How does on-line tutoring work?

Artist-tutor.com was commenced at the end of 2006 in response to emails I had been receiving from artists throughout Australia who were unable to access experienced tuition.  I realised that the internet meant that I could communicate with these artists who were ‘cut off’ by distance, disability or even difficult circumstances.  To my knowledge personal art tutoring had never been attempted on-line so I was breaking new ground and the experience has become a huge learning curve for me.  Initially I offered personal tuition with SKyPE and MSN Messenger.  The most successful method was emailing the project in three lessons with text and step-by-step illustrations.  Artists send in emails at the end of each lesson outlining any problem with an attached photo of their painting at that stage.  I send back an assessment and answer any queries.  This is working well for most artists with great results and enthusiastic messages from on-line students.  However, teaching on-line over this period has made me aware of obstacles that need to be overcome to make on-line tutoring more ‘user friendly” and effective.

The three main problems:

1. Lack of basic knowledge.  I spent countless hours answering totally valid queries;  “I didn’t know that,” or “How do you do that?”
2. The main problem was the need for the artist to actually "see" me demonstrating the different techniques.
3. The beginner’s painting I offered was probably a little difficult for those just starting out.

The solutions:

1.  My “Back to Basics” series has been released on CDrom with over 200 pages of text and illustrations.  This huge information bank answers all the “I didn’t know that” questions.  (See below for details)

2. and 3.  I will be producing a demonstration DVD that will guide beginner through the step-by-step process of “Making a Painting.” 

DVDs are already available by many other artists. However, beginners in particular painting along with these DVDs do not have any interaction with the tutor and therefore continue painting with unresolved problems.

Artists using my DVD will have the option of accessing their tutor through artist-tutor.com to answer queries and have an assessment on their work.  Later in the year I will be producing the very popular “Upper Reaches of the River” as a DVD for the more advanced artists.  Check this website for information on the release of these DVDs.

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