Garden Inspired Painting Workshop

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In this 3-hour workshop students of oil paint or acrylics will explore painting styles by studying contemporary artists.  The objective is to investigate ways of seeing nature and rendering works inspired by floral arrangements plucked from Roberta’s garden.  This is not a realistic class but a way to capture the flutter of a petal, the arch of a stem, and colors of the sky in line and in gestural paint. 

Roberta will teach the basics but let painters pursue their own paths.  Students bring their own paints, brushes, and canvases to create abstract backgrounds with a simple palette of three colors in opaque medium focusing on light to illumine the surface.  The aim is to let the soul of the painter come through the painterly brushstroke, use of color, and form of the arrangement.  

The fee for the one-day workshop is $65 and is limited to 10 students.

Roberta Shea is a Newtown painter known for her highly-textured vibrant paintings of the natural world. Her abstracted paintings are about the physical process of painting inspired by Impressionism and Abstract Expressionism. Looking closely at other artist’s works informs her canvases and her students.

She studied at Southern Connecticut State University, Creative Arts Workshop, Washington Arts Association, and Society of Creative Arts in Newtown, taught art at Masuk High School, adult education and afterschool programs and conducted tours at the New Britain Museum of American Art.

She has exhibited locally in Connecticut, New York, and New Hampshire and is represented by Gallery 21 at Arts Escape.

COVID POLICY - Only fully vaccinated students will be permitted to attend classes. Physical proof of vaccination will be requested on the first day of class.(One time only) Don’t forget to bring your vaccination card. Masks are optional.