PAINTING POETRY

“Painting is silent poetry, and poetry is painting that speaks," said the classical Greek lyric poet Simonides of Ceos. But how can we capture the essence of poetry in our paintings if we're not writing the words?

We will explore the use of abstract calligraphic marks to make paintings. Using poetry as our starting point, we will experience how abstract paintings can have an intrinsic connection to a poem. This includes the quality of line, size of strokes, shapes, direction of energy, color, value and texture. We will work with the gestures of letters, flourishes, different tools and materials, as well as inward reflection to begin our paintings. The more we can listen to our intuitive self, the more honest, powerful and alive our paintings will be.

We will use sumi ink and watercolor to do exercises in calligraphic mark making, asemic writing, choosing colors, value studies and cropping the page.

If your next step in calligraphy is to take it beyond what you thought you were capable of doing, if you are looking for greater fulfillment in your work, if you want to have fun and make exciting discoveries, then this is the class for you. You will leave with some finished paintings and ideas for more.