€397
Create Faces 3
Five-week course, next starting Mon, 21st Apr, 2025
Registration opens Thu, 3rd Apr, 2025
Payable in two installments
Lifetime Access to the Classroom.
Painting faces is difficult…
Measuring proportions.
Depicting areas with no definitive lines (like noses and lips).
Achieving a likeness.
It’s uniquely challenging, an all-or-nothing process, and one mistake throws the whole thing.
Right?
Hmm… I don’t see it that way.
Maybe you’ve tried portraiture before…
Have you ever found yourself sat in front of a blank page, sharpened pencil and eraser in hand, wondering where to put the first tentative mark?
Then you apprehensively outline the individual features, wondering how you’ll get some colour in there, make it three-dimensional, give it a bit of life!
You know you need to look carefully, take your time, measure everything…
And get the dreaded proportions right!
But at the same time you want to be expressive.
How can you bring those things together - the slow precision with the intuitive spontaneity?
It’s definitely about looking carefully… but more importantly, it’s about seeing.
It’s about reframing how you view and understand what you’re looking at - the basic elements of light, shade, line, shape, texture, and color.
Once you stop thinking of a face as a ‘face’, you can start painting what you see…instead of what you think you see.
And once you’ve tuned into that fundamental process, you’ll find the confidence to creatively explore, knowing that every gestural, intuitive mark you make, is where you want it to be, saying what you want it to say.
We’ll be painting portraits but, within that framework, I’ll be showing you techniques and approaches that are so exciting, they’ll filter through into many other creative arenas.
This approach will not only improve your portrait painting skills, it will improve your ability to paint whatever you want, as creatively as you dare.
And the more open you are to exploration and adventure, the more you’ll connect to your unique taste and style.
For the first time, I’m demonstrating my art process from start to finish - techniques that I’ve developed over 30 years!
My process will teach you to…
Look and really see
Extract the essence and simplify
Be brave and take risks
Detach from the convention of labeling subject matter and materials
Enter into a spirit of discovery
Prioritise the value of the experience rather than the outcome
I’ll show you how to…
Look at faces in a new way - as adjacent or layered shapes, textures and colours.
Use materials and techniques that help you loosen up and let go of the quest for perfection.
Explore for the joy of the experience, unstifled by the need to create a masterpiece.
Keep it simple - know when you have enough information and you can stop.
WHO IS THIS FOR?
Do you…
Aspire to painting/drawing faces skillfully and expressively?
Adore colour and texture?
Crave mindful, creative moments that are just for you?
Seek the joy of the process, the wonder of discovery?
Long to find your unique, creative voice?
Admire loose, gestural artwork but find it difficult to strike the balance between control and spontaneity?
Want to develop your artistic skills and knowledge?
Need inspiration to elevate you out of a creative rut?
Feel excited to learn from a professional who’s created art almost every day for 30 years?
This isn’t a prescriptive road map to recreating my work. I want it to be a continuation of what I've taught so far, and inspire you as an individual, to explore what's meaningful to you.
here’s what you’ll get…
Lifetime access to the online classroom
Five weekly projects that fit into your busy schedule;
Week 1 - Intro and preparation - getting warmed up and ready
Week 2 - Line, shape, and space - otherwise known as proportion
Week 3 - Form and structure - the value of values
Week 4 - Colour - the significance and impact of a palette
Week 5 - Texture - mixing media and making it interesting
Four video lessons and one written brief, every week;
The Plan - what we’re doing
I offer an overview and explain what we’ll be focusing on.
The Mindset - how you you look at it
I talk you through ways to reframe the process in your head (trust me, this helps)
The Set Up - what you’ll need
I show you what materials to grab for the project
The Demo - how you do it
I demonstrate the project, talking through the process and explaining exactly how it works
The Brief - what to do
I outline the project in a bullet-pointed list, so you know what to accomplish
Downloadable support materials to help and inspire you;
A Glossary of art terms
A People Palette
A Supply List
And the student-favorite BONUS…
An Inclusive Private CREATE FACES Community set up with your peers.
This is where experienced and beginner designers share insights, discoveries, feedback, and encouragement. It’s a warm and encouraging environment that will boost your confidence, motivate, and inspire you.
This is a live course and I’ll be inside the group offering feedback and encouragement on 10 randomly selected posts, once a week.
You can access the community super easily via the Kajabi app (available wherever you get your apps from)
Hello! I’m Victoria Johnson.
