This class has been cancelled—we apologize for any inconvenience. In this one week workshop students will explore the intersection of nineteenth century oil painting techniques with a nineteenth century American philosophy and artistic movement. Class participants will read and discuss excerpts from the Transcendentalists and apply their practice of close observation of nature to creating plant-focused still life paintings in the Sawtooth Botanical Garden greenhouse. A comfort with oil painting will be an asset in this class, as the techniques are advanced, but all painters are welcome and everyone can benefit from the concepts and clear process of realist painting.

Students will learn how to understand and overcome optical illusions when seeing, mixing and applying paint. We will practice using our most natural eye in order to find the visual truth of the subjects. Or as Emerson said “every object rightly seen, unlocks a new faculty of the soul”. We will discuss using natural symbolism to create more emotional, or even spiritual compositions. And especially, how to faithfully paint a subject that is alive, moves day to day or even hour to hour, and will not last. This class is for students who love to patiently observe and want to take their observation skills to new levels, those who love plants and designing with plants, and/or those who want to think about the nature of perception and how to communicate visually. 

Sarah Bird was raised in Concord, MA, just down the road from Walden Pond and she studied oil painting at the Grand Central Atelier in New York – a technique based art school which seeks to revive the nineteenth century art education tradition. The curriculum focused on creating the illusion of form through perfect value and color. Now Sarah uses these skills to create still lifes which celebrate the textures of natural objects, especially plants. 

This five-day workshop takes place Mon-Fri, Feb 10-14, from 9am-1pm daily at the Sawtooth Botanical Gardens.

Part of The Center’s BIG IDEA project The Bottomlessness of a Pond: Transcendentalism, Nature and Spirit.

Cancellation reimbursement deadline: January 20, 2020.