Journeys in Art

Boyertown Art Advocacy

2011-04-29T23:25:00.003-06:00

This video by Pennsylvania's Boyertown High School students was created to show their school board finance committee how students feel about school art programs threatened with budget cuts. Way to go Boyertown High!

Give Yourself Permission to Fail

2011-03-16T12:25:00.000-06:00

Give Yourself Permission to Fail

by Lori Woodward

Today's Post is by Lori Woodward, Regular contributing writer for FineArtViews. She also writes "The Artist's Life" blog on American Artists' Forum. Lori is a member of The Putney Painters, an invitational group that paints under the direction of Richard Schmid and Nancy Guzik. Find out how you can be a guest author.

During the last two days, I've been reading Seth Godin's new book (a short one) called Poke The Box. Like many of his books, this one has a straight forward, simple message. Ideas are great, but unless someone actually acts on those ideas, nothing gets accomplished. Success is more than great ideas. It means experiencing failures without fear in order to arrive with something that works.

I read the book in two evenings, and because the message was simple, it made a lasting impression. For some of you who've been reading my blogs for awhile, you'll know that I'm full of ideas -- but I will confess that I sometimes forget to act on those ideas long enough to see if they're going to work. My brain generates dozens of new ideas each week, and while having a brain like this might seem like a blessing, sometimes it's my enemy. Unless I find a way to test my theories and work through them, what good are they?

Seth's books do not contain earth shattering messages, but do contain simple truths. His words remind me of "wheels on suitcases". For years, we dragged heavy suitcases around airports, when the simple solution was adding two little wheels. Likewise, this book's simple message showed me that successful people try a lot of different things that often fail. We, on the outside don't see the experiments and failures, we only see the fruition of what actually worked.

What this means to me as an artist is that I must "do/try something" in order to grow. As I experiment, try new mediums, I will undoubtably make many disasters, some reasonably good works of art, and a few masterpieces. The truth is, I can't get to the masterpiece stage unless I'm willing to feel comfortable with the disasters.

So, when you decide to take your work to the next level by working out of your own box, be prepared for what feels like backward movement. When you decide to make some serious progress or change for the better in your body of work, the masterpieces will most likely elude you for a time, but they will come - and you'll be better off in the long run than if you work contentedly - making the same old paintings you've made for the past decade.

Collectors expect artists to move forward and continue to WOW them. I'm friends with a few serious collectors, and they are not interested in acquiring something that looks like it came off an artist's assembly line. We are artists - not factory workers. Why would we want to "crank 'em out" just to make a buck?

I worked as a quality assurance software tester for eight years before getting back to my artwork, and that job took a lot of skill and creative thinking. I got paid very well and did an excellent job - but let me say here, that getting quality into my artwork has been more difficult than testing software, and has taken many more years to develop my knowledge base and style. No matter how much or little ability you're given genetically, "talent" must be continually cultivated throughout life.

Don't be afraid to experiment. Experimentation leads to new ideas and eventually to mature works of art. First, the artist learns about drawing, value, color and edges - in her brain. Then the artist begins to put these time-worn theories into his work, and guess what? As Edgar Payne states in his book on landscape composition, "Then the trouble begins". It's easy to see how other artists used these principles in their work; adding them to your own is another story.

Even though you've sold your work for a number of years, taking a workshop or reading an advanced art instruction book often leads to initial confusion. Sometimes, artists abandon adding new insight to their compositions and return to the "same old thing" that has worked for them in the past. There's nothing wrong with painting the same old thing if it makes you and your collectors happy, but I believe you may be missing out on what your artwork could be.

Give yourself permission to fail for a while, especially when you add new principles to your work. Even masterful painters have failures - they usually burn them. I'm not kidding! We're all human. Only those who paint by formula seemingly obtain perfection every time. But again... we are artists, not factories. It's more fun if we don't program our art as though it were an assembly line product. Be brave enough to make a flop, or several until you arrive at something that's well beyond your usual work. Have faith that each experiment is contributing to your eventual masterpieces... something beyond the ordinary, in fact... extraordinary.

I know it's hard. Hang in there, even if it takes a few years. Don't deny yourself the time for sketches, playing with ideas, and making something so incredible that viewers gasp at your work.

Work Hard, Work Smart, and Be Patient With Yourself.

---Lori---

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Google Art Project

2011-02-03T12:29:00.007-07:00

Google Art Project has opened!... What an amazing resource!

Google has combined MoMA, the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the National Gallery in London, the Palace of Versailles, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam and other great art museums from around the world into one extraordinary location.

