Thumbnail sketches lead to stronger paintings.  For three days we will study how to compose pictures for impact and storytelling by designing small thumbnails of ideas. With no restrictions of how the images will be used, we’re free to create tiny sketch after tiny sketch, refining and developing them for visual impact.

We’ll use the simplest aspects of drawing— line, shape, and value, plus effective composition skills— to allow the student to fill pages with small ideas, searching for the best few that communicate impressions, emotions, and most importantly, curiosity.

Then we’ll refine several of those ideas into more developed, slightly larger sketches. On the final day, I’ll show you ways to add color to these designs to bring home and create finished paintings.

This is what makes a painting fascinating: storytelling. All based on simple picture design started in the smallest of sketches, the thumbnail.

Day 1 Morning: opening lecture about my work, plus a composition lecture and demo.
        Afternoon: we begin filling pages with simple thumbnail sketches

Day 2 Morning: refine several of those thumbnails into slightly larger sketches;
        Afternoon: use value to help prepare for color; painting demos

Day 3 Morning: color application demo, refinement of ideas, students begin adding color
        Afternoon: students continue adding color to further develop picture designs 


IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN THE LECTURE/DEMO ONLY, you can find the sign up for that here.

Gregory Manchess is an American illustrator from Kentucky. His illustrations have appeared in magazines, digital murals, illustrated movie posters, advertising campaigns and book covers including sixty covers for Louis L’Amour. His work has appeared on Major League Baseball World Series Programs, Time, Newsweek, The Atlantic Monthly, Playboy, The Smithsonian and National Geographic. His style includes broad brush strokes and excellent figure work.