Transcending the Photo Reference in Paint
Alyssa Monks at Willow Pond SLO, October 2024
Surpassing boundaries of traditional realism with Monks
This past October world-renowned and Brooklyn-based artist Alyssa Monks descended upon Willow Pond SLO. The 4-day workshop focused on creating a painting from a photo reference using both indirect and direct traditional painting techniques. Monks, who studied painting at Lorenzo de’ Medici in Florence and earned her M.F.A at the New York Academy of Art instructed the painters on how to use the photograph to create a painting that surpasses the look of the photograph, rather than simply aiming to imitate a photograph.
“A lot of times artists want to make their work look just like a photograph but what if we used a photograph to make a painting that’s actually better than a photograph? What if we could create a result that is more like what you see rather than what a camera sees?”
Alyssa Monks demonstrated how she layers spaces and moments in her paintings, and how she pushes the boundaries of traditional realism by incorporating abstract elements into her work. She often flips background and foreground using semi-transparent filters of glass, vinyl, steam, water, and or foliage over shallow spaces. The tension in her paintings is created by the composition and also by the surface quality itself. Each brushstroke is thickly applied, like a fossil recording every gesture and decision, evoking the energy of the handmade object. This unpredictable surface recalls the human touch, conveying her personal empathy through the work.
We explored ways of seeing the picture objectively, and how to imply detail without overstating. Monks instructed that painters look for structural volumes of the form over the contour, concentrating on relating all parts of the picture to each other with an organized palette. From there, students were guided toward deciding what information is useful to look for and what usual pitfalls to avoid when interpreting a photograph.
“Deciding when and how to invent and experiment is perhaps the most crucial part of the process”
The class then explored what level of finish works best for the particular painting or style. The students were astonished to watch their painting develop through indirect layers of opaque and transparent painting. Soon the intimacy came through as those magic and delicate nuances of flesh emerged and captured the essence of the subject. It was impossible to not be enthralled by her process as well as her superior teaching ability and the painters came away with incredible results, so many new techniques, and an unforgettable 4-day experience. Encore!
About the Artist
Born 1977 in New Jersey, Alyssa began oil painting as a child. She studied at The New School in New York and earned her B.A. from Boston College in 1999. During this time she studied painting at Lorenzo de’ Medici in Florence. She went on to earn her M.F.A. from the New York Academy of Art in 2001. She completed an artist in residency at Fullerton College in 2006 and has lectured and taught at universities and institutions worldwide. She continues to offer workshops and mentorships and lectures regularly. Alyssa has been awarded the Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation Grant for Painting three times and serves on the New York Academy of Art’s Board of Trustees. She is represented by Forum Gallery in New York City. Alyssa currently lives and paints in Brooklyn, New York.