At Art Project you can use museum floor plans as a guide to explore room to room almost as if you were actually walking the halls. View art as you would sitting on a bench in the room or, where there is a "+" button available, you can study through a magnified view at a high resolution revealing brush strokes and texture.

It's now possible for anyone with access to a computer and the internet to easily and conveniently study, learn and enjoy great art.

Circles

2010-11-12T21:29:00.016-07:00

Teaching art is fun.

The other day my kindergarten/1st grade class explored circles. They began by looking around the studio for objects with circle shapes.

Next we used an idea from Ed Emberly's book Picture Pie.

The class glued paper circle and pie shapes onto a sheet of card stock to make birds.

They thought this project was okay.

But when I asked if they wanted to continue using the paper shapes to create more pictures, most were not interested instead they wanted to draw pictures with circles.

They drew trains, wagons
and some fun pictures that included no circles at all.

One student drew by seeing the round shapes in wood carvings he discovered in the studio.

A Boy and His Markers

2010-11-04T23:00:00.009-06:00

My 6 year old has been described as "The kindergartener who's 12". He loves to draw and he loves to draw with markers. For the past couple of years he has been able to keep washable markers in his room to use and we've had no problems with them. At least that is the way it was.

Last evening as I taught an art class in my studio, he played games with his dad and drew pictures at the desk in his bedroom. He drew pictures of scarecrows in corn fields, ants marching on hills, pumpkin patches and lots of other wonderful things.

Later as I entered his bedroom to read a bedtime story, I saw him leaning over an area on his carpet. When he noticed me looking at him he got a strange look on his face, opened his eyes wide, pointed to his floor and said "I wonder how this got on my carpet?" There on his very light colored carpet were about 12 dots of various sizes all made with the tip of a dark red magic marker.

We have been working with him on honesty issues lately and I said, "Did you draw on your carpet?"

He opened his eyes widely again and started to tell me he didn't do it but instead he stopped and admitted coloring the carpet.

I told him I was glad that he was honest and that he would've been in more trouble had he lied. Still since he used the markers on the carpet they needed to come out of his room for 2 weeks.

He got some rags and water and we both worked to get the red out. As we were scrubbing his mind kept going through his punishment. He said "All the markers have to go out? I thought maybe since I just used red only the red marker had to go."

I said "Sorry bud but when you do naughty things with markers all the markers have to go."

As this started to sink in he said. "Even the gold marker?"

Yes all the markers, even the gold marker."

His bottom lip turned down and started to quiver. "Oh no, even the gold marker. That means no more ant hills and no more sandy beaches."

Watercolor Artist Mary Whyte

2010-10-03T20:05:00.007-06:00

Mary Whyte is a South Carolina watercolor artist with a mission. Whyte is painting everyday people who participate in a way of life that will soon be found only in American history.

Larry Douglas owner of 1940's Highway 50 drive in theatre in Tennesseee, a Florida funeral band originated in the 1920's, etc.; all part of a group of 50 paintings recording what will soon be a memory.

Her paintings are done with sensitivity and skill. Mary Whyte is an American watercolor master.

Watch this CBS News story of her project @
http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=6837503n&ref=nf

Drawings From Darfur

2010-09-03T18:51:00.002-06:00

This video shows the horrors of Darfur through the eyes of children who have lived them and then drawn them.

WARCHILD [Drawings from Darfur] from Sean Mullens on Vimeo.

Creativity and Balancing Your Brain

2010-09-02T13:53:00.001-06:00

by Jamie Carter

This post is by guest author, Jamie Carter. This article has been edited and published with the author's permission. You should submit an article and share your views as a guest author by clicking here.

"The creation of Art is not the fulfillment of a need (like food or shelter)--- but the creation of a need. The world never needed Beethoven's 5th Symphony until he created it. Now we can't imagine a world without it." Louis Kahn

Look at the quote above and take a few moments to think about it's meaning to you. It is talking about the intuitive needs that we have to bring a peace and joy into our lives by listening to music that soothes us from the "noise" of the practical voices in our head that say things like.... you need to... get to work...you need to...pay the bills... you need to... you need to you need to..etc.

Striking the balance between the practical side of our mind and the intuitive side is key to a balanced creative life. Are you living a lopsided life? When are you going to let creativity be a bigger force in your day? Did you know that studies show 90% of all activity is habitual? Things like brushing your teeth, checking the clock to see what time it is, eating and snacking, talking on the phone, etc. Those habits are mostly things we do with little or no creative thought whatsoever...almost robotic.

Creativity demands a new process of thinking and can make you step out of your comfort zone by stimulating your brain to problem solve in a new and unusual way. It also can be explained as taking a new approach to re-creating the familiar.

