Draw, Paint, Learn

It’s not about pretty pictures

Story and photo by Amy Kepferle · Wednesday, March 3, 2010

What does it take to make an artist happy? For abstract master Darrin Randall, it’s a tray full of new paint. For him, the primary colors filling the small jars he recently purchased represent a universe of imaginative possibilities.

But it wasn’t always that way. Randall, 39, didn’t know he wanted to spend his life applying brushes to canvases until he was well into his formative years. A former potter, he entered Western Washington University in the mid-1990s to better learn how to apply painting to what he was already doing. Soon, what he placed in the kiln wasn’t nearly as important as it once had been. 

“Since I started painting, I haven’t looked back,” Randall says. “I thought I’d do pottery to make a living, but that’s not my passion.” 

Six months ago, when the recession took a personal jab at him in the form of being laid off from his longtime graphic design position, Randall realized he wanted to spend more time sharing his infatuation with line, texture and variations of color.

Not long after losing his job, he rented one of the larger studios at Jinx Art Space. Although he shares the space with another artist, he has his own area to create, as well as a sink, a separate room for storage, street access and, as it so happens, plenty of time to teach his craft to those who might benefit from his experience.

This month, through his new school of art—called Draw Paint Learn—Randall will spend each Saturday afternoon offering classes to youth ages 10 through 18 focused on his particular style of drawing and painting.

If parents are reading this and thinking, “Oh, it would be nice if my kid could sign up and walk away with a nice painting” they may want to think again.

“I think there’s too much focus on painting a pretty picture,” Randall says. “Our culture is focused on looks, but we’re not focused enough on feelings. I think with painting, the focus should be on the process. If you don’t focus on the outcome, it feels better. The work might look good when it’s done, but that’s not my goal.”

On his website, Randall explains that his paintings typically begin with him making marks on the canvas, thus beginning a dialogue with the painting that doesn’t carry the heady weight of having a preconceived outcome. He doesn’t focus on what he likes, but rather what’s working and what isn’t. The gist of it is that he’s living in the moment—a mantra he tries to follow in every aspect of his life and that he hopes to convey to the younger generation he’s hoping to infuse with his knowledge.

“My dream is to make as many paintings as possible and inspire others to enjoy the creative process of making art,” Randall says. “I think you can learn how to exist in life by learning how to paint.”