Spring 2022 : Lecture : Hokusai: Old Man, Mad about Painting!: Misa Kobayashi Stuart
Exploring the life and work of Hokusai.
You can recognize the iconic image of The Great Wave off Kanagawa by Katsushika Hokusai, even if you don’t know his name. This most well-known design, as well as South Wind, Clear Sky (Red Fuji) were created after he was 70 years old. He signed his last painting “old man of 90 years, Manji” before his death three months later. During 70 years of creative life, Hokusai changed his name 30 times and left some 30,000 works of art behind him. Many late pieces were signed “old man, crazy to paint”.
His practice was very diverse: woodblock prints, actor portraits, sumo wrestlers, landscapes, beautiful women, ghosts, sketches of people, animals, and everything he observed. He is certainly the most well recognized and influential Japanese artist. In this program, we’ll follow his artistic life and work in the context of history, society and the culture he lived in.
Spring 2022 : Lecture : Taste & See: History & Culture of Japanese Cuisine: Misa Kobayashi Stuart
Taste & See: History & Culture of Japanese Cuisine
Traditional Japanese cuisine is designated as UNESCO Intangible World Heritage of Humanity. It is known as Washoku. It is not just food, or recipes, but also culture and attitude toward materials, the seasons, nature and customs. In this program, we’ll look at the characteristics of Japanese cuisine, how it was developed, and the cultural and historical backgrounds which nurtured it. Topics will include materials – particular cooking utensils, seasonings and ingredients – and recipes.
Spring 2022 : Class : Get a Start Collecting Art:
How to enjoy original art in your own home, regardless of budget.
This class will introduce you to all you need to know to start collecting art. We will not approach the topic as a financial investment, but rather as an enhancement of daily life. Even if you want to start out with just one piece and have a super-tight budget, this class will help you define your taste and show you how to discover the art resources available locally and online. Additionally, you will meet two local collectors, see their collections, and learn how they got started and what continues to motivate them to acquire. We will begin with an examination of different art forms and conclude by examining how to frame, hang, light, and protect your acquisitions for a lifetime. Naturally, we’ll consider pricing every step of the way.
Details of each class will be posted on BSSS Website.
Spring 2022 : Class : Painting the City: Martin Geiger
This class will be an on-site oil painting class where we will be going out into the downtown of Staunton and trying our hand at cityscape painting. This class will push students to paint larger than they are comfortable with and to incorporate more sweeping views of the city scape. The technical emphasis will be on a sense of directional light, confident color mixing and attempting to create a sense of depth and space in the work.
Winter 2022 : Lecture : Art in Late Medieval England: 1350-1500: Warring Houses of Lancaster and York to the Tudors: Dr. Sara N. James
The Gothic style goes on almost forever in England, but it never gets boring! The English inventiveness continues to transform churches, cathedrals, castles, and other secular buildings. The timber frame construction is especially inventive. Manuscripts also flourish on the eve of the printing press. Painting, sculpture, decorative arts, and tapestries are also woven into the course. Sara James’s travels have taken her to many of the sites, which enriches the course.
SORRY THIS CLASS IS CANCELLED. PLEASE CALL THE OFFICE FOR MORE INFORMATION.
Winter 2022 : Class : Constructing a painting: Abigail Dudley
In this class, students will be guided through a series of exercises to help build a broader appreciation for the underlying structure of paintings. We will study paintings from art history to better understand their formal and emotive qualities to identify what makes a strong and compelling painting. Emphasis will be on understanding the abstract structure, color space, and composition. Students will choose a painting to study and then they will create a painting that is informed and inspired by it. This approach is designed to help students reach a deeper level of invention through a strong foundation of analyzing image-making.
Winter 2022 : Class : Soft pastel, Oil painting and Gouache Course: Emily Hirtle
Learn the fundamentals and application of painting in soft pastel, gouache and in a direct oil painting method. Discover essential techniques while practicing painting from life or from your photo references.
Learn about different surfaces such as vellum, mylar, oil paper, panel, canvas and linen and toned papers, brands of soft pastel, gouache, and oil paint.
Historical and contemporary painters who worked in soft pastel, gouache, and oil paint.
Each week you will receive pre-recorded demos on how to apply soft pastel, gouache and at its different consistencies, and painting in a direct method of oil paint.
You may alternate between each medium or choose to focus on one. We will have group critiques and I provide individual critiques through the duration of this class. At the end of our 
class you will receive a Padlet PDF featuring your work and your peer’s work. Comments on your work given by me and your peers who have voluntarily offered comments also.
SORRY THIS CLASS IS CANCELLED. PLEASE CALL THE OFFICE FOR MORE INFORMATION.
Winter 2022 : Class : Sketching & Drawing with Inks: John A. Hancock
In this 4 -week real time online (ZOOM) course we’ll work mostly with traditional black inks exploring permanent and soluble inks with pens and brushes. I will also demonstrate traditional
brown inks and modern color inks. Concentrating on sketching techniques for line, texture, and washes; you will develop design strategies that balance visual richness with simplicity. We will have lots of feedback, helpful handouts, and real time as well as recorded demos. Once registered, you’ll receive additional details and suggested supply list. A few days before the course I’ll send you links to join the class via computer, tablet, or smartphone. 
