off a little more than I could chew....Now when I see his paintings and see mine, he uses even more grays than I thought. I need to use more mixed grays. (mental note to self)

This is his palette set up in the studio

The best part came that evening. We were invited to his Carmel-by-the-Sea home where he set up his studio in what would otherwise be a living room. He had prepared a beautiful table of vegetables roasted and European cheeses, crackers and flat bread, fruit and wine. He set up a large canvas, what looked to me to be about 48x60. He set up an amazingly beautiful table of vases, fruit, silver trays, a silver sugar bowl, a beautiful throw, etc. He put the music on and at about 9pm he started to paint. When he does a demo like this he does not talk at all. The room is quiet. With the exception of one short break he painted till midnight.

OVANES WORKSHOP DAY TWO

before Ovanes painted on it...



and after!

 Well, I got home on Monday evening and have been catching up here. I had to give myself a day at home on Tuesday and had one of those headaches - so I got somewhat unpacked, did some laundry and had to do some preparations for yesterday's class at Capital Art Center.
I've been dying to paint my studies in a larger format, or just repaint them while the lessons I learned with Ovanes are still fresh in my head. But, well - life just gets in the way. This morning it was a dental appointment, grocery shopping and so on....you know what I mean. Perhaps tonight? If only I had a live in cook and housekeeper!
I can't really call this day two because I did not finish with that post, so maybe I should do that first.
Pacific Grove was the most beautiful place, I could not get enough of it. The weather on Friday was cool, cloudy in the morning with the sun peeking through in the afternoon.
Ovanes arrived and walked up to me, as I was freezing and said, "It's a beautiful day to paint!" Okay. And it turned out that he was right. The colors in the water and the sky were amazing and as he painted his demo I could see more and more. It took some time for me to adjust to just staring out at the ocean. It's not something I get to do and I have never painted plein air at the sea.
I froze up some when it was time to paint. I am showing the before and after painting when Ovanes made some adjustments. I quit working on my piece and began to follow Ovanes around as he coached the other students. It is a great way to get the most out of a workshop or class. He looked at my piece and said it was a little busy and needed warm shadows, contrasts of cool and warm. He asked if he could paint on it and I said of course!
I will continue with a demo that Ovanes did that first day.

 



He started with a very thin wash using warm colors.

  

He gave it a few minutes to dry and then started with lots of paint and plenty of color - juicy paint.

  

You want a fairly absorbent surface so the paint will adhere.  Your under painting is very important
Preparation is very important. I think he stresses this because people don't understand that painting is hard enough without having a wobbly unstable set up. He wants your easel and table to be stable and clear of clutter so it will be comfortable. Otherwise it will get in the way of creating....

 

Take your white paper towel and hold it up to the canvas so you don't get the value of the foam too light. Compare it!Remember to consider the "key."

 



Don't think "too much" about local color. Create harmony, "Make it sing."
Compare the value of the water to the rock in the foreground and then compare the water to the rock in the distance. It is  much lighter in value. Value comes first and color comes second...


www.ovanesberberian.com

OVANES WORKSHOP DAY ONE

It was a beatiful day. We parked across from the bathroom on the beach in Asilomar, CA. Ovanes set up and started paintng. I'm so glad I'm here.

I'll try to post tonight or tomorrow so stay tuned.......

OVANES BERBERIAN

I'm going to Monterey tomorrow for a three day workshop with Ovanes Berberian, one of my favorite painters. I've been studying with Brigitte Curt for some time and she studied and continues to study with Ovanes. I had the opportunity to study with him myself in Idaho back in 06 for two weeks. It was amazing. We painted outside in his apple orchard, still life's set up under each tree. It was a wonderful and difficult experience. It was difficult because I was stifled by what I learned for a while, until I began to absorb it weeks later. In the end it was soooo beneficial. I can't wait to find out what happens this weekend. I feel that I am much more prepared to hear and see what he is teaching.
I'll let you know when I get back!


Born and raised in Russian Armenia, Ovanes Berberian received his first academic training from his father, a college art professor and designer of theater sets. Shortly after immigrating to the United States in 1977, he met Sergei Bongart, a philosopher and painter who taught in Los Angeles and gave summer workshops at his Idaho studio. Ovanes was immediately drawn to Bongart’s art, whose sense of values and colors were Russian in spirit. It was Bongart who convinced him to paint directly from nature and fully experience his subjects while painting them. Ovanes notes in a South West Art interview, “Painting from nature is honest and by being honest my intuitive character and style are translated to the canvas.”



Although working from his outdoor field sketches, Ovanes paints his larger studio landscapes and still-life's primarily from memory, incorporating abstract aspects as the painting develops. Citing color harmony as the most important element of his work, he creates a variety of textures, using short, thick strokes of paint in the foreground and longer, dryer ones in the distance, thus creating the illusion of rhythm in the painting.

Ovanes Berberian lives on a six-acre homestead in Eastern Idaho, his studio built in the form of an American church. He also has a studio in Carpinteria, California where he is in much demand for his painting workshops.

Just What I Needed This Morning

A Beautiful & Inspirational Song by Chaya