JOHN DUBROW WORKSHOPS

GROUP CRITIQUE/PHILOSOPHY OF PAINTING

(VIRTUAL/ ZOOM)

For 15 years I’ve toyed with the idea of opening up a painting atelier, a little painting school. Not to teach people how to paint but more to have conversations about what Painting is and what Painting can be in its fullest realizations. My allergy to solvents has always stopped me from pursuing that idea, but now in the last couple of years with Zoom becoming a thing, this all seems possible for the first time.

And so I am offering group critique/philosophy of painting classes. This will be geared towards intermediate or advanced students, as I prefer to not focus on fundamentals - instead this will be a conversation about the mysteries of Painting, about Art History and how it can relate to each painter, about the risk-taking that goes along with working, and at its core, weekly critiques on your current work. I’m interested in the act of painting as revelation. For me everything of value comes quite unexpectedly while working, and the painted image is completely unknowable beforehand. The image comes out of the process. I’m interested in Space, its pathways and its volumetrics, and how each new color mark put on a canvas can totally shift the space of the image- these spatial shifts change the meaning of the picture, and so one must constantly and actively choose what the real meaning of the painting might be. I believe in a flexibility of meaning. I’m interested in how the construct of time becomes embedded in work, the longer one stays with a painting. Space and Time, the oldest questions are echoed in Painting. And the question of “What if?” which I believe could and should be asked just about every moment while working.

I hope to help to unlock the potential of each painter’s work, to help them get to a deeper and more personal place - more fully involved in their own idiosyncrasies. This will be arrived at in a different way for each person - I don’t believe in one size fits all. I hope to help break bad habits and to facilitate the ability to push through internal obstacles. How does one go deeper? This is what I’m interested in and what our time will be spent exploring.

These classes are for painters who are already working independently in the studio, or are presently in programs and who would like another outlook. I will be offering two sessions: one will meet once a week for a month, the other will be held once every other week and last for two months. Besides the zoom sessions you will have email access to me during the class duration for any immediate questions or help working through painting problems. There will be one additional session, on a mutually agreed upon date after the conclusion of the class, where I will open up my studio by Zoom, and answer any questions you have.

As mentioned, this is for an advanced group of painters, although I’m also open to painters who are somewhat less experienced as long as they are serious and committed. There will be a portfolio review, so please get in touch to start the process.

I’m so looking forward to this!

John

GROUP 1: (WEEKLY) MARCH 21 THROUGH APRIL 11, 2023

TUESDAYS 1PM TO 4PM EST

(March 21, 28, April 4, 11)

$450

SPACE LIMITED TO 9 PAINTERS

GROUP 2: (BIWEEKLY) MARCH 19 THROUGH MAY, 2022

SUNDAYS 11AM TO 2PM EST

(March 19, April 2, 16 & 30)

$450

SPACE LIMITED TO 9 PAINTERS

To begin the booking process, please email johndubrow.workshop@gmail.com