Falmouth Art Guild Mud - Head Demonstration

Yesterday I took the quiet  drive to Falmouth, to the Falmouth Art Center; where I did a mud head demonstration.
I've talked about the mud head and the significance it has to Cape School painting.
Charles Hawthorne at the early part of the last century taught simple mass painting by setting up young models on the beach and made his students use putty knives to keep them from making useless details.

I have a mud head from the 1930's that was found in the studio and was used for insulation.
I started my demo by giving a talk about this type of painting and then we went outside and I did a demo of a woman sitting with her back to the sun.

Cape School Of Art study. Artist unknown.

My class will be held at the Falmouth Art Center in June.

Saturday and Sunday: 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM 
June 21 - 22, 2014

If you look I have a paint gallon to weigh down my easel. Before I started the demo the wind blew my whole easel over, spilling paint everywhere. Ugh ,welcome to plein air painting. Well my friend Ed showed up and we quickly cleaned up and I was able to start the painting.

I have to admit that when I was asked to teach this class by the guild I was apprehensive. My thoughts where that there are certainly more artist's who's portrait skills are finer. 

The truth about the mud head is that is far removed from fine portraiture. This type of painting simple and fun. The artist isn't tying to render a strong likeness they are learning to make there painting feel like the person sitting on the beach in sunlight.

Landscape, portrait and still life must be handled in the same way, especially in the start.
Through simple masses of color coming together. "One spot of color coming against another spot of color.