WITH nearly 30 YEARS OF COMMERCIAL ART INDUSTRY EXPERIENCE, I KNOW FIRST-HAND what it’s like to GET stuck, where what you want doesn’t match what you’re doing.
I’ve seen many artists struggling to overcome confusion and self-doubt when trying to create art while also living busy lives, and I know how that feels.
I’m sharing my knowledge in powerful lessons that have helped over 2000 artists develop the confidence, skills and motivation to unearth their unique style.
Are you ready to WALK AWAY WITH…
An excitement and enthusiasm for portraiture, matched by the faith in yourself to create your art your way?
The courage to paint loosely and intuitively?
The knowledge and skills to make every mark intentional?
The confidence to express yourself joyfully and fearlessly?
The curiosity to continue exploring?
let’s create. Let’s explore.
See you inside.
Gallery
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
How is the course material delivered? Will we get videos?
Yes!
Most of the course material is provided in video. There are also downloadable PDFs where necessary.
How long are the courses available??
Create Faces offers lifetime access.
Does the Create Faces Community continue after the course?
Until further notice, yes.
How much time should I set aside per day/week for the class?
I issue a new project every Monday and the goal is to complete one finished project per week. I’d imagine an hour or so a day would be enough, depending on your approach.
Do you offer a critique of artwork created by course participants?
I’ll be active in the group one day a week. I care a lot about what you’re doing and want to be encouraging and motivating. However, I don't (and can't!) comment on every single post. I’ll be randomly selecting 10 posts a week and offering a constructive mini-critique, designed to be helpful to everyone in the community.
If you’re interested in an in-depth discussion with me, please visit my Consultations page.
Is belonging to the community a requirement?
You don’t need to join the Create Faces Community to take the course, as it’s all provided in video form in an online ‘classroom’ but I highly recommend it as it’s such a supportive community. You’ll enjoy seeing what everyone else is doing and receiving kind, valuable feedback on your work.
Can you tell me more about how a ‘live’ course works? Is there a schedule? Are there Create Faces Community Live Chats and do I need to be available at a certain time?
By ‘live’, I mean that the course takes place within a set time frame (the duration of the course) where everyone contributes to an active, private Create Faces Community group - rather than it being an evergreen course that’s self-paced.
There’s always a very engaged and supportive community. You can jump on at any time of the day and students come from all over the world and lots of different time zones.
There are no Live Chats.
Do I need any special materials for the course?
Yes. But not too many.
There is a supply list, which I’ll provide during Week 1. I structure my courses so that they’re useful to everyone, no matter what materials they prefer to use, but in this case there are a few exercises that require some specific items. I’ve tried to keep the list fairly flexible, basic and inexpensive.
Technology wise, it’s enough that you can snap a pic and upload a jpeg so we can admire your work and support you in the community, but most of the areas covered will translate to digital media - Photoshop, Procreate etc, if you prefer to create art that way.Will this class be too advanced or are beginners welcome?
Beginners are very welcome.
Some of the concepts may be completely new to you but a lot of beginners join me and find my courses worthwhile because they learn so much.If you are creative-minded, have some experience of drawing and painting, and are open to trying new things, I think you’ll love the course. If you have any doubts please email me at victoria@victoriajohnsoncreateexplore.com and I’ll be happy to talk through your concerns with you.
I try hard to ensure the Community is kind, supportive, and safe and this works well for beginners because the more experienced artists in the group offer lots of help.
I think you’ll find this testimonial helpful. Roberta is talking about a Create Christmas design and illustration class but it applies well here too - as many artists have this kind of positive experience in all my classes.
“I joined this class on a whim and then regretted it when I started to see the names and work of my classmates because I am just dipping my toes into the world of design and illustration. I thought I was going to feel horribly out of place with all the professional designers in the class, but as soon as the first brief was up I was totally inspired and went right to work. The only thing I didn’t like about the class is that it was too short. I had so many ideas of illustrations I wanted to do each week, I kept hoping the weeks would magically lengthen themselves.
I never for one moment felt out of place. The whole class community was accepting and encouraging. If you are unsure if this type of illustration is for you - take the class. If you are currently illustrating but in a rut - take the class. You are sure to be filled with so many ideas you won’t be able to get to them all. If you are a seasoned pro and want a challenge - take the class. Get a fresh perspective on illustrating. If you’re here reading this wondering if you should take the class - take the class. It is a small investment regardless if your focus is as a professional or hobbyist.”
— Roberta Murray
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