Painting Classes @ LVS Online

In every Acrylic Painting course description I provide a list of supplies that you will need. You can probably get them from your local art supply store but I will give you online links to art supply sites that I have been happy with.

Started in 1911, Dick Blick Art Materials is one of the largest suppliers in the nation. They are the premier art supplies source for professional artists, students and teachers. Students will recieve the best pricing, selection, and service available. Dick Blick Art Materials

www.artistsclub.com
They have very reasonable rake and comb brush sets called Papillon. They also have interesting specialty brush sets, and transfer paper. They also have a paint set called Reeves. I have never used this paint so I cannot tell you anything about it but you might want to look at it.

www.aswexpress.com www.jerrysartarama.com
These are basically both the same company. They have extensive supplies and are a great source of canvas. Their Creative Mark stretched canvas is very nice, stapled in the back, good quality and the lowest prices I have found, but you have to buy a minimum of 2 boxes. They also have a variety of canvas boards and panels and also canvas paper pads. They also carry the spray fixative and lots and lots of brushes and other goodies. Their shipping has always been super fast.

www.craftsetc.com
They have the lowest prices I have found for paint, usually around .89 to .99 cents a bottle.

cheapjoes.com
Good prices on stretched canvas

This class is for everyone who has trouble with painting certain things. Ever say, “I wonder how you paint this or that?” Well this class is all about learning how to paint individual things so you will be able to incorporate them into finished paintings. These are “studies” and not meant to be full sized finished paintings.

Anyone who has gotten discouraged and ruined a big painting because they couldn’t figure out how to paint one particular thing, this class is for you as it teaches you many different techniques on some of the things that people have the most problems with.

I can’t emphasize enough that you must really learn to “see” how things are put together. How colors and patterns blend in with other colors so they look like they are all one. Being a good artist means looking at things in a different way. It means that you no longer see an object as a whole but are capable of seeing all the subtle things that go into making that object a whole and actually that’s a beautiful thing to do. You will find nature opening up right before your eyes as you see flowers and trees, bees and everything else with all their myriad parts instead of just taking for granted that they are what they are. If you can’t see it, you can’t paint it, so practice, practice, practice looking at everything with the mind set of seeing what makes it what it is and how’s it put together.

Although this course is geared toward traditional paint on canvas lessons, digital artists are welcome. Some of our students have created beautiful digital paintings from the lessons. Digital students MUST know their program, as no help other than painting technique can be given.

Come join us on a painting journey! This class is a lot of fun and is geared for beginners and artists alike.

For more information and to register, follow this link:  http://www.lvsassociates.com/register/product_info.php?products_id=257 

Ever wanted to be able to paint an animal or a beloved pet? Photographs fade and deteriorate but a portrait is forever.

Acrylic paints are made by suspending pigment (or color) in synthetic polymer emulsified by water. They are basically plastic, water-soluble paints that have good adhesive qualities, and are very stable. They don’t oxidize, decompose or turn yellow over time.

This class takes you through step by step the process of painting beautiful acrylic pet portraits. Patterns are provided for you to trace onto the painting background you wish to use. Easy to follow guidelines begin with tracing the pattern and guide you progressively through each step to the complete painting.

By the time you finish with the class you should be able to apply the painting principles to any other animal you want to paint. Each lesson adds new elements and challenges. The first lesson is the introduction and begins with the basics of painting fur or hair and how to create realistic eyes and other features. The second lesson is a simple long haired kitten, teaching you how to paint fur and blend in colors. The third lesson is an adorable beagle and teaches shading and contouring. The fourth is a cute little solid color guinea pig which gives you the skills to paint a solid color animal, using shading to produce definition. The fifth is a Hyacinth Macaw which teaches you how to double and triple load a brush and subtlety blend one area into another. The last lesson is of a horse and is a challenge because it uses all that you have learned and goes extensively into subtle blending, washes and shading. When you have used and practiced all these skills, you should not have any problems painting any animal you wish.

For more information and to register, follow this link:  http://www.lvsassociates.com/register/product_info.php?products_id=218

Acrylic paints are made by suspending pigment (or color) in synthetic polymer emulsified by water. They are basically plastic, water-soluble paints that have good adhesive qualities, and are very stable. They don’t oxidize, decompose or turn yellow over time.

Come join us on a painting journey! This class is a lot of fun and is geared for beginners and artists alike.

