Demonstrations

The Rossmoor Art Association (RAA) will host San Francisco artist, Sheldon Greenberg, in a free demonstration at the Gateway studio 1 on Wednesday, Nov. 2nd, 1-3pm. Rossmoor residents are welcome to attend. No reservation is needed.

Greenberg, who is a professor at the Academy of Art, and whose work is collected and has been presented in many galleries, including one-man shows, will demonstrate the steps in creating his imaginative finished works. A process that encompasses still life and landscapes visuals plus figurative elements.

Originally trained as an illustrator at San Jose State University, he moved to New York and worked for a dozen years. Shifting to painting when he attended graduate school in the ‘80s at California College of the Arts, he remained in the Bay Area, where he has built a career as an artist and teacher.

“My technique involves blocking out parts of the canvas with squares and rectangles of tape, trying not to consciously choose what I cover,” he explains. “Then I paint another complete representational image such as a landscape or still life over both the tape and the visible parts of the first composition. Once this step is complete, I remove the tape.”

The process— taping, painting, and peeling—is repeated up to fifteen times. Working intuitively, he continues adding and subtracting until he arrives at combinations of color, value and composition that work. At any given time, five or six canvases are in various stages of development. Remembering the first time he did this, Greenberg has described his fascination with the way this process seemingly takes away his power of composition, randomly breaking up the picture’s perfection.

“My process of painting/taping/peeling,” explains Greenberg, “is a conscious attempt to harness accident, to break the perfection of illustration through random layers.” He says he is often ‘killing his darlings’ in the process of covering over or peeling off his favorite parts of a picture.

Rossmoor Art Association hosts demonstrations by accomplished Bay Area Artists 6 to 8 times a year on the first Wednesday of the month. If you are a member and have given us your email address you will be notified about these demonstrations.

No matter what your medium, there’s something new to learn. And some people just like to watch creativity and skill in action. We utilize a projection screen and microphones. There is a twenty-minute hospitality break at the halfway point where refreshments are served. We especially enjoy the homemade treats our members donate! Please sign up to bring something delicious! If you have a demonstrator you would like to recommend, please contact the Program Chair, who can be contacted through the RAA website.

The Rossmoor Art Association, offers a wide array of art classes for beginners and advanced students. Rossmoor residents and their guests are invited to sign up and enjoy the fun and camaraderie of the classes. Visit www.rossmoorart.com to learn more about the RAA and the many classes and other benefits.