Did you know that when you are in a creative, intuitive state of mind, that all other thoughts, like worry and even pain, are suppressed? Have you ever painted a picture and could not believe that 4 hours had gone by? A little distressing to that pot of beans you just burned or the clothes that have re-tumbled in the dryer all that time...but not to you. You were enjoying what is clinically called pure bliss!

Come up with creative ways to experiment and rejoice in letting the intuitive side of the brain take over. Here's a good example: Sing the "name-game"; remember it? Billy Billy Bo Billy, banana fana fo filly...fee fi mo milly... bill-y... Do you think it is silly? Good! If it makes you laugh or smile at yourself, it has done the right thing. It has broken the cycle of seriousness and judgment that we impose upon ourselves 90% of the time. You see, being oh so serious, is a habit, too!

Don't fear taking the risk of allowing the intuitive side of your personality come through. Start with a creative challenge. Think about it and then just DO IT! Don't talk yourself out of it. "Maybe later" is the first argument your practical, habitual brain is going to throw at you. ("I don't have time or the money" will be the second one.) Think "I am going to go fling some paint on a piece of paper and I really don't care what it looks like!" AHA! Now you're cooking! Creative balance is starting to bud in that brain already.

Here is a list of things to think about and then put into action:
1. Acknowledge the importance of process over product.
2. Experiment and rejoice in the efforts- not results.
3. Learn to visualize and generate new images based on a memory and not on a technical reference. What did it look like in your memory of your grandmother's flowerbeds? What did your best friend look like when you were 8? Draw it...paint it...or cut out pictures for a collage that appear to be similar to your memories. These are examples of creative challenges. Set up 1 or 2 to do each week.
4. Quiet the critic that says I don't know how. Experiment, persist, learn from your mistakes, and then practice and even pretend until you do KNOW how.
5. Any kind of exercise takes commitment, make time, you have it...you just haven't made your mental balance a priority for your health and well-being.

I am always surprised at the number of folks who spend $100's of dollars on doctors, gyms, and special diet foods but won't spend any money on their intuitive mental health needs. Art lessons, music lessons, quilting groups, scrapbooking, singing in a choir, cooking classes; they're all healthy for the brain. All use the intuitive side of the brain in balance with the practical, analytical side.

Please do SOMETHING that is unusual today...It does a body (and your brain balance) good!

Remember that to create one's own world takes courage but you only have to do it one step at a time. Tell yourself to get out of the way and let everyone else do the judgment, censorship, and belittling. After all, they may see it as their job. (Especially since you seem to have gone a little over the edge because you keep walking around insanely singing, "billy, billy , bo - billy, banana fana fo filly...fee fi fo filly....billy.)

Enjoy the balance and the creative therapy.

Jamie
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Make Art. Save Art. Contest

2010-08-24T08:46:00.006-06:00

I received information on this contest from Do Something a non-profit group that encourages youth under 25 to volunteer in their communities...

DoSomething.org, HP and AMD recognize that art is critical to a complete education. Art programs are being cut nationwide. We know you're passionate about keeping art in schools. Show us.

Make Art. Save Art. The Make Art. Save Art. asks youth under 25 to create artistic PC wallpapers. From August 2 to September 30, create a PC wallpaper design in photography, graphic design, or traditional visual art.

Submit your wallpaper design and tell us about the importance of art education and why art should stay in schools.

The 5 finalists will receive the HP Pavilion dv6z laptops with VISION Technology from AMD to handle their daily computing, media and artistic needs, & make their life more fun!

The Grand Prize Winning artist will win $5000 for their school music program, a $1000 scholarship and 5 HP Pavilion dv6z laptops for their school art program.

All winning designs will be available for download as PC wallpapers and featured on DoSomething.org!

To learn more about arts education visit
DoSomething.org/Art

Loose Floral Painting

2010-08-23T10:51:00.005-06:00

I've been working on putting the paint down and leaving it alone.
This was an exercise in painting loose and fresh-
an exercise that turned into a painting

Photoshop Practice

2010-08-22T09:29:00.009-06:00

Last night my daughter shared Photoshop tips with me. I'm not much of a photographer and nothing more than a Photoshop novice but I wanted to share my practice...a beginner's edits for an "artistic" photograph.

We took our cameras to shoot some nearby barns. This is one of my photos- Boring!

This is the same photo with a few edits. Overdone? Yes. Non realistic? Yes. But more interesting to look at? I think so.

Long Time- No Post

2010-08-21T22:24:00.002-06:00

I never intended let nearly 5 months pass without posting, but that's exactly what's happened.