STUDENTS: Adults and mature Teens
Winter 2022 : Class : Introduction to Mixing & Design for Watercolor: John A. Hancock
COLOR & DESIGN FOR WATERCOLOR/WATERMEDIA
Color; Glorious Color … Working with Color is so rewarding but also tough to master in Watercolor, Gouache, or Acrylic. Mixing color can feel a bit mysterious, even frustrating. We will explore 
techniques to mix colors you want on both palette and paper. We’ll also address getting colors to work together by exploring strategies for thinking about, designing, and applying color. You’ll achieve a range of harmonies and contrasts; gorgeously subtle, deeply rich, and/or bold and exciting! 
As this an in-person indoor class, I’m open to a max of eight fully vaccinated students. Expect mild social distancing; everyone will need to bring and wear a mask.
Winter 2022 : Class : Art as Exploration: Winter Project: Robert Stuart
How about taking time this Winter to dig deeper into your art and develop your own voice?
Participants take on a winter “project” with aspirations for growth in particular aspects of their art-making, and go forward with constructive criticism to address and develop those aspirations. The goal is enrichment and strengthening of one’s voice as an artist.
The class will include visual presentations and discussions of works by historical and contemporary artists, especially those represented in current museum and gallery exhibitions, and art reviews. Let’s talk about art!
Possible projects could be: making the work more abstract; creating more texture and physicality; inspiration from particular artwork. The emphasis is on exploration rather than finished product.
This class will meet in-person twice (for the first and last class), and will be conducted via Zoom for the other three.
Spring 2023 : Class : Working With Colored Pencils: Mary Shira
Working With Colored Pencils
The most singular characteristic of colored pencils is that they are not graphite pencils. Because most of us have used graphite pencils all our lives they are familiar and often we think using colored pencils is no more than a change to color. But this logic is false. Colored pencils are different since they are semi-opaque and somewhat transparent and so in many ways similar to watercolor. The layering of colors creates complex images that are visually interesting and can resemble the colors in nature itself. Colored pencils are also forgiving and allow for error and recovery all the while learning to adjust and readjust your drawing.
This class will explore the unique characteristics of this medium which can be used to create a wide range of finished artwork from photorealistic to expressive and impressionistic pieces depending on how the pencil is applied. We will learn about the materials which are simple: a set of colored pencils, paper, eraser and sharpener. It makes for materials that are easily transported and inexpensive to work with compared to most color mediums. Once you develop your own unique style you will find there is plenty of room for experimentation.
Spring 2023 : Class : Beginner & Intermediate Drawing & Painting: Janly Jaggard
This course puts emphasis on drawing and painting from observation as the essential means by which we understand the formal elements and how to apply them to our practice as beginner artists. Drawing is where to begin and continues to be a critical process throughout one’s art journey regardless of medium or genre.
This 5 week course is also suited for intermediate students who wish to begin developing personal style with work that begins with visual research but can be taken in several directions.
Each student is taught one-on-one which allows for personalized projects, mainly focusing on drawing mediums or painting in acrylics or oils.
Minimum: 5 – Maximum: 10
Winter 2022 : Class : Learning from the Watercolor Masters IV: Peg Sheridan
Join us as we study the work of past and present day watercolor artists such as John Constable, J.M.W. Turner, Edgar Whitney, Eliot O’Hara, Ilia Ibriaev, and others. We will look at each artist’s techniques, and try them on our own paintings. You choose works that inspire you, and either copy them or use what you learned from their work to enrich paintings of your own images. Each student will also choose a contemporary watercolor master to either copy or inform his or her own paintings.
Peg Sheridan will be offering watercolor classes and workshops in January and February in Staunton, Verona, and Orange, VA. See her website for more details at www.pegsheridan.com. Peg has won many awards for her paintings, and her classes often sell out. She is a faculty member of Beverley Street Studio School in Staunton. Peg is known for her patient, professional teaching methods.
Winter 2022 : Class : Drawing for Volume and Touch: Martin Geiger
This class will be centered around how to draw in a way that feels intensely volumetric and physical. We will use both line and tone to create a sense of volume and space around everyday objects in a structured manner that balances both observation and systems of “knowing” about volume (such as linear perspective). All the while we will be supplementing the exercises with a barrage of excellent and informative masterworks by artists through the ages.
The materials list will be simple:
- Drawing pad of at least 16×20 size drawing paper
- Graphite or charcoal pencils of some kind or a reasonable equivalent
- Eraser of whatever kind student prefers
Winter 2022 : Class : Studio Lock-In: Janly Jaggard
The idea of this lock-in is that we each come to the space and work on what we would typically work on in our own workspace.The main difference will be two-folds:
ONE: we will plan to have our phones TURNED-OFF (or only accepting Emergency calls)
TWO: we will create a supportive community amongst us as we provide feedback to each other at pre-arranged times during each day.
In order to make this work, and have no interruptions at all, we need to follow the plan that no-one talks to others, unless it is a critique feedback session.
I will not be teaching during the 2 days, but i will make sure that we can create opportunities for constructive feedback.Our goal is to become fully engaged in our practice.
Feel free to bring a headset to listen to your own music while working in the studio.
If you wish to work on a still-life or other environmental subject matter, you may use any props available in the studios, or bring your own.
Please be sure to bring all materials you need to use in this space that will be your studio for the next two days. And remember to bring your lunch as well, unless you plan on delivery service, which we can organize.
SORRY THIS CLASS IS CANCELLED. PLEASE CALL THE OFFICE FOR MORE INFORMATION.