Psst- the teacher isn’t looking. 🤡 🌅 Get your phone and post your favorite pic. Drop it in the comments below. __________________________________ 👆🏻Cliff Notes Version 👇🏻 A little more detail. The why 👉🏻 In LESSON 1, _________________________ The amount of detail we put into realism paintings simply isn’t stored in your brain. Not yet… and honestly, maybe not ever. That is NORMAL! The first lesson is in classroom HERE After you read the lesson, find 1 or 2 or even 3 images that mean something special to you. They do NOT have to be images you plan to paint. Think of it as building your inspiration library for this entire community. Later, we will VOTE on the one to paint in class. Drop it. What makes that image so special to you?

There are actually some clear definable guidelines to what makes an image pleasing or displeasing. COMPOSITION! Tomorrow, there will be a new lesson explaining some of the basic guidelines for a successful reference and painting. Which one of these do you like more?

I have a dream of a community that is FUN and AFFORDABLE where EVERYONE learns something. Not just the HOW but also the WHY and how to FIX IT. While I only teach in oil paints, the lessons we learn apply to many mediums: Acrylic Watercolor Pastels Colored Pencils Digital painting …and probably more - the important thing is REALISM. And the process looks something like this: 1️⃣ Deciding what to paint and why What matters to you? What story or feeling do you want to express? Is this something personal… or something you hope to sell? 2️⃣ Designing the painting Learning how to recognize strong compositions in reference images. negative space light and shadow patterns visual flow (yes… even Fibonacci sometimes) avoiding accidental dead-center compositions 3️⃣ Planning the painting. Before paint ever touches the panel: editing reference images deciding the painting size choosing tools and supplies creating a strong sketch (and a bunch of ways to do that!) 4️⃣ Understanding color. This is where painting really starts to make sense. hue value chroma warm vs cool relationships when to deviate from your reference image. 5️⃣ Painting the thing brush selection where to start building the painting step by step stepping back to evaluate 6️⃣ Finishing the painting “How do I know when it’s done?” glazing final adjustments signatures varnishing framing So that’s the rough roadmap of the classroom. 💛🗝️💛🗝️💛🗝️💛🗝️💛🗝️💛🗝️💛🗝️ NOW HERE IS THE FUN PART!!!!! Each month the community will submit reference images. We’ll narrow them down… The community votes. The winning image becomes the painting we learn together. 💛🗝️💛🗝️💛🗝️💛🗝️💛🗝️💛🗝️💛🗝️ THREE TIERS: Freemium Members Submit your photos Vote on what the community will paint next. Open Studio Days - Free Demos Class Parties with prizes Grad School Members Everything in Freemium Full painting tutorial Group improvement sessions. PhD Members Everything in both tiers Plus 1-to-1 input and guidance. Some tutorials will also be available as a single purchase also.