Qiang Huang Workshop

I attended a painting workshop at The Coppini Academy in San Antonio last weekend. Qiang Huang, an artist whose work I admire greatly, was the instructor. It turns out that Qi was a physicist before changing careers in mid life. So he has analyzed the painting process as a scientist would and narrowed it down to five basic steps: Placement, Value, Color, Modeling and Consolidation.

I learned a lot from him, mostly by watching him handle the paint and from his spot-on critiques of my work. He is a great teacher, which is not always the case with great artists. Just because you can paint, doesn't mean you can talk about it. He did a great job with both and while he was there he met with the owner of the Greenhouse Gallery and was invited to show his work there. I was very happy for this humble and unassuming artist.

This is the painting I did on Day 1 and I will share the others in upcoming blog posts and talk a little bit about the things I learned and why I think they are valuable. Everyone set up their own still life with things they brought from home or objects the school had on hand and it was fun as well as challenging.

I used 9"x 12"Centurion linen panels and a LOT of liquin (a drying medium), hoping my paintings would dry enough not to get smeared when I packed them for the ride home.

Grapes with Clay Pitcher
9"x 12"oil on linen