Minimalist Painting: Doing More with Less
I just returned from teaching at Plein Air South in Port St. Joe, Florida on the Forgotten Coast. It was my 3rd year on faculty and it gets better every year. If you live on the eastern seaboard, this is a great event... the student to teacher ratio is about 4 to 1 and the Forgotten Coast is the most paintable place I have been with the exception of Coastal Maine.
This year I did a presentation on my latest obsession, doing more with less. Earlier this year I read an article in Plein Air Magazine about Tennessee painter, Kevin Menck. Kevin uses only 3 colors and one brush! He can set up to paint in no time flat. I have so much gear in the studio and in my Plein air kit that sometimes I find myself piddling and trying to decide which brush to use or which red squeeze out... a serious waste of time and effort.
I am currently trying to pair down my gear and ask myself why? I think the answer is because I “feel” more prepared. So, I faced my greatest fear in front of my audience... I used 4 colors I have NEVER used before (with the exception of cerulean blue) and only one brush, a Rosemary and Co. No. 6 long flat Ivory, for my 12x16 demo.
Karyn Harding gave me these three colors because they more of them in stock at the convention that any other. I used Naples Yellow Genuine, Cadmium Red Deep, Cerulean Blue and Green Gold.
I proved to myself that even if I don’t have everything I need to make me comfortable, I can make great decisions and paint a decent painting... I also had less choices to make and really got to focus on the painting instead of the gear... if you’re interested in a workshop based on this idea, please let me know. I will offer one in the near future.
