Thank you​ Peninsula School of Art for hosting my 4-Day Watercolor Workshop

I was invited back this year for a four-day watercolor workshop at Peninsula School of Arts. This year I walked the students through The Wonders of Nature. Each student was given photographs of different scenes from Northern Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The scenes included winter, spring, summer, and fall.

​The concentration of this workshop was on large patterns of value and color also taking note of the temperature and textures of the scene. All of the paintings were done with no drawing on the paper. I wanted them to concentrate on the values first and the colors and temperatures While they created the patterns of light and dark. This allowed them to have an emphasis on the handling of the watercolor, how it flowed, how it dried and the patterns which come from not only a wet on wet handling but, wet and dry paper. 

We completed a total of 10 paintings during the workshop. We covered trees, water, snow and textures that lie within. Each day we did two paint-a-long paintings from start to finish.  On the last day in the afternoon, we did three small cloud studies. Everyone had a wonderful time. 

All in all, I was incredibly impressed with this group of artists. The passion, enthusiasm, and the improvement in such a short time really moved me.  The fact that these four women created ten paintings I think surprised them. Like I am always saying I want to teach people how to truly see. I hope they feel I did.

I suggested some of my favorite supplies and books at the workshop. I like let my students experience new and different materials -- they are so expensive and I feel it's my responsibility as an art teacher to share. I let my students take the cat's tongue brushes for a test-drive, try the Indigo paper, and QoR paints. Here are my go-to materials and books:
SUPPLIES

• MEEDEN Cat's Tongue Brush Set
• Indigo Artpapers Handmade Watercolor Paper (you can only find it online at Blick's)
• QoR Watercolor Paints (Here a link to my supply list page with my recommendations. You will find a direct link to QoR Paints.)

BOOKS

• John Carlson's Guide of Landscape Painting. Amazon offers this book for the Kindle, hardbound (expensive!), softbound, and spiral bound.  Once in a while I can find the book in a used book store or antique shop. Here's an hour long blogpost from Artists Helping Artists produced by Leslie Saeta titled Why Every Artist Needs to Read Carlson's Guide to Landscape Painting
• Put Your Paintings in Perspective. Robert J Krajecki is a friend and co-teacher at the Palette & Chisel in Chicago. As I mentioned in my class this is an easy to understand book on perspective. Bob offers a vast understanding of 1, 2, and 3 point perspective.

It wasn't all work. On the third day Karen, who lives in Fish Creek invited the group for some wine, snacks and local artisan cheeses. Karen and her husband Joe have a beautiful, inviting home. They have a lovely piece of property and Karen has quite a green thumb! It was great getting to know everyone, their friends and husbands. 

​While I was working my wonderful wife, Marilee traveled from one small town to another stopping in at antique shops, art galleries and looking for the perfect cup of Door County coffee which are abundant throughout the peninsula. One of my students, Karen gave Marilee a list of places to visit and where to find the perfect cherry pie. Below is some of her iPhone photo album of her travels.  Click on the image and view each business web site.

​Marilee went on a hiking trip at The Clearing, Jens Jensen’s Sanctuary. The Clearing is located at the far northern point of Door County and is a folk school which means there are no grades just the pleasure of learning. Needless to say, she had a great time! 

​This man's resume is quite impressive:
• Chicago Parks including superintendent of the 200 acre Humboldt Park in 1895. His design work for the city can be seen at Lincoln Park, Douglas Park, and Columbus Park.
• Jensen played a role in building support for the preservation of part of the Indiana Dunes sand dune ecosystem.
• His designs have a deep connection to the Midwestern landscape. To read more about this amazing man Click Here.

THE CLEARINGS MISSION STATEMENT
The Mission of The Clearing is to provide diverse educational experiences in the folk school tradition, in a setting of quiet forests, meadows and water. The Clearing is a place where adults who share an interest in nature, arts or humanities can learn, reflect and wonder.

This is in keeping with the goals of Jens Jensen, founder of The Clearing, who loved it as a special place where one could feel kinship with the earth and reassess one’s life.

Wild Tomato Pizza offered a fabulous fire roasted pizza!

LURE offers a perch dinner on Thursday nights. Some of the best we have ever had!

In the evening after the workshop, we visited a different restaurant each evening. Wild Tomato featuring a fire-roasted pizza with the best Wisconsin mozzarella cheese, and the Lure served up an amazing perch fish fry and Door County cherry cobbler. Along with fabulous sites of Door County, we experienced one of the best shows of a sunset over the bay at where else Sunset Beach.

I also want to mention the staff at the Peninsula School of Art was very accommodating and wonderfully kind people. Thank you again, Elysia Michaelsen, Director of Education and Tori Daubner, Registrar.

*AFFILIATE DISCLOSURES
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