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Painting the Confident Portrait in Oils with Stephanie Paige Thomson


  • Workshop SLC 153 2100 South South Salt Lake, UT, 84115 United States (map)

Date: Thursday, October 12th - Saturday, October 14th, 2023

Times: 9:30 am - 4:30 pm

Cost: $550

Level: All Levels


Workshop Description

There are no secrets to painting the portrait, no failsafe mixtures for life-like flesh, and no magic brush for painting hair. These are all gimmicks. In this workshop we will steer clear of a 'tips and tricks' approach to portraiture and instead focus on harnessing the far more powerful tools available to us: the fundamentals. Understanding value, drawing, color, edge, and paint manipulation is not a technique, it is the solid foundation upon which masterful work is made. We will have the pleasure of working from live models for three full days, diving into a world where we can learn to see and think like artists. There will be live demonstrations, daily individual critiques, and a visual presentation designed to expand the students' visual vocabulary. This will be an environment for learning, not performing, and artists of all skill levels are welcomed. Students are encouraged to consider their goals for taking the workshop and come prepared with a favorite pen and journal for note taking.


Supply List

PAINTS:

(colors that are brand specific are labeled)

  • Titanium White

  • Cadmium Lemon

  • Cadmium Yellow Medium 

  • Cadmium Red

  • Yellow Ochre

  • Raw Sienna (Rembrandt)

  • Permanent Alizarin Crimson

  • Transparent Oxide Red (Rembrandt)

  • Amethyst (Michael Harding)

  • Burnt Umber

  • Raw Umber

  • Ivory Black

  • Kings Blue (Sennelier)

  • Ultramarine Blue

  • Viridian

  • Sap Green

***If you are traveling a far distance and are concerned about transporting wet paintings home, I recommend buying Winsor & Newton Griffin Alkyd Titanium White. This Griffin Alkyd paint line is designed to be very fast drying, typically dry to the touch within 18-24 hours. This is the brand of white I usually bring when traveling so I am able to stack my paintings in my luggage on my return journey.

MEDIUMS:

  • Neo Megilp by Gamblin

  • Gamsol by Gamblin (will be supplied by WorkshopSLC)

RAGS:

Viva Paper Towels

BRUSHES:

SURFACES:
Centurion Linen Panels, 20x16 inches, minimum 3. Can purchase from Jerry's Artarama, Blick, and even Amazon.

MISC:

  • A baseball cap or your favorite equivalent (sunhat, etc).

  • Your favorite pen and a sturdy notebook for taking notes. 

  • Your Camera.

  • Comfy, supportive shoes.


About the Artist

After exhibiting a great interest in drawing from a very young age, Stephanie has devoted her life to its pursuit. Rather than entering a traditional art program upon graduating high school, she began seeking out today's leading artists and apprenticing under them personally through workshops. During the intense four year period in which Stephanie was taking workshops as her form of training, her career began to blossom and she has been painting full time ever since. She has been recognized by The Portrait Society of America as an Award of Excellence Winner (2019) and a Finalist in the International Portrait Competition (2020-21). In addition, Stephanie has been recognized by The Hoosier Salon, The National Oil and Acrylic Painters' Society, The American Impressionist Society, The Oil Painters of America, The International Artist Magazine, and Southwest Art Magazine. She currently resides with her husband in the Indianapolis area.

Website: www.stephaniepaigethomson.com

Instagram: @stephaniepaigethomson