It's not that there hasn't been anything to write about. Since my last post there has been...studio remodeling, classes taught, workshops taken, rediscovery of long forgotten mediums, exploring new techniques, etc...lots of art to share.

With the busyness of the last few months it's been nice to put the blog on hold and give that time to other interests. However, the end of summer has brought a desire to revive the blog, to share what I have learned and hope to learn.

I know that intention doesn't always equal action. I also know that my life will continue to have more control over me than I have over it. So, although I plan to post often I can't commit to it and I welcome any of you with an art thought, article, message, or experience to share it in a guest post here. If you're interested contact me.

Exercise Builds Creative Muscles

2010-03-30T23:11:00.000-06:00

by Keith Bond

This Post is by Keith Bond, Regular contributing writer for FineArtViews. Find out how you can be a guest author.

Have you ever had those days where you just can't seem to find the creative urge? I have. Some days I look through my stacks of plein air studies and photos trying to find that spark of inspiration. Often I will waste countless hours. Over the years I have found things that have helped me find my absent muse. For me, the most effective is to go outside and paint on location. But this is not always possible or practical.

So how do you find your muse?

I have found that for me, creating often begets creativity. So, if I can just pick up the brush and push some paint around, those creative juices begin to flow again. It sounds simple, but I admit, it is sometimes hard to just jump in. Let me offer a few ideas to get yourself playing around with your art. Little, quick 'studies' or 'exercises' often do the trick. Musicians do exercises as they practice (scales for example). They do this to develop certain techniques as well as to loosen up and get into the groove. Likewise, use little exercises in your art to loosen up and to develop art techniques. Build your creative muscles by exercising often. As a painter, my ideas are geared more for other paintiers. For those of you who use other media, I hope this sparks some ideas of exercises appropriate for your creativity.

There are scores or even hundreds of possibilities. I will list a few that I have done recently and/or are my favorites.

Paint upside down. This is one of my favorites. Turn a photo upside down to paint from. This forces you to look at shapes rather than 'things'. Don't spend long looking for the perfect photo. Remember it is an exercise. Also, don't cheat and turn it right side up while painting. Just focus on copying shapes of color. You will be amazed at your results.
Paint from memory. Again, take a photo or plein air study (you could even do this from life). Study your reference intently for five minutes. Then look away. Again, don't cheat. Put your photo or plein air study where you cannot see it. If you are doing this from life, turn your back on the subject. Paint what you remember. Paint how it made you feel. This will help you develop the ability to paint an emotional interpretation of your subject. Rather than copying the 'things' in the photo or in your still life, you are painting the impression they made upon you. You will paint the characteristics that are most important to you within the subject. Do this one often to develop this skill of memory painting.
Change your color palette. Try using only the primaries and white. Since there are many tube colors that fall within each of the primary colors, you could switch things up and have endless possibilities. Use three different primaries each time. As an example, try using the black in place of blue along with your other two primaries. Or use earth tone primaries: yellow ochre, transparent oxide red (or burnt sienna) and payne's gray along with white. Or use 2 earth tones with one vibrant color. A good friend of mine paints with yellow ochre, cad red light, black and white. Another way to mix up your palette is to randomly select 5 colors (put the tubes in a bag and pull them out at random – I got this idea from Kevin Macpherson's book, Landscape Painting Inside and Out). Or try painting with only the secondary colors (purple, orange, and green, plus white). These exercises will develop your understanding of color. You will realize that you can do amazing things with a very limited palette. I learned a few years ago, that a larger palette actually was a crutch.

Paint from a distance. Take a large brush (a #6 or #8 flat or filbert) and attach it to the end of a stick (18-24 inches long). Then paint a small painting with this elongated brush at arm's length. This will put you several feet away from your painting. You will learn several things. Firstly, you will be unable to put in detail. You will develop the ability to rely on the strength of larger shapes and implied detail. This will help you loosen up and become more painterly. Secondly, you will see the entire canvas at once from this distance. You won't get so caught up in (and thereby overwork) selected areas.
Limit your time. Set the timer for 20 minutes and paint a 6 x 8 from your reference photo or from life. I like to have my students do this from life in my plein air painting workshops. We do about 5 or 6 of these quick sketches in one afternoon. Remember, set the timer and stop when the timer goes off. Your first one or two may be far from successful. But you will learn to see and respond to the most essential elements of the scene. You will learn to overlook the superficial. Details will become unimportant. The feeling or essence of the scene will be more easily captured. By the time you have done 4, 5 or 6, you will be surprised at how much you are able to capture in such a short time.

