Local artist Leslie Sobel talked about her abstracted Michigan
landscape art, which gave us much to think about as we had just finished our
own watercolor Michigan landscapes. Sobel works both from satellite images and
from her plein air (drawing/painting outdoors) sketches. She talked with us
extensively about how she looks at the landscape and works at capturing the
gesture of the way a tree grows or the slope
of a mountain range–she is more interested in depicting the emotion rather than the exact detail of what she sees. This was so important for us to hear! Sobel also shared with us her recent experiences as the
Artist In Residence at Canyons of the Ancients National Monument and showed us
her sketch journal. We learned about what encaustic painting is and got to
touch and ask multiple questions about the thick layered and nuanced pieces Sobel brought in.
You may see Leslie Sobel’s work in person at her current exhibition in Canton at the Village Theater thru Novemeber 29
th, 2015. The middle school students will take a field trip to Village Theater next week. More images can be seen here:
www.lesliesobel.com
