Crealde Urban Sketchers

Posted on by Thor

Just before Christmas I sketched my Urban Sketching students hard at work at Crealde School of Art. I decided to hold all classes outside because of the pandemic. I was always double masked and often wore a face shield. My students were great about staying masked at all times.

More than 2 million people had traveled before the Christmas Holidays and that resulted in a huge spike in cases in January. By January 8, 2021 over 300,000 people were infected in a single day. Over 4,000 Americans were dying each day.

The Spring session of Crealde Urban Sketching is beginning about April 11, 2021 through May 30, 2021. My focus has always been to get students out of the studio and sketching life around them. The pandemic has brought a about a greater appreciation of the joys of sketching outside.

In this 6 week class, we focus on sketching clothed models and and the classroom environment. We focus on how to incorporate storytelling into your sketches when drawing on location. The assignments challenge you to use your sketchbook the way a photojournalist uses a camera. The sketches are completed using pencil, pen, and watercolor within two hours.

Supplies needed:

#2 HB pencil with an eraser, 05 and 08 micron pens, Stillman and Birn 9 x 12 inch spiral bound sketchbook (Alpha or Epsion series), Travel sized watercolor pallet (mine is a Windsor Newton with 14 color pans), Pentel water brush (water goes in the handle), Black Prismacolor pencil, and a compact artist stool.

 

Crealde Urban Sketching Class

Posted on by Thor

My Crealde School of Art, Urban Sketching Class had three students on this Sunday. It was raining so we couldn’t sketch outside the studio. I decided that if each student has their own table then there should be about six feet between them. I also decided to leave the studio door open for a cross breeze.

We focused on sketching the studio itself by using the perspective lessons I has taught and also to capture as many fellow students as we could. I did this quick sketch as a sample. You might notice a straight line across the image, I put that in to demonstrate that each students eyes were about the same height above the floor and therefor straight across the page.

This sketch was also done to demonstrate the idea of pools of light. I darkened the walls as they receded into the corner of the room and added a spot light effect to add a center of interest. The room was lit with florescent lights so this effect was not very pronounced but I pushed it in my sketch.

I have one more class to teach this Sunday January 20, 2020. All of my students have been really talented and they take my premise for each class and make it there own. Classes will resume again starting Sunday January 24, 2020.

Yesterday This Was Home: Getting the Ticket

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After teaching an Urban Sketching Class at Crealde School of Artthis morning I spent the rest of the day animating dialogue for this piece. The most important line of dialogue was “No.” I animated that line for much of the day today. I kept the timing on 4s which means most frames hold for 4 frames. This results in crisp rather clipped motion which I rather liked for this particular scene. A Disney Feature Animated film would always make sure the timing was on 2s or even 1s in some cases, meaning thee could be 24 drawings for every second. On 4s I would only have  to d 6 drawings which is a time saver as I get up to speed again.

I started a second dialogue scene which is framed much like the first scene. That scene is over 10 seconds long which should take all day to do. Besides animating, I also try and get the frames painted and then edited into the final story reel by nightfall. Animation is all consuming and there is always a pile of work waiting to be done. I finished the storyboards yesterday, so I know the story is solidly tied down and now I can just focus on production. This is going to be a crazy ride.

They boy in this scene seems a bit older than 12 years old , So I will likely change his look a bit when I start animating this scene. I like the Art Deco look of the station ticket counter. I used to work i the Empire State Building in NYC and the lobby and whole building had this look.

Again, this film will be on display at the Orange County Regional History Center  for an exhibition titled, Yesterday This Was Home, on display October 3, 2020 – February 14, 2021

The 1920 Ocoee Massacre in Orange County, Florida, remains the largest incident of voting-day violence in United States history.

Crealdé in a Pandemic

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I have been teaching an Urban Sketching class at Crealdé School of Art for the past 3 Sundays. We have spent most of our time outdoors since there have been decent breezes and it hasn’t been too hot. I have four very talented students, each with their own style. I start each class with a premise and then we sketch on campus. I have been keeping classes outdoors since it is easier to social distance and enclosed spaces with recirculated air are the breading ground for the COVID-19 virus. The main focus of the class is to get out of the studio and explore the world anyway.

I rolled out a black board and used it so I could sketch large enough for all to see from six feet away. This class was about doing thumbnail sketches and basic ideas about composition and perspective. As my students explored the campus with their sketchbooks it felt good to sketch on location again myself. I had not sketched on location since the start of the pandemic. Instead I have been doing one illustration based on some story from the pandemic. Now that I am teaching I can no longer do a painting every day without burning out. I instead pace out each painting over several days. I feel pressure to get the paintings done fast because the news surrounding the pandemic keeps changing moment to moment.