As mentioned before, there are many more possibilities. Paint with a palette knife, or try a new type of brush, or even a stick. Try new techniques: glazing, dry brush, broken color, blending, etc. Focus on design. The options go on and on.

I have enjoyed doing these little exercises so much, that now I usually begin my day spending 30 minutes doing one, even when I am not lacking for inspiration. Yes, they will help you find your motivation or inspiration. But just as beneficial is the development of skills. The 'health' of your art and creativity will increase if you exercise regularly.

Happy Creating (and exercising),

Keith Bond

PS You will notice that a few of these ideas are also found in Kevin Macpherson's book. In the book, he has a number of great ideas. But, the ideas are not solely his. I have seen many other artists do similar things. Ask around and you will likely come up with many, many more. In fact, if you have a favorite, please share it here for the benefit of all.

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This article appears courtesy of FineArtViews by Canvoo,
a free email newsletter about art, marketing, inspiration and fine living for artists,
collectors and galleries (and anyone else who loves art).

This article originally appeared at:
http://clintwatson.net/blog/11613/exercise-builds-creative-muscles

For a complimentary subscription, visit: http://www.fineartviews.com

Kids Art Class-Grid Drawings Continued

2010-03-23T07:48:00.002-06:00

In this lesson kids made their own grid drawings.

First they folded two pieces of drawing paper into 16 squares and numbered the squares on each paper from 1-16.

On one paper the kids created a drawing to fill the page.

They cut their drawing into 16 sections using the folds for guides and placed them in a sandwich bag. The other paper was left blank.

The idea was for the class to trade drawings with each other or find someone else to recreate the cut up drawing on the blank paper.

Kids Art Class- Grid Drawings

2010-03-22T13:36:00.010-06:00

Kids art class spent a couple of weeks on drawing. We talked about grids as a way to break down paper art references into small pieces. I wanted them to understand that by drawing what they see, they can draw anything they want.

In this lesson I used copies of portrait line drawings by artists of the past. Ahead of time I enlarged a copy of a portrait done by Spanish artist Juan Gris to an 11x17 size.

The enlarged copy was cut into 20 numbered rectangles. Each student was given one rectangle and a blank rectangle of the same size. They copied what they saw in their rectangle to the blank one. We talked about looking closely at lines, where they are placed their angles, thickness, etc.

After each of the students finished their rectangle we taped them in order to an old mat board and they were able to see the finished group drawing. It was surprising how well the pieces matched.

For the remainder of class they worked on a George Bellows line drawing puzzle. It was interesting to notice that his work contained light grid marks showing that he used a similar system to create his it.

I scrambled the drawing ahead of time in Photoshop.

Each of the kids used a blank grid to solve the puzzle by drawing what they saw in the rectangles in the right order.

We ran out of time and this ended up becoming homework.

The project was a little overwhelming for the younger kids.

They did well. I didn't get photos of the finished drawings but when I do I'll post them. As time goes on we'll talk explore using grids to enlarged or reduce work it would have been overload for this lesson.

Arts Education Promotes Emotional Intelligence

2010-03-21T10:15:00.002-06:00

Arts education is being left behind in many schools today. Legislated requirements and budget concerns leave little time or money for the arts-

... will the future cost of this neglect be too high?

Read- Arts Education Promotes Emotional Intelligence
By Tom Jacobs

Rotary Training

2010-03-20T08:58:00.008-06:00

For the past couple of days my husband and I have been involved a Rotary Training workshop near Sundance Ski Resort.

Yesterday after a lot of sitting we decided to go for a walk/hike. These are my attempts to capture the shadows on the snow.

This last shot was inspired by wonderful light shining on the peaks and through the clouds but... in the short time it took to take out the camera and turn it on, the light had left, the clouds moved and the whole scene changed.

If there is anything in these images you would like to use as a reference feel free- Just send me a picture of your work.

Missed Opportunities

2010-03-19T07:33:00.001-06:00

During the Art in the Sun workshop we took some time to visit Dixie College Invitational Exhibit. I loved this piece (sorry for the flash on the top) by artist/eductaor Jerry Hancock.

The painting is part of his "Faces of Africa" series- oil/pastel paintings inspired by photographs he had an opportunity to view from an African medical mission.

Seeing his beautiful work brought back a major regret in my life. As a high school student I enrolled in Advanced Placement art. Jerry was a junior high teacher at the time and I was directed to him for help in producing a portfolio. He agreed to take time after school to work with me.

I went one time, he was gracious and serious about helping me. I enjoyed the lesson and worked on a pointillism piece with roses. That was our only lesson. Being an immature teenager I decided it was more important to spend time with my friends and drop AP art. Today I regret missing out on a great learning opportunity.

