Review: MV's Jar's Beginners Class, Madrid, Spain

"Thank you for an awesome course, for being such a friendly and motivating teacher, for giving the best of you to us.

I had tried to do some wet blending serveral times, and all what I had achieved was a total fail. I couldn't believe that it could be so "simple" (I know it will be much harder to master).

This has been a weekend full of good mood, full of technics and tips to learn, full of good advices.

But over all of this, I'd like to highlight the best part of your teachings: paingint must be fun, a shared joy, a continuous learning. As you say, "Happy painting!" - Raul


Madrid. Spain.
Some days ago Roman travelled there to hold one of his famous MV's Jar's Beginner Classes.
This was Roman's 54th beginner class he held.

Roman is a person who feels very comfortable when everything is organised to 100% and all plans work out smooth. He was scared of Spain. It was his first time in Spain and he was scared from the stories he listened earlier: Spaniards are a very cool bunch, they do organise in a different way than germans.

There was absolut no reason of being scared. 
Thanks to the fantastic Team of Fantastic Coures, Javier, Sergio and Victor the painting class was wonderful to teach. Such a great organisation help. Everything was perfectly organised, even a camera and a projector to see explanations on big screen. Muchas Gracias for your help, gentlemen.
Highly appreciated. Check them out, they do not only organise courses, they do write tutorials to help other painters and also have a cool miniature range.

"From Fantastic Courses we want to say that your course has been an example of how courses should be. People pay high prices to attend courses and they deserve high quality also. You perfectly manage timing which is really amazing and allows people to see the whole agenda. In addition, the structure of this course is perfect as allows to follow up the lessons in a very natural way. We learnt a lot, as painters and as person, from you. We can only say THANK YOU for being such a great guy"  
- Fantastic Courses Team


Many thanks also to Big Child Creatives who offered their studio as a venua and organised a lunch in the bar nearby on Saturday.

Also a big thanks goes out Roman's students, coming mainly from Madrid, but also other places of Spain. Some even travelled far, for example, Ireland, Portugal, Italy and one crazy guy arrived from Argentinia. Thank you everyone for your support in what Roman does with your participation.

Thank you Victor for taking many photos and all of you who supported this review with their own photos. Sadly Roman was not able to do many on his own as he was busy teaching.

"It was a real pressure to assist to your course. I consideer myself a rookie and I have learned new ways of painting with a teacher that feels passion for this hobby. I really like my demo-nette and the feeling that I know more techniques with her.

But Roman, you have to stop smoking! Only buy tobbaco for your bases, it's healthier."- Eduardo



A big thanks also to the supporters of this class since many years with donations in material for basing and painting. Thank you!

PK-Pro
Sockelmacher
Juweela
Modelmates
and Kellerkind Miniatures.

To round up the "Muchas Gracias" two names are not allowed to be missed here: Alfonso Giraldes and Rafael Garcia Marin. Two wonderful guys who made Roman enjoy Madrid beside the seminar. Roman did spent some additional days and enjoyed them very much, because of these friends.

"I was going with a little fear. 

The miniatures had always been a mysterious world and scared me, but in the course I have learned a lot of things, and the world has become a new place full of lights, colors and details. Not only have I learned how to paint miniatures, now i see the world differently. I am so grateful! 

I have a new obsession and I need bigger pockets!"

See you soon!"

- Laura (winner of the most colorful thumb on Sunday!)

Allright.
To the painting seminar review now. 
Madrid still rings back with wonderful impressions, endless passion and a lot of happy painting moments.

Arriving
in the Big Child Creative Studio and setting everything up.
That studio is a great place and we all were very welcomed. Thank you again for the hospitality, Jose and the full team of Big Child Creatives.

We were sorrounded by a lot of artworks from Big Child.

Very inspiring.

... and of course we were able to get some of their great miniatures:

A really great place to hold the seminar:

"For me, the best experience for who wants to improve in miniature painting and to begin a new way to paint something. I recommend it to everyone. Roman isn't only a great painter and artist, he's also an awesome teacher. Thank you Roman, I will never forget this experience." - Daniele

The word 'beginner' might be confusing to many first time participants of this class.
It is not a class for 'only' beginners. In fact it is a class for every person, at every age interested in figure painting, whatever their experience level is.

