Dynamic Acrylics | Painting Landscapes with Paul McCarthy

Put some life into your paintings by pushing colour, design and composition. Working from your own landscape references, discover the beauty of acrylic painting in this fun and informative workshop. 

Come on an exciting and informed acrylic painting journey with Paul McCarthy as you learn to become loose and vibrant with your approach to painting landscapes. This master class is perfect for students not afraid to have a go at something wild yet controlled; free and yet composed. Your end result can be as abstract or as realistic as you wish, with emphasis during the day on design and composition, combined with colour control and harmonies. Paul McCarthy is known for his colourful and expressive paintings of rural and coastal scenes.

Represented by Sydney's Rochfort Gallery who describe "McCarthy’s plein-air vision of the bush is one of energised colour. His landscapes combine Fauvism, Impressionism and Contemporary Abstraction. His exquisite colour combinations give his paintings an exotic flair, through which he captures and finds a whole new and dramatic light unique to his environment. "

Bring your own reference material which could be photographs or drawings or even older paintings that you want to work from.

You can work on either canvas or board, choosing your own scale. Work big and aim to complete one large painting, or several studies in this class.

Is this workshop right for me?

A workshop suited to those with some basic painting experience.

Materials list

Canvas (pick your own size and quantity). Bring as big as you can manage, or as many as you think you will complete in a day. I use stretched linen, but you can use stretched canvas or a solid timber ground to work on, just make sure they are primed and ready to work on prior to the class.  

Acrylic paint – just bring whatever you have -  I will be using the following from Derivan Matisse

• Cadmium Yellow Light
• Yellow Deep
• Cadmium Orange
• Napthol Scarlet
• Magenta (Quin Violet)
• Dioxazine Purple
• Ultramarine Blue
• Cobalt Blue
• Cobalt Teal
• Burnt Umber
• Black
• White (plenty)  
• I will also use a ton of other colours. A few extra colours always sneak in; bring whatever paints you normally use, and whatever bits and pieces you have.

Your normal brushes. I use flat or filbert bristle brushes in a range of sizes, a rigger could be handy. DO NOT go out and buy anything special, your usual brushes will be fine.

also

• Reference material - photos printed in colour to A4 preferred
• Palette
• Rags or paper kitchen  towels
• Masking tape or bulldog clips
• Sketch book, paper and/or visual diary