Nancy Crookston Workshop

8x10" workshop study

Learning from the master - Nancy giving a helping hand


Just spent 3 days at a Nancy Crookston workshop in Scottsdale, Arizona. She is a fabulous painter and a total sweetheart! She studied with Sergei Bongart (a Russian master who you should really check out if you haven't seen his work) over a 4 year period when she was learning to paint, and the classical rules of painting he taught her have stayed with her as some of the most valuable lessons of her career.

The main thrust of her teaching was color, and the importance of seeing it correctly in relationship to it's surroundings. How the same 'red' becomes warmer/cooler - lighter/darker depending on what it is next to.  That, and that the key to a strong painting is to determine the correct colour, value and temperature, block these in in large abstract masses, begin modeling and further refining these 3 things, and then finish with the "calligraphy of light and dark accents".

Of course there was lots more, but this was the big important stuff, and she LOVES to lose edges so we got to see a lot of that in action which was awesome.

Also got in 3 days of plein air work pre-workshop and got to check out the Oil Painters of America National show which was outstanding. All in all a great trip, and am now leaving this hot, sunny desert to fly into Calgary where there is a severe winter storm warning in effect. Hmmmm...