'Beginners class' means here that Roman gives an introduction into his way of thinking while painting, in detail a lot of important theory is explained while doing a walk through Art History and is used in practical exercises. During the weekend you will not only learn to improve your painting skills, you will also learn the 'Why?' behind everything explained and with that you will be able to teach yourself in your own hobby future by just recognizing what nature has to offer.


The theory parts contain:

- Learn to see your world with different eyes
- Introduction into basing composition
- Learn how to feel harmony in different aspects
- Important contrasts for figure painting
- Explanation about how to paint a light situation on your figure
- Understand colour theory and learn how to use it properly
- Learn about different materials, their unique properties and learn to paint them
- Learn to lose fear of doing something wrong
- much more!


Roman thought about sitting down and writing what we did on which day, but this would end in a big déjà vu. Donal from Ireland did write quite some words when Roman asked him and the other students for some feedback. Donal will take over now and Roman will throw in photos ... thanks, Donal!

Donal:

"If you have the opportunity to take this course, or any offered by Roman, do it. You will be richly rewarded. Roman is one of the great teachers in the miniature painting community and long may he continue to give over of his time and skills to help those of us who come to learn from him. He is skilled, empathetic, charismatic, with a deep and infectious passion for painting, but also for sharing his knowledge with others. 

His enthusiasm and passion for his art is unbridled and shared freely with all. Roman speaks to you with the same respect and interest in your own little Daemonette learning figure as he does about the award winning examples of miniature art that surrounded us during our weekend. Each was a piece to be appreciated in the context of the skills of the painter at that point in their painter’s journey. Visual comparisons may be made of course, but in the context of learning and instruction."

 There is nothing you can do wrong ... happy painting, wait, that's weird ... :D

May the light be with you, Donal!

 

No Light without shadows!

Even in black and white.

Thank you Albert :)

 

 

"I had the pleasure of attending the Roman Lappat course. It was a very intensive and fun weekend.

In it I learned a lot of things, from the composition of the scene to the color theory. But also his special vision of the hobby.He was very kind and very good teacher.

I highly recommend this course.

I would also like to thank to fantastic courses their great organization and to big child creatives for allowing us to do the course in their study." - Albert

 

 

We got some water there!

Friendly inspirational discussions everywhere.

"If you paint as a hobby, as most of us do, Roman’s course will crystallise the information you will have gleaned from countless internet articles, blogs and You Tube videos. Additionally much of what is presented was familiar in some shape, or form from articles and advice from the Massive Voodoo blog. Now I will revisit these articles again with a deeper, more well rounded understanding having seen Roman perform the technique, or explain the concept directly to me. This course has taken all the various floating chunks of knowledge I have and anchored them into a cohesive whole in my mind. The painting skill set I had was somewhat chaotic and unfocused, but now I feel it has been ordered and crucially the path ahead in my painter’s journey has been lit for me."

Javier. Focused.

Demo-nette.

Orange Claws, oh yeah.

"I leave Madrid now with a head buzzing with new possibilities and eager to get back to my painting desk. I plan to take more courses with other painters and with Roman again if I can, but this one has been very special to me. Thank you again Roman and adiós Madrid!" - Donal

This is how our models looked on Saturday 1:30 am. Primed.

And we went for lunch ... way too much too good food. Roman got supertired afterwards, but no time for Siesta.

Back to painting we went. 
And Saturday melted into Sunday. Everybody got tired, no exclusions, but everybody did well to stay focused on the course until Sunday's tasks also melted the miniature together with the base and left us all standing in front of a row of beautiful demo-nettes:

Well, what can Roman say. Nothing more than his smile on the last photo. This says it all.

Thank you all for a great time in Madrid.
Muchas Gracias! Massive Voodoo will be back!

To sum this up Roman was collecting photos of his students on facebook of their models:

Not all of them, but some ...

Daniele inventend a group of facebook called "Roman Lappat - students" which is a place to talk, discuss and enjoy happy painting together. If you ever joined a class by Roman and want to be in there too, please feel welcome. Please also know that Roman is reading in there too and tries to help whereever he can, but unfortanetely daily work and tasks and life might not give him the possibility to put highest priority there. Sadly.

Keep on happy painting!