Problem solving is a critical skill in art. The creative process is replete with unpredictable twists and turns, and it is often difficult to reverse engineer an artist's process when you only get to see the finished work.

In this class, Marco takes you by the hand and guides you, from start to finish, through his process of painting an improvised, yet cohesive fantasy environment. Along the way he talks in depth about how the foundations of art serve as touchstones upon which to build, and how to tune your mindset to the task of discovering a new idea. Marco also takes an aside to demonstrate his Photoshop brushes as well as his methods of using them to mimic the look and feel of traditional media.
What you'll get out of the class:
Insight into the four fundamentals of painting: drawing, value, edges, and color
What to look for to create the biggest possible 'punch' with your images
How to make brushstrokes that add charisma to your paintings
Enable yourself to navigate the creative process and discover new concepts
Methods of telling a visual story within a picture
Develop a solid mindset that fosters confidence in your workflow
Learn a non-technical, artistic approach to using Adobe Photoshop
Digital Painting 2:
Painting Spontaneously Toward A Defined Goal
(Approx. 6 hours)
Working as a commercial illustrator often requires a piece to pass through several stages of visual development before beginning the final art. This introduces a number of challenges to the artist: how do you keep the final painting as spontaneous and free as your sketches? How do you keep the process fresh and fun as you work? How do you maintain enthusiasm through the hours ahead? How do you maintain a positive, yet self-critical mindset as the idea develops? In Digital Painting II, Marco shows you his approach for creating an illustration from conception through to a final piece. He'll take an initial idea through visual development stages such as a color rough, compositional thumbnails, and character design, before starting the final digital illustration. Along the way, you'll see how each stage motivates the next, and how it all pays off in the final illustration.
What you'll get out of the class:
Insight into what makes a picture read well and tell a cogent story
How to bring together disparate art disciplines such as character design, layout, and color design
How to develop and cultivate ideas for a finished digitally painted illustration
Learn how to ignite your imagination with photo references (rather than copying them)
How to manage various focal points in an illustration
How to plan for a final piece, without over-planning
Learn a non-technical, artistic approach to using Adobe Photoshop
A selection of Marco's brushes are bundled with the class
A bonus lecture which explains and simplifies how light and color work together
Enable yourself to navigate the creative process and discover new concepts
Methods of telling a visual story within a picture
Develop a solid mindset that fosters confidence in your workflow
Learn a non-technical, artistic approach to using Adobe Photoshop
Digital Painting 3:
Big Questions Every Painter Must Answer
(Approx. 5.5 hours)
One of the hardest questions a painter has to answer is: "How do you know when the painting is finished?" This is particularly puzzling when you're painting from imagination, and do not have references to help you determine when the painting is complete.
In Digital Painting III, Marco will show you how to reliably answer that question, by way of many important smaller questions you should have in mind as you progress through a painting. He'll go over how each consideration greatly shapes the way your image communicates to the viewer, and how that, in turn, affects how you'll paint and capture the subject matter, as well as the overall story, emotion, and brushwork.
What you'll get out of the class:
Learn how to tell a powerful story with a single picture
Insight into how to design a picture from the most general to the most specific
An understanding of how the fundamentals of art work together toward a singular goal
A method of study that will accelerate your ability to design shapes and values
A way of highlighting the most essential elements of your pictures, while editing out the non-essential elements
Insight into what makes pictures read well, and how to go about achieving clarity
Various applications of light and shadow, color, edges, shapes, and more
Marco does two paintings from start to finish, each focusing on how simple early decisions can guide your creative flow from beginning to end. In the process you will not only learn Marco's various digital painting techniques, but gain a broader understanding of visual communication.
Difficulty rating: Digital Painting 3 is targeted to the intermediate/advanced artist, or anyone who is already familiar with art fundamentals such as drawing, shapes, values, edges, color, etc. These fundamentals will be discussed during the workshop, but not explained from the ground up. For instance, instead of explaining how light and shadow works, Marco will demonstrate his use of it in a given painting, and tell you how and why he is using it that way.



https://www.skillshare.com/classes/Digital-Painting-1-A-Guided-Tour-Through-The-Creative-Process/87605651?via=similar-classes