Painting is about expressing yourself. All art is about self-expression in one way or another. Whether you play a musical instrument, dance, or create an oil painting, you communicate your feelings with another human being.
A work of art speaks to the viewer. It communicates an idea that was in the artist’s mind as little as a moment ago. Or it could be an idea that was developing for years.
Art is a language with a unique vocabulary. Each art form has its unique way of speaking to the viewer. With music, it is the frequency of sound waves. We know, for example, some frequencies can make us feel specific emotions. That’s why movie soundtracks are so powerful. It is why people buy them to recall the feelings they had when viewing the movie.
About a year ago I attended a two-day workshop in Florida. The hotel in which I stayed had Bose CD players in each room. When I checked in a CD was playing. I listened to that double CD for the entire two days. I bought the album when I checked out. When I play it now I can recall, as if I were there yesterday, the feelings and emotions I experienced during the stay.
Art is like that. It connects us with our feelings. It can help us experience a more uplifting side of life. It can help others turn sadness to joy. It can make a difference in other people’s lives.
Our chosen medium is oil painting — the medium of the Old Masters.
For thousands of years, artists shared their view of the world with others. Artists have always stood in the vanguard of new ideas. It is the artist who treads alone into the unknown. It is the artist who touches the divine and brings back glorious treasures. It is the artist who helps us access the greatness inside of us.
Art is born in the imagination, inspired by the heart, conceived by the mind and expressed through the body in an ordered, elegant and systematic manner. Great art is intentional; a collaboration with the divine for the benefit of all humanity. Great art requires nothing more than a blank canvas and an idea.
Come paint with us. Come awaken your inner artist and touch the divine.
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