One of my favorite college classes was a color theory class taught by Professor Richard Raiselis. Based on the The Interaction of Color, by Josef Albers, the class helped me begin to understand the subtleties and nuances of color--that color is relative and can change dramatically based on it's context. That class has greatly influenced my work, especially my recent series of collagesand paintings. (Read more about Raiselis' class here.) My interest in bold, improvisational textiles has grown in recent years and I have been hungry learn more about color theory. In doing some research, I out that Odili Donald Odita (one of my favorite contemporary painters!) would be teaching a class called The Complexity and Distinctiveness of Color at Anderson Ranch in June. I applied for a scholarship to take the course and crossed my fingers that we would not have any more snow days this year. Luckily, we only had one snow day this year!. Two days after school ended in June, I flew to Aspen, CO to delve deeper into the mystery, magic and wonder of color! 😅 On the first night of my week-long workshop, I arrived at the ranch just in time for dinner. I ate with some of my classmates and met our TA for the week, Skylar Simpson. After dinner, I went to the first visiting faculty lecture with Charles Long and Elinor Carucci. I really liked Elinor's work and the way she spoke about her process. She is an incredibly vulnerable and sincere artist who is interested in relationships and family dynamics. Two things she said that stood out to me where: "I believe in the power of assignments because we always need to push ourselves and try and fail." and "Time helps me edit with more clarity." I loved having her words float thorough my head as I began the week. Each morning, I woke up around 6:30am, got ready for the day, then carpooled or took a shuttle bus to the ranch. When I got to the ranch, I would each breakfast, then head to the studios. Classes started at 9 and each day was a combination of lectures, assignments, readings and critiques. I took an hour to two hour break each day for lunch and dinner, then often worked in the studio until about 10 or 11 at night--trying to take advantage of the amazing facilities and build momentum to head into the rest of the summer. On Tuesday night, I attended the second visiting faculty lecture, featuring David Hillard and Njideka Akunyili Crosby. I had known of Njideka Akunyili Crosby's paintings before (I saw one of them at the Whitney a few years ago), but I was unfamiliar with David Hillard's work. Both talks were fantastic. David's photographs, like Elinor Carruci's, are deeply personal. (Side note: David and Elinor taught a class together the week I was at the ranch.) He talked mostly about a series of portraits he has made over his father's lifetime and the impact the process has had on their relationship. Njideka spoke about her influences--of growing up in Nigera and how that has become the focus of her subject matter and imagery. In addition to attending classes and lectures, one of my favorite things to do at the ranch was take an after dinner walk around the campus and surrounding trails. The landscape in Snowmass is absolutely breathtaking and it was refreshing to spend some time away from the studios each day. On Wednesday, we spent some time looking at art around campus--in the gallery, in studios and in the print shop. I really loved this colorful woodblock print. On Thursday, we spent most of the class time working on assignments. I also took a sign of this quote that is displayed in the cafe: "You make good work by making lots of work and then seeing out the parts that aren't good... that is, the parts that aren't yours." On Friday Odili and Doron Langberg, who co-taught a painting class with Njideka, gave short lectures on their work. Afterwards, we had a bit more time to work in our studios and then had a final critique. After dinner on Friday, my friend Kaley and I drove to the Maroon Bells to go on a short hike and watch the sun set. The Bells are composed of metaphoric and sedimentary mudstone, which give it a distinctive color (compared to other mountains in the Rockies, which are made of granite and limestone). Being on the scenic trail, surrounded by the setting sun was one of the most beautiful sites I have ever been. After dinner on Friday, my friend Kaley and I drove to the Maroon Bells to go on a short hike and watch the sun set. The Bells are composed of metaphoric and sedimentary mudstone, which give it a distinctive color (compared to other mountains in the Rockies, which are made of granite and limestone). Being on the scenic trail, surrounded by the setting sun was one of the most beautiful sites I have ever been. The next morning we decided to hike part of the Cathedral Lake Trailhead. On the way to the trail, made a spontaneous stop at the Catto Center at Toklat, an environmental organization that hosts an artist in resident. We learned about their environmentally-responsible textile production and got to see a Cochinilla Color Demonstration! My week at Anderson Ranch was so rewarding. It was wonderful to immerse myself in the learning process and hear from so many working artists over the week. Each person was so generous with their time and with sharing their process. If you would like a very brief introduction to color theory, you can check out this video on PBS's series The Art Assignment.
I'm grateful to Anderson Ranch for providing me with a scholarship and to the Brookline Education Fund for awarding me a grant to help cover other experiences associated with taking this course.
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