Open Box M Workshops

Come join us in Yellowstone Country…one of the most scenic and picturesque areas in the West. Paint with some of the finest instructors to be found while surrounded by majestic mountains, rustic ranches, bucolic farmland and sagebrush-filled meadows amidst cottonwood lined streams and rivers.

We expect your experience to exceed your expectations. In addition to painting in an awe-inspiring location with top-notch instructors we take your experience another step further. All tuitions include an orientation wine and cheese gathering the afternoon before your workshop. We provide delectable lunches on site each day of workshop so that you don’t have to pack your own. Midway through the week we dish up a gourmet group dinner consisting of wonderful food, laughter, music and fun. Students are responsible for their own transportation, lodging, equipment and additional meals. Hope to see you here!

Pie in the Sky Artist Workshops, LLC
PO Box 2885
Cody, WY 82414
307-250-7648

pieintheskyartistworkshops@gmail.com

Workshop Flyer and Registration Form in printable PDF format

Especially for women, this workshop is geared to beginner and intermediate painters.

Emphasis is on individual development based on the basics of oil painting and nurturing our creative energy. By using a series of exercises developed to help create successful oil paintings visual problems will be solved. For beginners, the “how to get started” is extensively covered – using your equipment, concept to composition, color and paint application. Intermediate painters will review all of the basics to make sure you have a firm understanding of those elements. Personal critiques are emphasized to help you find your voice in painting.

Additional opportunities are made available for you to indulge and further nurture your creative self over the course of this three-day workshop. We kick off the workshop Thursday afternoon at 4pm with a wine and cheese orientation gathering followed by dinner and surprise entertainment at our center of operations. The days are spent painting. Friday a certified Pilates instructor comes to lead you through a series of relaxing stretches and core strengthening exercises. This is included in the price. Massage therapists will arrive on Saturday (and again on Sunday should we need them!) to conduct massages in the teepee for an additional fee. Saturday night is our gourmet group dinner with live entertainment. Sunday Carol takes the class outside and you paint in the fresh Wyoming air.

The Logan Mountain Retreat, where we will be based, is about 14 miles outside of Cody on the way to Yellowstone National Park and neatly tucked away into its own little oasis with plenty of inspiration for all.

Skip Whitcomb, an accomplished plein air painter, draftsmen and printmaker, brings his wealth of experience to Cody, WY. This workshop is designed primarily for the intermediate to advanced painter interested in acquiring and/or honing their outdoor/field skills for gathering information essential to the creation of major works. Skip has designed various visual and intellectual exercises to illustrate key fundamental elements of the picture making process. These fundamentals are based in classical traditional training…the same principles that historically the great paintings have contained. All demos and teaching will be conducted in oils; however, watercolors, pastels and acrylics are welcome.

This will be an intermediate to advanced class. Ralph teaches very few workshops these days and wishes to focus his efforts on serious students who have some experience and practice under their belts. This does not mean you need to be a professional. All active hobbyists are welcome.

Painting outdoors has inherent difficulties and discomforts and, in Cody in August, you must be prepared for long, hot and dusty days in the field, with the occasional thunderstorm. This will not be for the frail or faint of heart. We will drive to relatively remote locations far from town, so you must be self-contained and prepared. Monday morning will be spent in the studio and then a demo will be conducted in the afternoon (Ralph generally does daily demos), but Tuesday through Friday will be spent outside all day --weather permitting-- painting and critiquing. Fun will be had by all.

Equipment needs, motif selection, color theory, drawing, composition, and Ralph’s process in the field will all be covered. Discussion will involve how to simply see the shape, value and color relationships in nature and how to capture them accurately. Students will learn about some paint techniques and the suggestion of detail through simplification. Primarily, you will paint, and Ralph will walk and critique your work in progress. A checklist is used that helps ensure that he gets to each person in turn without repeats and omissions.