Tonight was my last lesson of shodo (Japanese calligraphy) and my final project was a kanji postcard.  I chose the kanji: 園 which means "Garden".
  I'm so thankful that I had the opportunity to study this traditional art form with a true master, Ms. Denri Takai.  It's so important to keep these practices alive and to study them directly.
  For me, I loved learning about how to use the brush by watching Denri.  As a teacher myself, I try my best to put it into works, but I've found that a lot of painting is beyond words.  Taking a class in person allowed me to watch Denri and for her to guide my hand as I practiced.  This artform is very deep (philosophically and technically) and I have a whole new appreciation for the craft of it.  I wonder if it's really possible to make a "perfect" stroke with the brush?  Maybe, but I still believe that perfection is an illusion.
  Also, to be a student again was like a breath of fresh air.  It actually felt great to be a frustrated beginner!  And I feel like this way of painting will have an impact on my own work, especially my watercolors.  The power and directness of a single brushstroke will resonate in any form of painting.
  I hope to motivate everyone out there to try something new and to take a class to support teachers.  Not just art, but language, writing, sports--It could be anything!  Personally, I would love to take a pottery wheel course sometime in the near future also...
  Happy Thanksgiving to everyone out there!

Here's a quick video painting tip about capturing light and color en plein air!  Reserve your spot now for this beautiful plein air painting tour in the south of France!
​https://www.instagram.com/paintawaytours/reel/DCE_20_tj01/

For more info about this tour and to book, Visit:
https://www.paintawaytours.com/event/oil-painting-in-southern-france-w-eric-santoli-14/register
​ 
📅 May 21-28, 2025 |​ ​🌏 Pezenas, France

  Today at FAA, I had my thesis defense, which was essentially a final critique of my work from this semester.  I received excellent feedback from the teachers and it was a nice experience to hear them respond to my work.  I learned a lot over this last semester and feel a stronger sense of my own abilities.
  I've also started a self portrait as a final project.  I'm sharing two photos here that show the early grisaille and a first stage of paint application.  I think that I've got a good likeness and it has an Italian Baroque quality to it (maybe it's the mustache haha).
  For anyone interested in more process/technique: my approach with this self portrait is heavily based one values and using a limited palette.  The FAA approach is a value-based system, which I also emphasize with my own students.  I'd say my personal working and teaching philosophy incorporates more of a prismatic palette which is from my early training at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA).  I'm still essentially using the palette that we used back at PAFA which incorporated chromatic colors and earth colors.  Each school has different processes, but the principles are all the same.
   One of the key lessons at FAA is also to view the work as a whole image.  This is practiced through the use of working sight-size.  My self portrait is being painted in sight-size which required me to bring the mirror closer and push my easel back a bit.  I'd say sight-size is also a good way of getting the initial proportions, which can sometimes be tricky to place on the canvas.
  As I approach graduation, I feel very grateful that I could spend time in this beautiful city with a great group of people.

  A quick update to show some progress of my still life painting and to share some methodology from the Florence Academy of Art (FAA).  The process so far has been a traditional academic approach going preparatory sketches to finished work.  This painting started out with some thumbnail sketches that only focus on value relationships (not detail).  Squinting can be helpful throughout the process to keep values simplified--I personally don't squint very much, but it's good to test it out and see what works.  The next step was to paint small scale studies.  We're not using transfer drawings for the still life, but we are for a larger figurative painting.
  We're using a limited palette of: Titanium white, cad. yellow light, yellow ochre, cad red light, ultramarine blue, burnt umber and ivory black.  I added a touch of burnt sienna also because the burnt umber that I got from Zecchi is very cool and almost like a Van Dyck brown.  Earth pigments can have a variety differences based on where they are mined from.  I've always enjoyed limited palettes because it allows me to focus more on arranging values.  I like experimenting with colors, but my regular working palette has only a few extra colors beyond this limited palette.  
  FAA also works in sight-size, which is a method where you stand in a specific spot so that your canvas lines up with the subject matter.  It's a method that allows the artist to transfer over measurements from a certain vantage point.  I find the method to be very structured and works within a framework of specific circumstances.  Either way, it's taught me the importance of stepping back from my work and seeing the painting as a whole.  *You'll see the photo of my still life below was taken at a different angle from my sight size viewing location.
  The process is very rigorous and has pushed my skill level further.  It can be a difficult process mentally and physically and reminds me of training for athletics.  I'm very thankful for this MA program because I've always wanted to learn these time-honored methods.
  We had class today and my still life is still in progress so I'll share more as it develops!  No class tomorrow so I'll be getting chores done and taking it easy :)