Tayler Olivas Plein Air to Digital Mentorship

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Program Overview
Join Tayler and embark on a transformative journey with this Plein Air painting mentorship.

Enjoy a regular weekly schedule of personalized critiques and lectures.

Artists will learn how to use plein air painting to further develop their skills, and plan for personal projects or client work. Master the intricacies of gouache and Photoshop and enhance your skills in both the traditional and digital realms.

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Interactive Learning
16 live Classes over a four month period. 

Personalized Feedback
Receive critiques on class assignments and relevant personal projects in live sessions.

Office Hours
Ask questions outside of class time. 

Private Discussion Group
Enjoy the companionship of a group of artists who learn and grow by your side, with private access to a classroom discussion board.

Write your awesome label here.

Write your awesome label here.

Write your awesome label here.

Write your awesome label here.

Write your awesome label here.

Program Details

Join concept designer, and plein air enthusiast, Tayler Olivas in this informative class for artists of all backgrounds and skill level! Dig in and master the art of plein air ONLINE through weekly live lectures, demos, assignments, and group critiques. In addition, pop into the weekly "office hours" and ask additional questions in a less formal setting. This class will focus on creating both studies and larger works of art based on references from photography, film, and online sources like MapCrunch to meet the demands of the online structure of this class. This class is ideal for artists aiming to refine their technique across diverse media and elevate their creative pursuits in both personal projects and client commissions.

Each live session will be recorded for unlimited HD replay which you can access for your duration in the program.

Format: This is a 16 week program. Each session is limited to 25 students.
Weekly Live Group Sessions / Critiques / Past Recordings / Mid-week Office Hours / Private Community Discussion

Tuition: $250.00 paid monthly over four months ($1,000 collected over a four month period)

Class Times: Each class period will last between 1.5 hours and 3 hours depending on the prepared lesson content and the number of students in attendance. 
Class Times: Mondays 6-8 PM PDT/ 7-9 PM MDT 
Office Hours: Wednesdays 6-8 PM PDT/ 7-9 PM MDT

Enrollment is now closed, please join the waitlist for upcoming 2025 Mentorships. 
Students on the Waitlist will be notified by email when applications open.

Class Begins September 30th. Final Class February 10th with a break for winter holidays.

How long is each class?

The class length is determined primarily by the number of students who have submitted work to be critiqued. Another factor in the class length is the complexity of the instruction. Students can expect an average class length of two hours per week. 

What if I can't make it to live sessions?

Each live session will be recorded and uploaded to the course for you to rewatch. At the end of the four month program, students will enjoy a fifth month free where they can rewatch all of the lectures and critiques from the live classes, plus any additional lectures and demos Tayler provides throughout the session.

I am confused about how much this program costs!

The full cost of this 16 week program is $1000 dollars. However, we know it isn't fun to pay $1000 dollars for anything all in one lump. You will be charged $250 dollars at the time of your enrollment. Then, on the same day for three consecutive months, you will be charged an additional $250 dollars.

How long will I have access to mentorship recordings?

Students will have access to mentorship recordings for the duration of the program plus one month after the program ends. At the conclusion of that time period students will no longer have access to the mentorship recordings as Sentient will be preparing for a new term and a new student group. This practice is consistent with optimal learning. Sentient Mentors do not advise students to become overly focused on the same lectures and critiques for a long period of time as this ultimately hinders growth and confidence. 

If a student quits the program early they will lose access to the recordings at the end of their pay period. Please email the sentient team if you are uncertain as to when that will take place for you.

What if I need to leave the program early?

This program is a commitment of 16 weeks. However, we understand that occasionally personal emergencies may prevent an artist from unexpectedly continuing with the program. If you are an artist enrolled in a mentorship program and need to end your enrollment, please email julie@sentientacademy.com

This should, however, be a worst case scenario as accepting one of the twelve seats in this program prevents another artist from participating. 
Introduction to Plein Air
Become familiar with the materials and understand the principles and elements of art.

Value
Master light and shadow through thumbnails and how to emulate brushwork digitally.

Tonal Sketches
Dive deeper on value grouping and photoshop techniques.
The Limited Palette

Finding more creative ways to create variations for clients and personal work.

The Extended Palette
Focus on keeping palettes cohesive and purposeful  with an emphasis on how color can push mood and atmosphere.
The Experimental Palettes
Use traditional media to explore different colorways via abstraction. Then digitally abstract for color exploration in an environment concept.

Lighting
Understand the big three: morning, afternoon and night.

Inspiration from Media
Study media, specifically film, game, overview of history and the masters.
Begin Final Project
Three fully rendered paintings in different lighting, composition and color schemes.

Non-destructive Workflow
How to set up your projects for success.
 
Advanced Procedures
Push color and lighting in a scene with the same major compositional features.

In-depth Critiques
Get honest feedback and learn how to push yourself to the next level.
Meet your instructor

Tayler Olivas

Tayler is a Visual Development Artist, Art Director, and professor in the film and games industry. Tayler's work has been showcased in numerous games, cinematics, and marketing materials for brands like Gucci, Team Fight Tactics, Spider-Man 2, Insomniac Games, Riot Games and Elodie. When not working on client projects, Tayler teaches at Laguna College of Art and Design in Southern California.

Tayler's expertise spans various digital media, including Adobe Photoshop CC, Blender, Zbrush, 3DCoat, Substance Painter, and Marmoset Toolbag, as well as traditional media like gouache, watercolor, oil paint, and markers (Copic and Prismacolor). Tayler holds a bachelor's degree in game art from Laguna College of Art and Design, where he graduated Summa Cum Laude.

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