“Loosen Up and Expand”
Free Public Demo: Tuesday evening August 13, 2019
Workshop: Wednesday, August 14 - Friday, August 16, 2019
Location: Harris Township Community Center, 130 S. Academy St., Boalsburg, PA
Price: $425 for three days of instruction.
This workshop is an exploration of pastel painting structured to inspire and help you gain skills and confidence FAST! Marla’s workshop is open for a variety of painting subjects; you don’t have to be a landscape painter! Designed for the professional painter who wants to break away from old habits as well as for the novice who wants to conquer their fear of painting. Starting with a warm up exercise, then moving to small multiple pieces and finally working up to larger-format paintings, Baggetta's positive, gentle approach towards the act of painting will inspire you to loosen up, have fun and conquer hesitation. Expect an intense and lively workshop! Bring a notebook to catch all of Marla's great tidbits! Her critiques are famous for direct, actionable advice. This workshop is a must for artists who want confidence and permission to paint the way they have always wanted to paint.
Can’t make it on August 14,15,16? Or can’t get enough of Marla? We suggest you consider attending her workshop “Color Confidence” offered by the Pittsburgh Pastel Artists’ League August 9,10,11. Price: $425.
About Marla
I try to find the quiet spots with hidden beauties; a richly textured path, a trickling stream of light. Those are the subjects that deeply resonate with me and connect me to the landscape and to life. Each of my pastel paintings is created on archival sanded pastel paper which is specifically made for grabbing onto those small particles of pigment that make a pastel so luminous! The pastels are pure pigment made into sticks using a little water and a binder, nothing more. Most of the brands that I use are hand rolled by artisan makers.
When completed, I spray each piece lightly with a fixative to assist in the framing process, but the piece itself is very lightfast and archival. They do not fade! When you see a pastel in a museum under low lighting, it is not the pastel they are trying to preserve it is the paper or ground that the artists of that period used which was not archival, causing them to degrade.
My working process is a simple one; I start on location, sketching, photographing and painting. Some of these field studies make their way to the studio. In the studio I use all of that visual information and combine it with the sense or feeling I had for a location and create what is inevitably an abstraction of sorts in that it is not merely a copy of a photo but an interpretation of place. I hope that you enjoy the work! -Marla
A prolific painter and teacher, Marla’s artwork and workshops are nationally sought after. Her work has been represented throughout the country for over 25 years. Contributing to many art publications such as Pastel Journal, she is a signature PSA member and an IAPS Master Circle Recipient. Marla graduated from Art Center College of design in Pasadena, Ca. She worked as a commercial illustrator for 25 years. After moving to Oregon in 1993, she was inspired by the beauty of the Willamette Valley and began painting landscapes that blend realism and abstraction to convey a sense of calm and balance. Her Among her numerous awards and honors are Arts for the Parks Annual Juried Exhibition. She has been featured in the Pastel Journal and is included in Pure Color: The Best of Pastel and Sketchbook Confidential II. She is the author of Step by Step Pastel by Walter Foster Publishing. Her paintings can be found in numerous public and private collections throughout the country.