Staff Report
Chris Chapman, a prolific local artist, will lead an entertaining and productive day of creating small to medium-size pastel paintings in the Wildling Museum’s Barbara Goodall Classroom on Saturday, Feb. 24.
People of all levels of experience are welcome in the class, which will cover composition, values, color and shapes.
Chapman will begin with a brief demonstration and then help everyone individually. Each student should be able to complete one painting in the morning and another in the afternoon, either abstract or realistic. Bring a brown bag lunch for a short break at noon.
Chapman suggests bringing things that might serve as inspiration, such as a plate or cup with fruit and/or vegetables to create a simple still life, or perhaps a sketch, photo or pattern to explore further. Anyone without supplies can buy them on class day for an additional $10.
Born in Pasadena in 1950, Chapman grew up riding and exploring Southern California’s then-quiet open spaces, forging a bond between nature and creative expression. After attending the University of Oregon, UC Santa Barbara and Santa Barbara City College, she molded her livelihood into fine arts.
Chris married her painter husband John Iwerks in 1999. Combining conservation with art, they co-managed Arroyo Hondo Preserve on the Gaviota Coast in the early 2000s, creating a visitors center, adobe art gallery and interpretive natural history artwork, and organizing plein air events. They now live and paint in the Santa Ynez Valley, but the Gaviota Coast and East Sierra Nevada remain favorite subjects.
Chapman has created a substantive body of watercolor botanicals. She illustrated “Chumash Ethnobotany” (Timbrook, 2007), which led to a permanent installation in the Chumash Hall of the Ventura County Museum of Art.
To see more of her work, visit www.chrischapmanfineart.com/art.
