Drawing & Painting Intensive: Sessions I & II

Our Visual Arts classes do not require any type of assessment or portfolio to get into the program. Instructors will work with your child at the level that they are at. Your child will improve and learn new skills, whether they are a beginner or have been an artist for years.

• Two Bristol vellum pads (24” x 18”)
• One newsprint pad (24” x 18”)
• Any brushes you prefer
• Old clothing or an apron to use during class time

The class will be divided into two halves: Please note that any friends coming together can opt to be in the same section. One half will go to Painting and the other to Drawing, spending half of the day learning each of the two disciplines. Students will then switch places after lunch. 

Painting will focus on oil paint and start with rudimentary still life projects from life, a necessary part of the process, and evolve toward more adventurous subject matter. As time continues, students will be allowed and encouraged to paint from photo reference, memory, or life as their imagination permits. 

In Drawing, students will work from life, including time with a model. We will work with a variety of drawing tools and techniques, such as charcoal, graphite, ink and mixed media. We will learn to translate what we see in life onto the page using contour lines, negative/positive space, and value with attention to proportions when working with the figure.

Igor Koutsenko was born in Evpatoria, a resort city on the Crimean Peninsula on the Black Sea. He was educated at the Penza School of Art and received rigorous training in the old traditions of realist art. Koutsenko immigrated to the United States in 1992, settling in Oklahoma City, where he taught fine art at the University of Central Oklahoma. He participated in a number of exhibits throughout the United States. In 1998 Koutsenko visited Southern California and was attracted by its beautiful scenery and climate. Since moving to California, he continues to produce original work at his private studio. Igor’s work is in the collections of the Riverside Art Museum, Pfizer Pharmaceutical Company, Institute for Specialized Medicine and the Hoffman Trust collection, as well as numerous distinguished private collections.

John Brosio was born in 1967 in Pasadena, California. He has been drawing for as long as he can remember and those earliest scribbles depict much of the same “off center” subject matter that concerns him today. Apart from various travels his life has been based in either Southern California where he was raised or Northern California where he received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of California at Davis in 1991. Learning under the guidance of artists such as Wayne Thiebaud and Richard Bunkall, Brosio was seduced away from his original aspirations toward a career in film and movie special effects but the cinematic influences are still very much apparent in his work. Known originally for his depictions of tornadoes, Brosio spent three seasons “storm chasing” out of Texas and will often go to such extreme measures in pursuit of familiarity with any of his chosen subject matter. Various exhibitions and honors are highlighted by numerous solo shows in both CA and NY. He also teaches at the Laguna College of Art and Design and the Idyllwild School of Music and Art, both in California. See his work at www.johnbrosio.com

Alla Bartoshchuk is a Ukrainian-born American artist and educator based in Southern California. Born in Rivne, Ukraine in 1988, she moved to the United States in 2005. She earned her BFA in Painting from Memphis College of Art in 2010 and her MFA in Painting from Laguna College of Art and Design in 2013. Alla maintains an active studio practice alongside a robust teaching career. Her work has been exhibited nationally and internationally, including at the Oceanside Museum of Art, the MEAM Museum in Barcelona, and the Laguna Art Museum. Her paintings have been featured in numerous publications, such as Fine Art Connoisseur, Southwest Art Magazine, and Poets and Artists. She is a finalist in multiple Art Renewal Center Salons and a recipient of the Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation Grant.

With over a decade of teaching experience, Alla has taught at institutions including Laguna College of Art and Design, MiraCosta College, California State University Long Beach, and Santiago Canyon College. Her teaching emphasizes technical skill, conceptual development, and inclusive classroom practices.

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