Friday, February 7, 2014

Paul Ingbretson and The Guild of Boston Artists

As you may know I studied in New Hampshire with Paul Ingbretson. He was the best teacher I have had for any subject- and after 7 years of college and two degrees, I have had a lot of "teachers". He has been producing some videos, with the help of his son Whittaker and George Lambert, gearing up for the 100th anniversary of the Boston Guild. I wanted to post a few because I think they show very well what I believe are some of the major strengths of his teaching and how it is demonstrated in his work.
It is all about the start! As is often the case, painters are taught to concentrate on the drawing first. Then color comes in. The work becoming almost like a complicated 'paint-by-numbers' exercise. We were taught to ignore drawing and focus on the color first. Of course the idea is to get the right value, the right color in the right place. One could argue that placing a red smug in the upper third of the canvas is an early start to the drawing idea, but basically it is about getting a likeness in color without drawing. Drawing is very important- so save it for last. The painting slowly comes into focus, all the while the painter is "learning" the subject from careful observation.
This video gives some indication of how good start should look. There is a bit at the end of Paul discussing his views on art.
This second video shows the painting further along in the process.