By Khalida Sarwari
Where once the sound of horses’ hooves could be heard now stands a building that is a little quieter and cleaner. At the historic Sam Cloud barn, paint brushes and easels have replaced the horses and stagecoaches that the building housed long ago.
The Cloud Castle Art Studio, which opened six months ago, is owned and operated by Gabriel Coke, a professional artist who teaches classical drawing and painting to newcomers and experienced art enthusiasts alike.
Located in room 270 on the bottom floor, where the horses were once stabled, the studio is able to accommodate up to eight students at a time and is the ideal space for drawing and painting from life, according to Coke. The lighting conditions in the studio are among its best features, he said, noting that the old barn wood and rustic ambiance help create a romantic environment in the room.
“Students are working on subjects that are well-lit and they’re able to work continuously until it’s completed,” said Coke.
The studio is an example of an atelier, a form of art instruction modeled after the historic art studios of Europe. An atelier consists of a professional painter or sculptor working with a small number of student-trainees. This may explain the large number of Europeans in Coke’s drawing class as he claims his is the only atelier in the South Bay.
In his drawing class, Coke focuses on classical forms and fundamental skills, specifically on light, shade and color theory. The class is geared toward artists who aspire to learn oil painting.
Timi Del Conte, a Los Gatos resident, is a professional artist who normally specializes in animal portraits, but decided to take the drawing course to pick up classical skills such as Dutch Master techniques.
“I feel it’s just going to add extra depth to my work and make it better,” she said of the course.
She also plans to teach a class in the fall on animal sculpture.
The drawing course is five weeks long and runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Wednesday. The cost is $120 for five sessions and students are provided with materials. Separately on Fridays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Coke offers an uninstructed figure drawing class that costs $20 per class. In that class, students are provided with an easel and model.
“This kind of art training is what you get in grad school,” Coke said. “The nice thing about doing it here is there’s no one else doing it in Saratoga.”
The 133-year-old Sam Cloud building, which stands right off Big Basin Way at 20640 Third St., is one of Saratoga’s oldest historical landmarks. In 2008, the building underwent a major renovation after it was purchased by Saratogan Craig Awbrey and his business partner Bob Hausmann. Today the building houses office suites, but it was originally as a stagecoach hub in the 1890s when it was owned by Sam Cloud, who died tragically in a trolley accident on Big Basin Way.
More information about the courses and workshops offered at the Cloud Castle Art Studio is available in the Winter 2013 edition of the Los Gatos-Saratoga Community Education and Recreation guide.