Learn more about Jerry Hancock

Another Lag in Posting

2010-03-18T07:00:00.000-06:00

Just when I think I have posting down to a system things start spinning out of control. This happens every time.

There has been much to post on...

A trip to Art in the Sun a wonderful workshop for art educators in St George, Utah...

lots of lessons with my students in art classes...

a couple of fun attempts at learning to form pots on a wheel (courtesy of great ceramics teachers I met through the workshop)...

an in progress DIY studio remodel...

an opportunity to spend a couple of afternoons as a guest artist for our neighborhood elementary school...

collecting student art for an upcoming show...

etc...

But when life is busy with great opportunities it leaves little time for other things. Now I hope to catch up and share some experiences with you. Thanks for sticking with me.

These are a couple of old pastel projects found during our studio remodel. The lion was part of a toned paper/pastel (actually it's cheap manila school paper) demo for a kids art class years ago.

This man is an old high school toned paper/pastel project. The original reference came from a magazine in the high school art room. It's one I have used many times over the years.

I love using toned paper as the mid tone value with pastels. It is something we have been working on in my current kids class. The results will post soon.

21 Ways That Lines Communicate

2010-03-10T07:23:00.003-07:00

21 Ways That Lines Communicate

by Connie Malamed, MA author of Visual Language For Designers: Principles For Creating Graphics That People Understand- Visual design principles based on the science of the science of how people perceive, process and understand graphics with over 300 graphics contributed by talented artists and designers from around the world.

Visual Design January 2010

Lines are a versatile element of visual language. They communicate a wide variety of meanings, which are highly dependent on the context in which they appear and the characteristics of the line.

We learn to interpret and comprehend the language of lines through the experience of living in a visually literate culture as well as through education. A few meanings may even be cognitively natural, such as using tally marks for counting. The number of ways that lines communicate is surprising. Here are 21 of them.

1. Lines isolate and separate

When a line is placed between two elements, it conveys that the elements are separate. For example, columns of newspaper text are often separated by vertical lines to indicate that each column is a separate article. Magazines often use separator lines to isolate advertisements from content. Comics use panel lines to define each frame in a sequence.

2. Lines convey groupings

A partial or complete line drawn around objects implies the objects are part of a similar category or group. This technique is also found in abstract graphics, where a line drawn around objects in a diagram shows the items are related.

3. Lines represent units of time

On the faces of clocks and watches, lines represent units of time. By convention, 12 short lines placed around the circumference represent five minute intervals, though some clocks reduce the number of lines to four at 15 minute intervals. Lines also represent time intervals on timelines.

4. Lines represent units of length

The connection between time and space carries over to visual language. Lines demarcate units of length as well as time. Even without numbers, a wooden, metal or plastic stick displaying lines at regular intervals conveys the idea of a measuring tool.

5. Lines communicate brightness

Lines that radiate from an object denote its brightness. This might mean bright like the sun or shiny like a gold coin. Because a light bulb also refers to ‘new idea,’ these lines can also be interpreted as meaning a bright new idea.

6. Lines convey sound

Lines surrounding a speaker, earphones or musical instrument communicate that the object is emitting sound. Sound lines come in a variety of styles. They might be drawn as radiating lines or as wedges in cartoon-type illustrations show here. Sound lines are also depicted as the jagged line of a sound wave or as concentric half-circles.

7. Lines communicate counting

From childhood to adulthood, people use tally lines for counting. In the tally system, each line has a one-to-one correspondence with a particular item, such as one line for each point of a score. Using lines for counting is common in many cultures, though the lines might compose different forms.

8. Lines represent numerical data

Lines represent quantities of data in line, bar and other graphs. In line graphs, the lines depict trends. In bar graphics, individual lines indicate amounts. We also read the peaks and valleys of lines on machine read-outs, like electrocardiograms.

9. Lines represent machine data

The mysterious lines of the bar code tag communicate data that no one but a machine can understand. These lines convey efficiency and automation. We place our faith in their accuracy every time we purchase an item with a bar code.

10. Lines represent map information

Lines communicate many meanings in maps. They designate the roads, streets, train routes and bicycle paths of a region. They undulate through a map to represent rivers and hiking trails. Lines also define the political and geographic boundaries of a map.

11. Lines communicate connection

A line that touches two objects indicates the objects are connected. In diagrams and charts, the boxes or icons are connected by lines to show which ones belong together. In information graphics, a label is often connected by a line to the element it names. Circular lines depict connections on spheres. When circling the earth, the connections are on a global scale.

