July 28, 2003 – The "Fundamentals of Watercolor Painting" workshops offered on St. Thomas by the Beyond Visions Foundation on Saturdays in June and July are coming back for Part 2 in August.
Instructor Yvonne Petersen said she initially had been thinking of offering sessions again in the fall. But some members of the group that took part in the earlier summer classes "really want to continue their training," she said.
The new series is set for Saturdays, too, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sessions will be held on Aug. 9, 16, 23 and 30; they're open to those who did not take part in the earlier workshops, as well as those who did. The emphasis is on basic techniques.
Petersen said the seven people who took part in the first workshops were "all new to art and to watercolor painting."
Again this time, all painting will take place out of doors, with locations to be determined each week.
One of the workshop objectives, Petersen said, is "to expose more locals, particularly those at retirement age, to art" — and thus encourage them to take up a new recreational activity or even a new career. Another is to provide "a rudimentary course" for people who "may be working at full-time jobs but find the discipline interesting and want to learn how to be a better painter/artist."
Petersen, who has been working in watercolor since 1994, studied under Jo Tarabula, an internationally recognized watercolorist, at Tarabula's studio in Ruskin, Florida, as well as at several workshops Tarabula has taught in the Virgin Islands.
The workshops are being sponsored by the Beyond Visions Foundation and the V.I. Council on the Arts. The cost to participate is $40 for one session and $100 for all four. Space is limited, and "priority is given to those who sign up for all four," Petersen said. The fee includes a booklet, some paints and paper.
For more information on the workshops, call Petersen at 715-4790. To learn more about the foundation, visit the Beyond Visions Web site, e-mail Petersen at BVFor call her.
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