You are a painter or drawer who wants to do more than just record what is in front of you, to create meaning, to paint an idea that is singular and expressed clearly. This course focuses on composition in drawing and painting: what makes an effective design? - How can I create a clear focal point? - Pattern-making for a visually-attractive design - Selecting ideas for painting, and your personal vision - The optimum format for a specific idea - Shape, Scale and Space in making drawings and paintings - Thumbnail sketching for a clear value pattern - The role of intuition, and more. There will be an historical element as well, in learning from the underlying compositions of master painters. Classwork will be created entirely in black, white and grey. ("Drawing is the backbone of painting"-Van Gogh). Open to: intermediate and advanced artists who draw and/or paint, and representational and abstract artists. As a full-time professional artist, Rick participates in exhibitions and competitions across the United States. For the past eight years, Rick has participated in prestigious invitationals, including seven selections for the annual Laguna Beach Plein Air Invitational, San Luis Obispo Invitational, and the Sedona Plein Air Art Festival. He was awarded Best of Show at the 2008 Borrego Springs Invitational, and "Best" at the 2014 exhibition of "The American Landscape" in Virginia, and was published as a feature article in Winter 2015 issue of Plein Air Magazine. He has established his studio in San Clemente, California, where he also maintains a gallery and resides with his wife and two daughters. www.delantyfineart.com