12. Lines convey emotion

Pardon the smiley face, but even this simplistic and schematized face expresses emotion. The simple curves of the eyebrows and mouth in the appropriate direction, denote anger.

13. Lines communicate motion

A few horizontal motion lines placed behind an object imply it is speeding ahead. Short curved lines around a dog’s tail convey it is wagging; the same lines placed around a person in the snow convey shivering. Context is the framework for interpretation.

14. Lines depict perforation

A series of short line segments, in the right context, communicate a perforation for tearing off a form. When shown with a scissors, it designates where to cut. It can also indicate where to fold, as when used in paper crafts, such as Origami.

15. Lines signify importance

A line that is drawn around an object indicates it is important. The intent of the line is to draw the eye to the emphasized object, making it stand out from its surroundings.

16. Lines communicate transmission

A set of concentric curved lines nearly always connotes transmission of some kind. Lines used in this way have become a ubiquitous symbol for wireless communication.

17. Lines represent static

An old-fashioned symbol of static on a television is the jagged line. More interesting than the flat pattern of snow, the jagged line portrays poor reception or a broken TV.

18. Lines depict the physical world

An infinite number of objects can be drawn with straight, curved or zigzag lines. Through their visual characteristics and the forms they create, simple lines can be arranged to suggest objects. The mind fills in the rest.

19. Lines represent text

Prevalent in clip art and icons, horizontal lines commonly represent text. In applications, icons ranging from the insert bullet button to the vertical line spacing tool use lines to depict text. Groups of horizontal lines have become shorthand for portraying a paragraph in a visual way. This may not be the case for languages with vertically oriented text.

20. Lines represent negation

A line slicing through an object indicates a negation. When a strikethrough line runs across text, the word is deleted, though still visible. A line slashing through a day on a calendar indicates the day no longer exists. A diagonal slash across a circle negates the object it is referencing. Remember Ghostbusters?

21. Lines signify links

In the language of the Web, underlining a word or phrase designates it is a hyperlink. By convention, users have learned that a line beneath text means that clicking it will direct them to a related url. Although the underline can be removed through styling, it remains one of the best ways to inform the reader of linking potential.

Quote of the Day

2010-03-07T10:15:00.000-07:00

Education makes people easy to lead,
but difficult to drive,
easy to govern,
but impossible to enslave.

Author unknown

A Question On The Color Wheel

2010-03-01T07:31:00.001-07:00

Today's post is a copy of a reply I gave to a comment question received on a past post. I decided to published it here as an opportunity for more feedback on this topic.

I received a great question on the post Preschool Art- Simple Color Wheel..."I saw that you use the word purple instead of violet. Is there a reason? Because I often fight the cause that artists use violet because there is not a color called red-purple or blue-purple."

My reply was this...
"I have never really thought much about purple verses violet. I have always used the labels interchangeably. Also I didn't know that there is no red-purple and blue-purple.

Tony Couch, the first artist I studied (outside of college) labels his color wheel with "purple", "purple/blue" and "red/purple".

The great art instructor Edgar Whitney labels his basic color wheel with the word purple.

When it comes to art labels and terminology the more I study the more I realize there is not nor ever has been absolute agreement among artists regarding the color wheel (or much of anything else).

There are also many different versions of the traditional color wheel. One I studied included purple and violet as two separate colors next to each other on the wheel with no red violet or blue violet at all and the only tertiary color being blue-green as a complement to red. Color theory is "theory" leaving room for interpretation.

The same is true for what is supposed to be "basic" art elements and principles of design. The terms and the numbers of terms vary among art teachers and artists.

As art teacher, with almost no scientific knowledge, I try to present commonly accepted concepts with correct terminology but I tell students that there are no absolutes in art. There are guidelines not rules."

What do you think?

Quote of the Day

2010-02-28T08:16:00.001-07:00

"Making mistakes
and occasionally appearing foolish
is the price you pay for learning and improving."
Adam Robinson

Thrift Store Painting

2010-02-26T10:47:00.005-07:00

I found this at the thrift store for less than $10. At first I was attracted to the colors but the more I looked the more I loved the wonderful textures. It looks like the paint has been swirled, raked and combed on the board.

As I paid for it the cashier said surprised, "You really like this?" The longer I have owned it, the more I would have to say, "Yes, I really do." It's not like anything else I have collected or have painted but it's intriguing and looks like the artist had so much fun working on it.

I want to learn more about the origin of the painting and the artist. Help?

