Jonathan Harkham’s transcription of Bonnard’s flowers
In art, to transcribe is to copy or record information in a different form than the original. To transcribe a painting or drawing is not to copy the artwork exactly, but instead to record observations in a different form. A transcription also doesn’t need to copy everything in an original. An artist can choose to pull selected aspects of information here and there from within an artwork. An artist can choose to transcribe a color palette, size relationships, or an idea from an original. For many artists, the goal is not a perfect and complete copy of an artwork, but instead to use the artwork as a jumping off point to further their own work.
Good advice:
“If you don’t know what to paint, pick an artwork that you love, and do a transcription of it.” – Jonathan Harkham
Below is a collection of transcriptions by Jonathan Harkham, one of our online art instructors.
“Every great painter has loved and learned from someone that came before them.” – Jonathan Harkham
Titian’s Adam and Eve / Ruben’s transcription with a few improvementsJonathan Harkham’s transcription of Titian’s Adam and Eve
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Masaccio’s The Expulsion from the Garden of Eden
Jonathan Harkham’s transcription
Titian’s Saint Margaret
Jonathan Harkham’s transcription
Rembrandt’s Slaughtered Ox
Jonathan Harkham’s transcription
Chaim Soutine’s Slaughtered Chicken
Jonathan Harkham’s transcription
Rembrandt’s Diana Bathing with her Nymphs with Actaeon and Callisto
Abed Abdi, Muslim Painter Lately I have been interested in what happens to the focus of making art when artists live in politically turbulent times. What happens to your artwork when you feel anxious, confused, frustrated, angry, blindsided, and destabilized? What happens to your artwork when you feel like your opinion is valued, and what …
“Almost everyone can remember in grade school art class placing a sheet of paper over the face of a coin or some other textured object and rubbing it with a crayon. I employed this same method – known as frottage – to create the following portraits. For Beckett’s likeness, I had embossed plates made of …
Last quarter I saw a profound shift in artwork at the school. It happened in Jonathan Harkham‘s Still Life class. Jonathan Harkham is an artist and educator who is joining us from his studio in LA. On the first day of class I noticed there were some nice student paintings, then increasingly through the weeks …
Happy New Year, and welcome to the first day of our 30 day challenge! For this first project, we’ll have you warm up and introduce yourself with a delightfully odd looking portrait. Blind contour drawing is an exercise in which an artist draws the contours of a subject without looking at the paper. The technique was introduced by Kimon Nicolaïdes in The …
Jonathan Harkham’s Transcriptions
In art, to transcribe is to copy or record information in a different form than the original. To transcribe a painting or drawing is not to copy the artwork exactly, but instead to record observations in a different form. A transcription also doesn’t need to copy everything in an original. An artist can choose to pull selected aspects of information here and there from within an artwork. An artist can choose to transcribe a color palette, size relationships, or an idea from an original. For many artists, the goal is not a perfect and complete copy of an artwork, but instead to use the artwork as a jumping off point to further their own work.
Good advice:
“If you don’t know what to paint, pick an artwork that you love, and do a transcription of it.” – Jonathan Harkham
Below is a collection of transcriptions by Jonathan Harkham, one of our online art instructors.
“Every great painter has loved and learned from someone that came before them.” – Jonathan Harkham
.
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Abed Abdi
Abed Abdi, Muslim Painter Lately I have been interested in what happens to the focus of making art when artists live in politically turbulent times. What happens to your artwork when you feel anxious, confused, frustrated, angry, blindsided, and destabilized? What happens to your artwork when you feel like your opinion is valued, and what …
30SAL Challenge: Frottage
“Almost everyone can remember in grade school art class placing a sheet of paper over the face of a coin or some other textured object and rubbing it with a crayon. I employed this same method – known as frottage – to create the following portraits. For Beckett’s likeness, I had embossed plates made of …
Pathways Through the Rectangle; Marina Vogman
Last quarter I saw a profound shift in artwork at the school. It happened in Jonathan Harkham‘s Still Life class. Jonathan Harkham is an artist and educator who is joining us from his studio in LA. On the first day of class I noticed there were some nice student paintings, then increasingly through the weeks …
30SAL Challenge: Blind Contour Self Portrait
Happy New Year, and welcome to the first day of our 30 day challenge! For this first project, we’ll have you warm up and introduce yourself with a delightfully odd looking portrait. Blind contour drawing is an exercise in which an artist draws the contours of a subject without looking at the paper. The technique was introduced by Kimon Nicolaïdes in The …