Can’t draw? No problem. So you have a nice photo and you want to paint it; how do you get it on the canvas or whatever you’re going to paint on? There are those little machines that have the light bulb in them that you put a pattern under and it enlarges things. Do they work? Yes, but it’s hard to work with because the projected image is very faint unless you’re in the dark and then how do you work when you can’t see anything and you’re always in front of the image. If you have Windows XP, the printing wizard will print different sizes up to a page size. If you have Paint Shop Pro or similar programs you can set the print size but what if your printer won’t print anything but regular page sizes? Luckily, there are poster printing software programs that are really cheap that will print out photographs on several sheets of paper and then you tape them together, lay it on the piece you want to paint and trace in the details where you want them. How does that work? BEAUTIFULLY!

I can’t emphasize enough that you must really learn to “see” how things are put together. How to colors and patterns blend in with other colors so they look like they are all one. Being a good artist means looking at things in a different way. It means that you no longer see an object as a whole but are capable of seeing all the subtle things that go into making that object a whole and actually that’s a beautiful thing to do. You will find nature opening up right before your eyes as you see flowers and trees, bees and everything else with all their myriad parts instead of just taking for granted that they are what they are. If you can’t see it, you can’t paint it, so practice, practice, practice looking at everything with the mind set of seeing what makes it what it is and how’s it put together.

This class takes you through step by step the process of painting beautiful acrylic landscapes.

Patterns are provided for you to trace onto the painting background you wish to use. Easy to follow guidelines begin with tracing the pattern and guide you progressively through each step to the complete painting.

For more information and to register, follow this link: http://www.lvsassociates.com/register/product_info.php?products_id=233

Come join us and learn how to paint these beautiful feathered creatures! This class is a lot of fun and is geared for beginners and artists alike. It will take you step by step through the process of painting beautiful acrylic birds.

Although this course is geared toward traditional paint on canvas lessons, digital artists are welcome. Some of our students have created beautiful digital paintings from the lessons. Digital students MUST know their program, as no help other than painting technique can be given.

Why acrylic paint? Acrylic paints are made by suspending pigment (or color) in synthetic polymer emulsified by water. They are basically plastic, water-soluble paints that have good adhesive qualities, and are very stable. They don’t oxidize, decompose or turn yellow over time. They are easy to work with and dry very quickly which is great if you have to go over parts of your painting.

Can’t draw? No problem! Patterns are provided for you to trace onto the painting background you wish to use. Easy to follow guidelines begin with tracing the pattern and guide you progressively through each step to the complete painting.

For more information and to register, follow this link: http://www.lvsassociates.com/register/product_info.php?products_id=244

Come join us on a painting journey of beautiful scenery across America! This class is a lot of fun and is geared for beginners and artists alike. The instructor, Dia Spriggs, is an artist, specializing in realistic animal painting, juried member of EBSQ+ and has many paintings in private collections.

Although this course is geared toward traditional paint on canvas lessons, digital artists are welcome. Some of our students have created beautiful digital paintings from the lessons. Digital students MUST know their program, as no help other than painting technique can be given.

Acrylic paints are made by suspending pigment (or color) in synthetic polymer emulsified by water. They are basically plastic, water-soluble paints that have good adhesive qualities, and are very stable. They don’t oxidize, decompose or turn yellow over time. They are easy to work with and dry very quickly which is great if you have to go over parts of your painting.

Photos are provided for reference. With landscape painting, the photos are for suggestion only and don’t have to be followed to the letter. This is all about teaching you what you want to put into your painting. You might want to add something, combine two or more photos, subtract something, or move something. Artists are basically illusionists. Very few of us can do perfect photographic paintings, so instead of painting every leaf, every detail we give the illusion of a tree full of leaves that the eye will turn indeed to a fully leaved tree. Don’t worry about perfection; paint what you see, what you want the person looking at it to see. When you paint, put yourself into the painting. If you can see yourself walking down a pathway, smelling flowers, feeling the waterfall as it trickles over your feet, this energy will be put into the painting along with the paint you put on the canvas and the people looking at it will “feel” the painting too. Some of the most beautiful paintings are masterpieces but are “dead”; when you look at them you feel nothing. Others, maybe very simple art and yet you may be drawn to it and get a warm, fuzzy feeling when you look at it; it’s all about putting the energy into the painting as you do it.

8 x 10 Patterns are provided for you to trace onto the painting background you wish to use. Easy to follow guidelines begin with tracing the pattern and guide you progressively through each step to the complete painting.

For more information and to register, follow this link:  http://www.lvsassociates.com/register/product_info.php?products_id=249

Registration for the March 2008 session is open at LVS Online ~ Where Learning Is Fun!

For more information, go to http://www.lvsonline.com/update.shtml

For a complete list of all available classes at LVS Online go to
http://www.lvsonline.com/schedule.shtml

Instructor-led classes begin March 8th so head on over to LVS Online Classes to enroll now!  http://www.lvsassociates.com/register