The pandemic is the only story I keep tracking every day. Even doing thumbnails around Crealdé I focused my attention on the measures that were taken to try and make the campus more safe during the pandemic. Portable sinks were set up with foot pedals so that peoples hands do not need to touch faucets. Picnic tables were moved out from under the awning to allow six feet of space between tables. I carry a six foot stick as a visual reminder for students and myself to maintain social distancing. I also us the stick as a pointer when reviewing art work.

We made up the ill fated first class virtually. I am thankful I teach on a day where there are very few people on campus. I realized that the figure drawing class that usually happened next to mine was canceled. We might have to move inside once it truly gets hot.

Crealdé in a Pandemic

Posted on by Thor

On Sunday mornings I have been instructing an Urban Sketching Class at Crealdé School of Art (600 St. Andrews Blvd. Winter Park, FL 32792). Rather than teach in the enclosed classroom, I have been instructing outside. We have been lucky with decent breezes. I did this quick demo sketch to show students how to lay out a composition and then they wandered off to do sketches of their own.

I am fascinated by the outdoor portable sinks that have been installed outside with foot pedals to turn on and off the water. The water only shoots out as a powerful geyser, there is no middle ground. I would be very curious to see the little ones using then during summer camp.

We had discussed two point perspective and the use of lights and darks in a sketch. Periodically I would walk around and find the students to check on their progress while maintaining six feet of distance. I carry a six foot staff as a visual reminder to myself and the students. It would be nice if it was a rare wizards staff, but it is just a section of molding.

All my students have all been troopers about wearing masks, though I had to lend a mask to one student who forgot one at the first class. I wear a mask and face shield to further protect my students.

Crealdé Fall Session

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The Crealdé School of Art Fall sessions will be session from August 17, 2020 to October 8, 2020. The Crealdé main campus and the Hannibal Square Heritage Center reopened on Saturday, May 16, 2020.

I will be teaching an Urban Sketching Course  in the Fall but likely students will remain on campus for doing location drawings. The sketch above is an example of a quick demo I did for students on campus.

The school is initiating new safety features and health practices which will be in place until further notice.

The Crealdé School Covid-19 Safety Measures.

1. Reducing the maximum number of students in classes to 6 – 8 students depending on classroom size and medium.

2. Re configuring the studio spaces and work tables to allow for 6 feet of social distance. Classroom floors will be clearly marked in a way that student traffic and pathways utilized will not impede or intrude upon the six-foot or more social distancing.

3. Galleries and exhibition spaces will be limited to 10 visitors at a time adhering to the 6 foot social distancing guidelines.

4. On a daily basis, Crealdé and Heritage Center staff are cleaning bathrooms and disinfecting doors, handles and classroom surfaces.

5. The school staff will promote frequent and thorough hand washing by faculty, staff, students and visitors.

6. Any staff, faculty, students or visitors who are coughing, sneezing or in general not feeling well, are asked to please stay at home, and to continue to follow the directions of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) or a health professional. Anyone demonstrating health issues will be asked to leave.

7. Students are encouraged to use their personal work and art tools and equipment when possible. For youth classes, separate individual “baggies” will be provided for each student’s class supplies.

8. The school is instituting regular/enhanced instructor housekeeping and maintenance/janitorial practices, including routine cleaning and disinfecting of surfaces, equipment, and other elements of the school environment after each class is dismissed.

9. Until further notice, the school strongly encourages the wearing of masks in classrooms and exhibition spaces for students and visitors.  All  instructors will be wearing masks in class.

Crealde School of Art Urban Sketching Class

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The Spring Session of my Urban Sketching Class at Crealde School of Art (600 St Andrews Blvd Winter Park, FL) will start March 29, 2020 and run for 6 classes. The classes are on Sunday mornings starting at 9:30am to 12:30pm. Each class begins in the main campus classroom where I introduce a premise. Much of the focus is on learning to create compositions that use the whole page. The supplies are cheap and easy to find, a sketchbook, pencil and eraser, pen and ink, and watercolor. The main hope is to share my love of sketching on location every day and to carry a sketch journal wherever you go.

In this class I had introduced some basic human anatomy (note the blackboard sketches) and the students are tasked with sketching one another being sure to get more that one fellow student in the sketch. For each student I go around and dash off a quick composition sketch. I know that an important aspect of this assignment was making students in the foreground large and far students small. My notes are usually dashed off on my iPad so I don’t waste paper. But if the student wants I do it in their sketchbook as well. In this note, I wrote BIG to stress the importance of making the foreground figure big and then focusing on the smaller figures behind. I am also showing the way to use tile floor and paneled ceilings to stress one point perspective to draw the viewers eye into the scene. We learn by doing. The goal is to produce a lot of sketches consistently. A sketch by definition is never complete so there is less pressure and the next sketch will be better having learned from what didn’t work at the moment. As Chuck Jones said, “All of you here have one hundred thousand bad drawings in you. The sooner you get rid of them, the better it will be for everyone.”

