painting
SUMMER OFFERINGS
Introduction to Oil Painting
Instructor: Hwei-Li Tsao
9 Sessions / Saturdays, June 8–August 3
Time: 10 am–1 pm; July 20 – extended painting session 10 am-4 pm
Location: 117
Number: PA1001
Tuition: $400
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This course introduces oil painting technique, brushwork, color mixing, and the painting vocabulary. Students will build skills and confidence through three painting assignments, and are encouraged to present and discuss their ideas in one-on-one sessions and group critiques. Slide presentations will introduceworks of contemporary painters, providing inspiration and context for the class projects. Beginners are welcome. No prerequisite.
Hwei-Li Tsao is a San Francisco and Marin-based artist. She has exhibited at the Sonoma Valley Museum of Art, Falkirk Cultural Center, MarinMOCA, 142 Throckmorton Gallery, Las Vegas (NM) Art Council, and around the Bay Area. Hwei-Li completed an MFA in Painting at the San Francisco Art Institute in 2011. Currently she teaches painting at the College of Marin. www.hweili.com
Autobiography in Painting
Instructor: Sarah Stolar
10 Sessions / Tuesdays, June 4–August 13, no class June 11
Time: 6:30–9:30 pm
Location: 117
Number: PA1013
Tuition: $400
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In this course students will engage in a survey of one’s self as a means of informing a semester-long series of paintings. By turning inward for source material, artists are able to produce authentic and powerful imagery without the sense of feeling contrived. This identity-driven work can produce cathartic experiences for the artist as well as reveal the inner workings of the psyche, transforming a life experience into artistic expression. Traditional and straight-forward self-portraits will begin the investigation into each student’s life story; however as the course progresses, students will be asked to push the boundaries beyond obvious representation, even obliterating the figure if necessary. Conceptual issues to be addressed include ego, cultural identity, biography, family, memory, obsessions, collections, metaphorical imagery, and narrative. All avenues of painting one’s autobiography will be explored, including (but not limited to) the figure, still-life, text, abstraction, and formal qualities such as color, texture, and composition. Historical and contemporary artists who use their life as a theme will be discussed; books, slides, and video will be presented regularly. In addition to creating several paintings, students will research one artist, keep a journal, and create a handmade sketchbook. Some drawing/painting experience is recommended.
Sarah Stolar has an MFA in New Genres from the San Francisco Art Institute and BFA in Painting from the Art Academy of Cincinnati. She is a painter, multimedia, video, and performing artist whose work is narrative, autobiographical, figurative, and abstract. Selected exhibitions include Currents 2011 Santa Fe, FADA Los Angeles Art Fair, Red Dot Art Fair NY, Kennedy Art Museum in Athens, OH, and the Carnegie Center for the Arts in Covington, KY. Stolar's paintings are represented by the Bohemian Gallery in Kansas City, Los Angeles, and Montevideo. She is also a company dancer with UpSwing Aerial Dance Company in Berkeley, and the costume designer for Annie Sprinkle. www.sarahstolar.com
Intermediate and Advanced Painting
Instructor: Glenn Hirsch
10 Sessions / Wednesdays, June 5–August 7
Time: 6:30–9:30 pm
Location: Studio 117
Number: PA1010
Tuition: $400
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Through visual and verbal analysis, students will increase the power of their work and overcome blocks that hinder the completion of paintings. The course presents ideas to help students explore the content of their art through irony, humor, narrative, mood, and the use of unusual materials. Individual instruction and technical assignments will help students to explore a particular style and become more independent by painting in series. Prerequisite: Recent college or extension level courses in both drawing and painting.
Glenn Hirsch completed his MFA at the San Francisco Art Institute. He teaches as adjunct faculty at UC Berkeley Extension Art Studio, and formerly served as adjunct faculty at JFK University's MFA program and as an adviser for the Art Institute of Boston's MFA program. He has exhibited widely in the United States for 20 years. www.glennhirsch.com
Advanced Painting
Instructor: Sarah Stolar
10 Sessions / Mondays, June 3–August 12, no class June 10
Time: 6:30–9:30 pm
Location: Studio 117
Number: PA1009
Tuition: $400
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In this course, students will use their current body of work and ideas as a springboard for developing a new body of work through investigations and exercises. The course will expand upon each student’s technical knowledge, as well as begin to push painting beyond the realm of straightforward observation. Using a series of conceptual prompts as a guide, students will begin to define their authentic voice, pushing beyond comfort zones and experimenting with new concepts in painting relevant to contemporary art. The class will discuss abstraction, conceptual approaches, and the work of other artists as we interrogate how technique communicates the intended concept. The primary focus of this course is to develop an individual aesthetic, and to be able to defend it in a critique setting. Large-scale painting is highly recommended; students should be prepared to work outside of class time. Prerequisite: Recent college or extension level courses in painting.
Sarah Stolar has an MFA in New Genres from the San Francisco Art Institute and BFA in Painting from the Art Academy of Cincinnati. She is a painter, multimedia, video, and performing artist whose work is narrative, autobiographical, figurative, and abstract. Selected exhibitions include Currents 2011 Santa Fe, FADA Los Angeles Art Fair, Red Dot Art Fair NY, Kennedy Art Museum in Athens, OH, and the Carnegie Center for the Arts in Covington, KY. Stolar's paintings are represented by the Bohemian Gallery in Kansas City, Los Angeles, and Montevideo. She is also a company dancer with UpSwing Aerial Dance Company in Berkeley, and the costume designer for Annie Sprinkle. www.sarahstolar.com
Painting Media Experimentations
Instructor: Savanna Snow
6 Sessions / Thursdays, July 11–August 15
Time: 6:30–9:30 pm
Location: Studio 117
Number: PA1009
Tuition: $250
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This course fosters painting students’ artistic development through experimentation with media and unique painting techniques. Students will be encouraged to find and utilize materials that are overlooked or discarded, reclaiming their environment as a matrix for artwork. Students will then explore these surfaces using a variety of materials, from ink, gouache, and acrylic to craft materials such as sand paper, modeling paste, and rubber cement. They will produce a minimum of five different paintings, with at least one per technique learned in the class. The final works will be assembled and presented to the whole class at the last session. Discussion and in-class sharing of resources, inspiration, and materials will be fostered and strongly encouraged. Time will be allotted before each in-class demonstration to share information gathered during the previous week. No prerequisite.
Savanna Snow is a California artist, illustrator, and designer working in acrylic media, silkscreen, and reclaimed materials. She completed her BFA in Advertising at Art Center College of Design in 2004 and received her MFA in Printmaking from the San Francisco Art Institute in 2012. She has been commissioned to design and install permanent civic works by the City of Fremont, CA. Additionally, she has exhibited at the Laguna Art Museum and in galleries in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Ireland, and is privately collected.
