He Watercolors Outside the Lines, and So Will You

They each sit at a card table, aligning their paint brushes and preparing their watercolor palettes. Before them: a finished watercolor painting on an easel—it's a staircase and doorway, lined with plants and flowers—it could be Tuscany.

"I hope you guys are ready for this one!" says Carmelo Schifano, watercolor instructor to the 11 students gathered in the upstairs studio of the La Grange Art League, 122 Calendar Ave., which offers classes Monday thorugh Saturday in media varying from silk screen printing to oil painting to sculpture and more.

Schifano, of Orland Park, sits in a rolling chair at the head of the class beneath a large, slanted mirror, which he tilts so students can see the paper, brushes and paint-smudged canvas cloth strewn about his desk.

"Get loose," he says now, and will repeat several times before class ends. 

He advises his students to relax, forget about their daily stress and hold their paintbrushes gently rather than in white-knuckled death grips. He coaches them to forget about seeing "things" like flowers or trees and instead see "shapes of colors."

Schifano, who has taught everything from painting to drafting design to wood working at a number of art groups and leagues for more than 30 years, has become a popular instructor at the La Grange Art League since he first taught at its studio in March 2009.

His classes fill quickly but some students find it difficult at first to "get loose".

When Margaret Doyle, of Westmont, had a hard time painting outside of the lines because of her self-described "control freak" nature, Schifano wouldn't take her justification:

"Come on! It's only a piece of paper for crying out loud! Don't get nuts if the paint goes out of the lines. It's OK," he said.

Doyle now raves about Schifano's teaching talent.

"It's hard to teach adults because they're either afraid of the paper or they know everything," Doyle said.

As Schifano demonstrates brushstrokes to students, it seems as though he's moving at a snail's pace—lightly dabbing green paint here and there. Two minutes later, the paper is completely transformed with stairs, bushes and flowers. All of those faint brushstrokes somehow turned into a painting of a Tuscan staircase.

"Bada bing, bada boom!" he says as he splatters watercolor on the paper. When he speaks, his hands fly and and illustrate everything he's saying as if he's holding a paintbrush.

He asks, "Am I talking too much?" to which everyone reassures him he's not.

Hinsdale resident Angela Taddeo said Schifano is one of her first instructors who stressed the water aspect of watercolor. She said he teaches students to not only focus on the paint, but to make the best use of water, by lifting papers in the air and moving them around, tilting the painting so the watercolors move a certain way.

"Whether I get good painting or not, you know because sometimes I can goof something up, I always enjoy it," Taddeo said.

By the end of the class, participants are noticeably more relaxed and in better moods. They line up their finished products on a wall, standing back in admiration. Schifano pulls out his "magic mat" and places it over each watercolor for a critique.

Schifano said he loves to deliver critiques because students often learn the most from them. He gently suggests various ways students can improve or alter their painting. But for this specific class and painting, Schifano finds three pieces that require no alterations.

"Just leave this alone, don't you think?" he says, admiring the Tuscan staircase beneath the magic mat. "Look at that!"

Since 1933, the La Grange Art League has worked to promote an appreciation and awareness for the visual arts in the community. Along with the studio space, the non-profit has a gallery with works ranging from sculptures to photography, and fabrics to collages. Artist memberships start at $45, which include eligibility to submit artwork to the gallery, free admission to league meetings, and discounts on framing and art classes.

Classes at the La Grange Art League run in four sessions a year, with the fall session beginning Monday, Sept. 13. A variety of classes are offered to suit various levels and mediums. Classes range in price, from $45 to $120 for members; $51 to $136 for non-members. More information can be found at the La Grange Art League's website: www.lagrangeartleague.org.