This in-depth course guides students through Rothko’s process of creating large, meditative colour paintings to encourage them to work on a larger scale to find their own style and colour palette whilst exploring different surfaces and tools. The course will cover composition, paint application, colour and surface to enable students to take their work bigger and bolder on a range of supports from paper to canvas and canvas board.

Participants will learn how to use colour relationships, layering, and scale to evoke emotion and depth. The course begins in the Rothko Room in Tate Modern looking at his Seagram murals series of paintings and aims to help understand Rothko’s aesthetic and philosophical approach. Students will gain confidence in working on large abstract compositions. They will have the opportunity to use a variety of techniques to evoke emotion and help them develop their own narrative.

You will be working from photos and printouts of your own work that you will bring along to upscale and project from. This energetic course is open to all levels of experience from near beginners through to practising artists. The course includes a one-hour creative immersion workshop focusing on colour, texture, light and music, both indoors and outdoors.

If you are a developing artist and have a yearning to paint, then come and unleash your imagination and explore a bigger sense of expression. Come and find the edge of who you are and engage with the language of you and your practice.

Please meet on the first morning at 11.00am the Rothko Room at the Tate Modern Art Gallery.

Included

On this course the College will supply most of the materials required.

What students need to bring

• Take good quality photographs of your work and print them out to upscale and work on during the course.
• Notebook and reference to artists you like
• Sketchbooks
• Basic tool kit, including 2B – 6B graphite pencils, charcoal, 4-inch-wide wallpaper brush, range of 6 decorator’s brushes, assorted wide flat brushes, assorted round paintbrushes
• Masking tape An apron (a disposable apron will be provided but you may prefer to bring your own)
• Coloured chalk pastels or crayons (optional)

Additional information

Please wear appropriate clothing/aprons for the workshop or studio.

Student registration: 10am- 10.30am
Course teaching: 10.30am-4.30pm 
Morning session: 10.30am-1pm
Lunch break: 1pm-2pm (lunch is not included)
Afternoon session: 2pm-4.30pm (optional 15 minute break)
Teaching finishes: 4.30pm  
 

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