Large Scale Abstraction: Drawing, Painting and Collage

Here in the arena of scale, there are no rules or regulations. This course is an escapade in shifting and sliding from the miniscule to the mammoth.

Beginners and seasoned artists alike, we commence by observing books which present drawings on the large scale. We examine and discuss tiny 1inch drawings to 13-mile outdoor environmental drawings. We embark firstly on a 2 X 2 inch paper surface. From that miniature scale we develop slowly through successive stages upwards to 40 X 60 inches.

The striking advantage about drawing through shifting scale is the personal spontaneity of mark making. Think of creating a visual encyclopedia of marks. We become serious mark makers having sizeable fun. Within a single work may be a host of small sharp marks, towering lines, voluminous forms, vast color areas, gargantuan piles of shapes, ample colossal patterns, hulking systems of order versus disorder and elephantine rhythmic or lyrical gestures.

Mark making invites unpredictability and spontaneity. A direct correlation to the individual is evident as each artist has their own way of moving, of striking the paper. I offer a buffet of unusual and dramatic large-scale mark making tools that I demonstrate for your pleasure. We move through space with all manner of tool and material while the drawings reveal themselves in the process.

Whether it is a willfully minimal haiku or a complex knot of pattern or a single immense shape, each arrangement is a unique installation of spatial complexity. We gamely trawl amidst the great vacant estate of the paper.

Beginners to abstract drawing and scale will move with ease alongside a well-versed artist. The imponderability of scale is ultimately a conversation between you, space and the surface. Although each work contains its own discreet strategies, and may be executed in a variety of ways, the work as a whole presents a personal and singular voice. Imagine you are standing in front of a 40 by 60 inch space. Raise your arm with a tool and cross the space with one swoop, slowly and then quickly. Feel the elaborate fullness and emptiness of space. The thrill of largess awaits you!

Suitable for all levels; no experience necessary! Ages 19+

Saturday and Sunday, July 11 and 12, 2026
9:00 AM – 4:00 PM
Studio 1