Advanced Fundamentals, ‘Creating Competence Beyond’ with David Mueller

You will build skills beyond your current level. The sessions cover four key concepts to help artists improve their painting abilities.
About this Event

David Mueller SOPHISTICATED FUNDAMENTALS - Tools of Tradition and Something Beyond August 11-September 15, 2026, Tuesdays 10:00-2:00

David Mueller, artist and instructor, and long time member of the Cincinnati Art Club, will help you build skills beyond your current level. The sessions cover four key concepts to help artists improve their painting abilities. We will concentrate on pushing the compositional elements, looking at unique perspectives, inspecting the range of edge possibilities, and overall balance and unity.

‘Creating Competence Beyond’ is more than the nuts and bolts of sound principles of design. The course takes a student from where they are to improve their technical skill and confidence in their creative capability. There is significant worth in design, rendering form, balance, and hard and soft edges. These are but a few tools that are offered in David Mueller’s ‘Creating Competence Beyond’ in this session of classes.

David has lectured and demonstrated his techniques to many artists and organizations. He has taught painting/drawing to numerous students both privately and in regional workshops for over 24 years. David is a graduate of The American Academy of Art in Chicago.

David Mueller SOPHISTICATED FUNDAMENTALS - Tools of Tradition and Something Beyond August 11-September 15, 2026, Tuesdays 10:00-2:00

▪ Revisiting, finding excitement in and pushing the foundations of traditional art are the KEY to creating paintings with competence and visual power.

▪ Find out how to make strong, moving art, not occasionally by accident.... but more consistently with knowledge and intention!

▪ If you are going in circles in your own art and want to find quality, time-tested tools with which you can elevate your art, let David share with you many of the common denominators that so many of the great painters, past and present, utilized to create inspiring and powerful works of art.

He will offer, demonstrate, and give exercises on these foundational tools, plus share highly inspiring examples of these principles being illuminated in artworks of great painters and a few of his own. o

1. Day 1 - Designing with value, a tonal approach
2. Day 2 - Edges are EVERYTHING!
3. Day 3 - Colorful Monochromes
4. Days 4/5 - drawing and rendering value
5. Day 6 - layers of skin on the onion, linking and utilizing all concepts together

CLASS SUPPLIES LIST

Tarp to protect floor.

▪ Watch "First Class Lecture, Part One" video, http://Www.davidmuellerfineart.com/first-class-lecture. $20 dollar rebate after on-line purchase, ((STRONGLY SUGGESTED, …former students not required))

• 1. Come to class with a digital camera /phone. Days before class,fill a digital folder on phone or tablet, (name it "Pics for Mueller Class") with your own photo reference that has good potential for paintings, - bring to first class.
  2. Print minimum (4) 8 x 10" photo prints from those digital pictures. (glossy photo paper) not uncoated home printer paper. Walgreens is a great source! https://photo.walgreens.com/store/home …near you
  3. Bring o 4 sheets of plain white printer paper or sketch pad paper. (Masking)
  4. Bring medium to heavy weight sketch paper to make thumbnails/GRAY STUDIES
  5. If possible, find / bring "Shades of Gray" pastels ( (Alphacolor hi-fi gray", Brevillier's Cretacolor, Nupastel brands and others), my former students may already have.) I'll bring some extra sets to class. You can buy at Blick (formerly Plaza Art), Jerry’s Artarama, or on-line.
  6. med/Soft graphite pencils
• Oil Colors needed for COLORFUL MONOCHROME o Aliz crimso
• Sap green (transparent and dark),Indian red or venetian red, Raw sienna, Cad red light, Cad yellow deep, Cad yellow pale, White
• Additional painting supplies o 2-3 small/medium canvases (9 x 12, 11 x 14, 14 x 18 range)
• 1 white sheet of pastel paper
• Vine charcoal, sand pad or sand paper piece, kneaded eraser
• Viewfinders, (two "L shaped mat board pieces) (better than small plastic commercial version)