Painting with Water-Mixable Oils

Date/Time: Saturday, March 9, 16 & 23, 11am - 2:00pm

Tuition: A nonperishable food item or monetary donation for

the Chatfield Food Shelf

Age: Adults & Teens 16+, under 16 must be accompanied by an adult

Level: Beginner & Beyond

Instructors: Rita and Paul LeDuc

Location: Studio 1

Class Size: 12 Participants Maximum each session

Have fun learning to create artworks using a new media, water-mixable oils, that does not use volatile organic solvents but takes on the appearance of traditional oil paintings when dried.

January 13, 2024: The session will start in the classroom with a brief introduction, followed by a walking tour through the 1916 gallery. The instructors will discuss the fundamentals of the art materials used, essential elements of composition, and planning required for 2-dimensional artwork. Back in the studio, the instructors will demonstrate and discuss the safe handling and mixing of paints, using and cleaning brushes, and proper storage/disposal of art materials. Participants will start a landscape, beginning with roughing in the base layer of the painting’s background.

January 20, 2024: This session will start with a Q&A and provide time for finishing background work, blocking in the middle ground, and beginning the foreground of their painting. Instructors will present painting tips and techniques.

January 27, 2024: Participants will complete as much of the artwork as possible and provide feedback by completing a course survey.

Participants are to bring a container that is large enough to transport their wet 11x14” painting home at the close of this session.

All materials require to complete a painted landscape will be provided.

Participants are encouraged to bring a notebook or sketchbook to record information and ideas.

Rita and Paul LeDuc

Rita and Paul LeDuc are both artists with informal art training made possible by many authors, other established artists, gallery directors, librarians, and countless hours of practice to hone their painting skills. In past years, they have taught art classes in regional libraries, exhibited some of their artworks in juried gallery exhibitions, presented art programs at regional nature centers, libraries, and the Minneapolis Farmers’ Market, partnered with Hamline University’s Center for Global Environmental Education project on Endangered and Threatened Species of Concern in Minnesota, and also worked with a group of SEMVA (Southeastern Minnesota Visual Artists) on a project entitled, Minnesota’s Driftless Area -A Visual Journey. The focus is on using their artworks as educational tools to help people connect to the world in which they live and inspire them to make conscious choices in their everyday lives. They believe art speaks a universal language that can help transform lives and help grow communities.