There are two kinds of people in the world: those who can create gorgeous landscape paintings with ease and grace, and those who can’t. For members of the latter group, art classes are available to make them feel artsy.
The instructional painting fad has been sweeping the nation, and there are studios all over opening their doors to inexperienced artists. For a fee, patrons receive art supplies and are given step-by-step instructions on how to complete their very own masterpiece. With friends to paint alongside and, most importantly, a helpful teacher, these classes can make anyone into an artist for a couple hours.
The classes are perfect for those wanting to make a gift for a friend, create some original art to hang on the wall or simply develop their amateur painting skills. This Tuesday, the UA had its very own painting class event.
In conjunction with Brush & Bottle, a local art studio that specializes in instructional classes, the Wildcat Events Board held Mocktails with Monet, a free painting class complete with complimentary non-alcoholic beverages and paint supplies. The event was held in the Highland Bowl and students were invited to pick up a brush to follow along with the instructor. The promised end result: a mountain sunset painting.
The instructor’s example painting intimidated more than one art newcomer in attendance, and there were a number of remarks from participants who began the process with little faith in their own abilities. The concern was understandable: the painting of the sun setting behind a cactus-dusted mountain range looked a lot more difficult than a typical paint-by-number.
Each participant was given a blank canvas, a tabletop easel, a palate of paint colors and two paint brushes to create their masterpiece. Despite any uncertainties, at 5 p.m. the participants, at the instructor’s direction, picked up their brushes and dove in.
The process started off simple with a yellow half-circle in the center of the canvas. A touch of red shaded into the top of the shape helped the setting sun blend into the soon-to-be pink sky. Adding in some dark pink cloud streaks and dusting the top with a blueish-purple finished off the sunset.
Underneath the sun, a deep purple mountain range and blackish-green grass shrouded in shadows completed the background. The two cactuses were the last things to be added to the paintings, standing tall. They nearly completed the desert sunset scene–the only thing left for the artists to add was their signature.
Everyone who followed the instructor’s directions ended up with a beautiful painting that, while very similar to the example piece, was unique to the artist. Some people’s blended colors were darker and some lighter, while others added in extra clouds or small plants in the distance. Some made their mountain ranges frame the sun — the possibilities were endless. It’s incredible to see how a group of people following the same instructions can create their own original piece.
Throughout the hour of painting, Wildcat Events Board volunteers provided refills of cleverly named non-alcoholic drinks such as the Arizona Sunrise and the Almost First Base on the Beach. Typical Brush & Bottle classes invite participants to bring their own snacks and beverages, including beer and wine for those of legal age, so the mocktail bar was a nice touch for the 21-and-under student crowd.
The Brush & Bottle studio typically offers two and three-hour classes at $35 and $40 per person, so the chance to participate in a free, hour-long class was a special opportunity for the students who came to the event. With midterm exams and project due dates coming up for many students, the event was a relaxing break from typical college stress as well.
Skilled artists, painting novices and everyone in between was able to enjoy Mocktails with Monet and have their very own masterpiece to show for it.
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