Winslow Art Center will close briefly for software updates between 2am-3am Pacific Time (UTC -7), 5-6am Eastern, 10-11am BST). Class recordings can be watched while the site is closed, please email katod@winslowartcenter.com to request a recording if you are unable to access it directly.

Brian Sindler – Shape & Mood: Designing Emotion (Online Class Recording)

Date recorded: Friday, June 19, 2026
Medium: Open to all medium

In this 90-minute live painting demonstration, I’ll show how mood is created long before color or detail ever enter the picture.

We’ll explore how simple shapes—their size, placement, and relationships—determine the emotional tone of a painting. You’ll see how adjusting proportion, silhouette, and negative space shifts the mood entirely.

During the demo, students will observe:

How to block in a painting using large, intentional shapes

How shape hierarchy controls visual impact

The role of abstract design beneath representational work

How edge variation influences atmosphere

How to simplify complex scenes into strong compositional statements

I’ll talk through my decision-making process in real time — what I eliminate, what I exaggerate, and why.

What you’ll take away 

A clearer understanding of how to design paintings

Different ways to create stronger emotional impact

A practical method for blocking in with confidence

A sharper eye for shape relationships in your own work

Whether you paint landscapes, figures, or still life, this session will strengthen the foundation underneath your painting style = because mood isn’t added at the end,  it’s designed from the first mark.

$40 for one year access

A painter of tonalist landscapes, Brian Sindler received his art training at the American Academy of Art and the French-style atelier School of Representational Art. A former musician, Brian did not take up painting until his early 30’s. Since then, his emotive landscapes have claimed numerous awards, including the 2018 Gold Medal at the National Society of Painters in Casein and Acrylic, 2018 Best of Show at Paint Grand Traverse, 2015 Best New Artist to Easton, and 2011 Best of Show at the Door County Plein Air Festival. Recent Publication include “3 to Watch,” Fine Art Connoisseur and the featured article and cover of Plein Air Magazine.

About Our Past Technique Takeaways:

Discover specific art techniques that you can ‘take away’ from some of your favorite artists and apply to your own work. This one-and-a-half hour recorded presentation will showcase a process that the artist incorporates in their art practice.  Instruction will be through a combination of lecture and demonstration. 

You’ll be able to watch the class recording as many times as you would like for one year unless otherwise specified in the product description. (If an instructor wishes their recordings to be available for less than a year, we defer to instructor preferences.) There are no ongoing charges and your access will automatically end.

A link to the recording will be included in your on-screen purchase confirmation, in your purchase confirmation email and on your Online Classrooms page.

(There is no Zoom link for this event because it has already taken place).

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