Urban Sketching: Tips and Techniques

  • Class starts on: Sunday, March 29, 2020
  • Duration: 6 Weeks
  • Sundays | 09:30 am – 12:30 pm
  • Location: Main Campus
  • Fee: $290

 Enroll now!

Crealde Urban Sketching Class

Posted on by Thor

My Crealde Urban Sketching Class begins Sunday January 19, 2020 starting at 9:30am. This is a sketch of the classroom. Outside the window you can see one of my students sketching on a sunny day. Inside I was demonstrating to another student how to block in the room quickly in a composition and how to place a figure. The primary reason for this quick sketch was to demonstrate how to leave large shapes on the page pure white and then apply a light wash over the rest of the sketch to make those shapes pop.

Each morning we start by exploring a premise in the classroom and then in the last half or the class we move out into the community to sketch on location. Just getting students to realize that when they draw on location, no one is judging them. I might offer insights, but I don’t judge the work. Each student has their own approach and temperament and the variety we see across the board is part of what makes drawing on location with other artists so exciting.

Last semester I started asking students to share their work on Instagram.  This allows them to share work with each other and possible hear from a much wider community of artists. On Instagram I also share all the rough class notes and composition sketches I do for students. That was students can see what was shared.

The past few weeks I have been pouring over thousands of my early student sketches and it has been an eye opening learning experience. Some of the sketches I did back in my 20s and 30s are bold and daring and it is making me want to experiment more with my work in the next year. I worked much larger in my youth, usually on 18 by 24 inch sketch pads. I scaled down when I started sketching once a day starting back in 2009. Part of the reason was to be sure that I could scan the drawings on my flat bed scanner. I think I might grow much faster as an artist if I return to working larger and find other ways to work around the limits of scanning technology. So here is to a bigger and bolder 2020.

The next 6 week Urban Sketching course has been canceled due to lack of enrollment.

Drink and Draw

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Sarah Jane Rozman hosted a Drink and Draw at The Nook on Robinson (2432 E. Robinson St, Orlando, Florida). I host an Orlando Drink and Draw (ODD) once a month as well so I decided to stop in to see how this Drink and Draw differed. The biggest difference was that a winner got $$$ for their bar tab! The artists in attendance all were given a theme so all the at produced tied together. Finished pieces were taped to the wall. Since I was working on this sketch, I didn’t follow the rules.

The good thing about this venue was that the Drink and Draw directly followed Tasty Tuesday which is a food truck event that happens each Tuesday in the parking lot behind The Nook. This guarantees that Tuesday nights are going to be pretty crowded. I knew Sarah since she used to work at Art Systems in the print department. Unfortunately the color printer seldom worked so I started getting my prints at RT Art instead.

In 2019 I let ODD lapse since Orlando Urban Sketchers were hosting so many successful sketch events. Unfortunately those outing were almost all on days I was teaching art at Elite Animation Academy or Crealde School of Art. I still try and sketch every night so my best chance to meet fellow artists is to start hosing ODD events again once a month.

Crealde Urban Sketching Class

Posted on by Thor

I teach a 6 week Urban Sketching Tips and Techniques Class at Crealde School of Art (600 Saint Andrews Boulevard Winter Park, Fl). Even in the heart of winter we head outside each class to get out of the studio environment and sketch from direct observation. Half of the class is usually in the classroom as we explore a new premise then we sketch from life. We expand from drawing a single person to capturing the entire scene. Each class builds on the last. The goal is always to get the students to finish their sketches using pencil, pen and ink and watercolor within a two hour window. Sketches in the beginning of the course might be unfinished but towards the end of the course the work becomes more complete. A sketch by definition is unfinished however and I try and relate that form of acceptance.

I dash of fast digital sketches like the one above as the students at focusing on their own work. I also make the rounds and offer suggestions in the form of sketches to each student when they start out. The initial composition is what I try and get them to focus on before the details. In the first 5 or 6 strokes of the pencil the entire composition can be established and I try and get the students to embrace the same bold approach.

I end up missing each group of students when the course is over. Six weeks is just enough time to get them started on what could be a life long journey but I always wish that I could have shared more. I set up an Instagram hashtag (#crealdesketcher) so I can share notes and students can also share work with each other. Communicating and sharing is the main reason to become an Urban Sketcher, so I am hoping this platform will open students up to sharing their work online.

My next Urban Sketching Tips and Techniques Class in studio 1B begins Sunday January 19, 2020 at 9:30am until 12:30pm and runs for the following six Sundays. The price is $270 for Members and $290 for Non-Members. Go to the Crealde website to register.