More than 125 people were in attendance for a demonstration by Rob Liberace on Friday, October 28. The event was a huge success, exposing many Academy of Art University students and Portrait Society members to the portraiture techniques and methods of a nationally acclaimed artist.

Liberace began his Friday night demonstration with a brief slide presentation. He highlighted many works by master artists that he stated had inspired his own art. He identified the way the artists had used shadow, color, and line, which he later translated onto his canvas during the demonstration. According to Liberace, Velasquez, Sargent, and Sorolla were such talented artists because they understood how to take something as complex as the human face and break it down into identifiable strokes.
Throughout the demonstration, Liberace gave sound advice to the crowded room of artists. He began by explaining that one should avoid curves in the initial phase of the painting because they are too difficult to control. To ensure the foundation of the painting is sound, an artist should progress from bigger planes, then move to intermediate planes, before finally working on small planes. Avoiding the trap of painting what you think you see versus what you actually see was another important point that Liberace stressed throughout the demonstration. He explained that one of the best ways to avoid this common mistake is to deconstruct the face into pure abstraction. If you do not think of the features of the face as eyes, a nose, and a mouth, but rather as planes, lines, and shadows, it is easier to paint what you are actually seeing.

Perhaps the highlight for many participants came at the completion of the demonstration when Liberace invited questions from the audience. He was able to address the specific concerns of other artists, and spend time delving into his painting philosophy and techniques.

After such an enlightening demonstration and discussion, thirty-five artists came together Saturday for a painting workshop where they could attempt to implement the lessons learned from Liberace the night before into their own work. He began by reminding the artists to devise a strategy to have a completed painting in the time allotted. From there, the class began what became an exciting day of challenges and discoveries as they worked through their individual paintings' issues. With only 10 artists per model, each person had an advantageous view and plenty of space to work.

Overall, the weekend was an enjoyable and enlightening experience, culminating in an intimate gathering at California's State Ambassador Margaret Tcheng Ware's home for dinner and conversation.

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