Workshop: An easy and fun approach to Abstract Art

A fun, two day, 3 hour per day, intensive interactive workshop to create your own masterpiece.

Using traditional as well as nontraditional materials. Students will be encouraged to use their unique talent and interest to explore the boundaries between different painting media.

Through demonstrations, Leonie will illustrate her very easy and fun technique. You can expect to create at least one finished painting. This workshop is open to novices.

Abstract art is a major trend in décor and interior design. Artist originals can break the bank, or you can design and paint your own to match your space for a custom work of art. Guided by professional Artist Leonie.e.Brown you’ll learn how to plan your masterpiece and create dynamic, colour filled, dramatic art piece uniquely your own. We will be learning to use added textures, drawing and mixed media, using acrylic mediums and various tools

We all love that complex, mysterious look of layering and depth, but how do you achieve it? The trick is building up those layers gradually, and obscuring or removing (excavating) previous layers selectively. Sometimes your finished piece betrays nothing of its original layer, but this process offers lots of opportunity for play and experimentation. Why put that first layer down if you are only going to cover over it? The answer is that the first layer is a starting point from which you build subsequent layers, and ultimately end up with a finished piece of art. All the layers are necessary to the process, even if you can’t see some of them. In this workshop I will show you many of the techniques I use to layer and excavate, to create visual texture and atmosphere. Learn to Paint Over with confidence, and let go of the attachment to the Finished Product. Free yourself from the bonds of perfectionism. Allow your paintings to reveal and conceal, to suggest depth under a quiet surface. Learn to use your paints and mediums effectively, and gain the freedom and spontaneity of a layered approach.

Zelcryl Acrylic Piant (as many colours as you think you will need) + White
Dala Acrylic Gel Medium
Wax crayons or Pastels
B6 or 9 Pencil
Charcoal
Dala Water Based Inks (as many colours as you think you will need) + White
Palette Knifes
Mixing A3 Paper Palette
Hog Hair Flat and Round Brushes no: 2+4+6
Large House Paint Brushes
Nylon Angle Brushes no: small + medium + large
Soft Cloth
2 x A2 size boxed canvass
Mixing bowls, tins or old yogurt containers

For the sake of time, we will NOT be working with oils.

All materials are available at a 5% discount from Creative Arts Shop:

5% discount for LifeART students
44 Oxford Street, Durbanville
Phone:021 975 5373

Total cost will include:

Coffee + Tea + Rusks + Muffins
[powr-price-table id=00562004_1505910885]

I'm about 65% done with my course and I just have to say that Leonie Brown has explained certain things in a way that I've not heard from any other artist. For example, I was blown away by how she explained how to mix the primaries and secondaries to make tertiaries and thus to make a color wheel and how to keep mixing until you get the right shade. I've done it before in another art class but not like this. It sounds so simple but it's mind blowing actually. It's such a basic ability to have that lays the very foundation of color mixing. And she walked me through it in the video she made so I could see how it's done. Wow! Thanks Leonie! - A.R. Posted for Astrid Reeves

Leonie.e. Brown ARTIST

Leonie was the best art teacher, I ever had. She pays equal attention to every student in class, making sure to teach or give advice to one after the other while taking their different skill levels into account. She is always friendly and respectful and is not only interested in her student's progress but also in them enjoying what they do. No matter what skill level you are, even if you're beginning from scratch - I would definitely recommend LifeArt School.

Denise Reisenbauer

If you’re looking for an art school this is the best place to be leonie is a fantastic teacher and amazing person. It doesn’t matter how good you are at art, lifeart school is the best place to learn or expand your knowledge of art.

Oliver Bradley

This is where I go to Art School on Friday mornings. For me, this is a dream come true, a second chance to do what I love, and do it well. Leonie Edna Brown teaches a complete art curriculum that starts you off with the absolute, and fundamental basics, and takes you all the way through to becoming a professional artist. I am still early in my journey, and I can tell you that my eyes have been opened in new ways, to see more clearly. Not only that, but being in class with others at different stages, you learn via " osmosis" just by watching Leonie teach, demonstrate or encourage others. One of those " Leonie sayings" that has impacted me has been... " it doesn't have to be perfect, it's a rendering." I have to say this often to myself and it helps me remember that it's art, not a photograph! My biggest advice is to be patient in the beginning of the journey with Leonie's classes. Whatever is worth it cannot be rushed. Be patient with yourself, and with the process. Enjoy the learning, the TIME it takes to learn. Take a break and have a coffee and a rusk, walk around and look at other's artworks and progess, make new friends and sing along to the music...it is such a wonderful atmosphere. At times quite noisy, and other times intensley quiet as everyone is focused on their work. For those who are now sufficiently envious but cannot get to actual physical classes, Leonie has NEW ONLINE CLASSES! So you too can learn in your own time! Go check it out! And thank you, Leonie, for being the wonderful teacher you are!

Belinda Mesecke

About 10 years ago, after a significant change in my life and with basically no experience with drawing, painting or art in any way at all, I started attending classes with professional artist, Leonie E. Brown. When I say basically no experience, I am talking about literally only being able to draw stick me and colour in colouring books. Talk about going in blind! A few lessons in (just the very basics really), the class at the time had the awesome opportunity of going on a 5-star weekend getaway at Angala Boutique Hotel for a portrait painting workshop. Here she taught us a special recipe using just four earthy colours being: burnt sienna, burnt umber, payne’s grey, yellow ochre. With just those four colours, one could play with the concepts, dark versus light and warm versus cold. Focusing on blending and adding one concept at time, we were taught to add as per our portrait picture we wanted to paint, blended shades of darks, matching warm (e.g. burnt sienna) and cold (e.g. payne’s grey) darks. Then we would add all the blended shades of white, warm and cold lights by mixing in titanium white, yellow ochre. I was amazed that in no time without much effort a portrait appeared! With this technique one really does not even have to draw the face first exactly in pencil, placing the dark, light, warm and cold in the right places, the picture just magically appears. Exceptional! To this day, regardless of all the other lessons I had with Leonie after, I absorbed this recipe in every art piece I do. I even use this recipe to lay the ground work or base layer for my more colourful work, as a guide for the warm, cold, dark and light colours. Sometimes, I just use those beautiful colours in my entire work and maybe here and there add another colour to make the piece pop!

Riny Versfeld

If you wanting to rekindle or explore your creative side I highly recommend that you contact Leonie at Lifeart Studio and school . Leonie offers short courses as well as weekly art classes. Leonie is an amazing teacher as well as a accomplished and very talented artist . I attended one of her short courses and absolutely love it and will definitely be attending another one soon

Ann Mari Fletcher

Thanks to Leonie E Brown, I now have a workable website! Her dedication to help others at great sacrifice to her personal time, as well as the wealth of experience she has gathered over the years, has been such a great source of help, direction and focus for me. Thank you Leonie for supporting unselfishly, other artists who are just starting out.

I have learnt various techniques in the past year, both in theory and practice. Leonie is very encouraging and she has amazing teaching skills. I always look forward to go to her art classes.

Shehnaz Chohan

Workshop: An easy and fun approach to Abstract Art

Materials Needed:

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Table of Contents