The world of art opened its doors for Corry Dastur the day her husband
gifted her a set of water soluble oil paints for her fifty-fifth birthday. Knowing
it was her lifelong dream to learn to paint but was too insecure to begin, he
made the leap for her.
She used those paints as a springboard to figure out as much as she could
about mixing colors and translating ideas onto the canvas. Ultimately she
knew she needed more knowledge. There are “tricks” to achieving results
for any discipline. Those tricks are the result of gaining knowledge through
practice, study and communication among those who preceded us. Casting
about for a connection in art led her to the Artist Network TV app. There she
was able to watch Videos by successful artists over and over until she
began to grasp the basics she missed from not taking art in school.
She did have some early successes. She was able to join some group
shows in local galleries in the North Bay. She set up a website to facilitate a
more active role in the art community. Still, she felt the need for a more
intense immersion only a personal teacher could supply. That path opened
when she found her master, Camille Przewodek, a plein air artist who
studied under Henry Hensche to become a leader in that discipline in her
own right. Corry studied under her for eight years. Religiously she showed
up every Monday morning to go into the field and paint with Camille and her
class. During the week she worked intently to bring two pieces to be
critiqued by Camille before going into the field. Then taking those critiques
back to her studio she learned and improved her technique.
Corry’s work with Camille Przewodek set her on her journey for a deeper
knowledge of composition and understanding of color and light. Her goal is
to bring the viewer inside the painting and into the moment in time that it was
created.