Zoom Class: From field sketch to final studio work

Tuesday evenings, 6-9 PM
June 2, 9, 16, 23, 30, July 7

What does it take to move your work to a larger canvas?

We’ve all been there: you have a field sketch or a small drawing that feels vital and fresh, but the moment you try to enlarge it in the studio, the result feels empty. A studio painting is never just a bigger version of an oil sketch. To move from the field to the easel, you need a “Big Idea”—a concept that can sustain the weight of a larger canvas.

This is a class idea that’s grown from years of discussion with my students. This 6-week course is designed to help you breathe life into those “unfinished” sketches littering your studio. Those paintings aren’t failures; they are the seeds of your future work.

What We Will Cover:

• Mining Your Archives: You’ll begin by literally sitting on the studio floor, sorting through your smaller works and sketches—the good, the bad, and the unfinished—to find the general concepts hidden within your practice.

• Crystallizing the “Big Idea”: Learn how to look at your sketches intelligently until a central theme emerges. We will refine and reconsider your initial shapes and colors into a cohesive vision.

• The Architecture of Scale: Before we touch the canvas, we think through the image completely. We’ll decide on the format—horizontal, square, or vertical—and ensure the composition is strong enough to support a larger scale.

• Intentional Execution: By moving forward with a complete plan, you gain the freedom to paint with vitality.

The Result: By the end of this course, you won’t just have a finished painting. You will have a repeatable system for turning raw inspiration into professional studio work, and the confidence to know exactly when a painting is “done.”

Course Details:

• Duration: 6 Weeks

• Focus: Concept development, composition, and scale transition.

• Requirement: Bring those stacks of sketches you’ve been “meaning to get to.” It’s time to let them prove their worth.