Preschool Art - Shaving Cream Prints

2010-02-25T07:30:00.012-07:00

I saw this lesson idea for Shaving Cream Prints years ago but hadn't presented it yet because it seemed best for a small class. Last week 3 preschoolers at my house for play day made a great opportunity.

The supplies we used were old pie pans, shaving cream, paper and paint. First we filled a pan with shaving cream, leveled it and squirted paint on top.

We used sticks to swirl the paint then placed a paper on top and pressed lightly.

At first the idea of getting messy wasn't appealing but soon the gloves came off.

We took one corner of the paper and pulled it up. Then let the papers sit a little while before scraping off the excess shaving cream.

This was a quick, fun, messy project.

What's the Lifetime Value of a Single Contact?

2010-02-24T10:35:00.001-07:00

by Clint Watson

This article is by Clint Watson, former art gallery owner/director/salesperson and founder of FineArtViews. You should follow Clint on Twitter here.

Each person you know and meet has a "lifetime value" in terms of your career that is most certainly not immediately apparent. However, just as $1 in the bank will grow enormously over time through the "miracle" of compound interest, so will the benefits you receive from people *if* you treat each person with respect, honestly and with an attitude of how you can mutually help each other (not just what you can "get" from the other person).

I'll illustrate the point with a story and let you decide the lifetime value of a single contact. (The actual names in this story have been obscured or changed).

Years ago, when I operated an art gallery, a salesperson came in representing a local publication for tourists. We generally didn't advertise in such publications, but somehow, he convinced us to place a quarter page advertisement for $300. The ad ran and, to my knowledge, we garnered not a single customer. However, a young artist, "M" saw the ad and visited the gallery to show us his work. His breathtaking work captured our hearts and we began to represent "M" (and sold quite a lot of his work). So in the end, the $300 ad had been worth it.

But wait. There's more...much more.

About a year later, my business partners decided to visit Santa Fe to do some prospecting for new artists. When the artist from the ad, M, heard about this, he suggested that they visit a particular gallery in Santa Fe that also represented him, J's gallery.

Arriving in Santa Fe, my partners began perusing J's gallery and in walked an artist J represented, K. My partners struck up a conversation with K. As the conversation progressed, K suggested they continue talking at his studio in Taos. After a short (OK not so short) drive to Taos, my partners enjoyed the privilege of hand-picking paintings in K's studio to show in our gallery.

Now K turned out to be quite a discovery. Our customers loved his artwork and proved it with their pocketbooks. K worked diligently and sent new works often and within a few years we even hosted a sell-out one man show (and several more in later years). So the $300 ad and the contact with M had now paid off handsomely.

But wait . . . . There’s still more.

In the intervening years, K had become involved in a national painting group, we'll just call the group NPG. NPG, although very young, appeared to be on the rise, garnering media attention and developing a good reputation. K let us know that the venue for their next national show had not yet been decided. We asked K for their contact info and, with K's introduction, were able to speak directly with the president of the organization. Long story short - less than a year later we were hosting NPG's national painting exhibition - over 200 fantastic paintings by artists from all over the United States and Canada. In fact, during that show we discovered "S", one of the finest painters we had ever seen. (S is one of my favorite painters to this day). S won the show and within a month we were representing S as his only United States gallery. I won't go into details but the number of paintings we sold for "S" are staggeringly large. In addition, we garnered many other fine artists from the NPG show and even hosted the show a second time.

This story could and did continue with one contact leading to another one. Since the NPG show was over 12 years ago the "compound interest" continued to get bigger and bigger, but after this point, I kinda lost track of the "trail" of connections. Things just started happening too fast as the gallery rose to national prominence.

So back to the original point. What's the lifetime value of a single contact?

What's the lifetime value of that ad salesperson to the gallery?

What about M? K? NPG? S?

As you can plainly see the lifetime value of each contact is enormous. Almost incalculable.

So let's talk about you.

A few weeks ago, I suggested that you make a list of everyone you know. I followed up with a plan for communicating with those people and garnering support and help.

Now perhaps there was someone you were tempted to "skip" for one reason or another. If so, go back and add that person to your list and get him into your plan. Or perhaps you just made a quick list but weren't thorough in your compiling all those business cards and scribbled names you've saved up. Set aside the time to compile them, organize them and get them into your system. The pay off might not be immediate but as my story illustrates, the pay off just might be enormous.

Sincerely,

Clint Watson
Software Craftsman and Art Fanatic

Related Posts:

Engaging In Conversation

Changing the Future

Where the Collectors Are

Make Amazing Art, Be Authentic, Tell Your Stories and the Art Will Sell

Why You Don't Need a Business Card

Five Steps to Successful Networking for Artists

Finding Your Peeps
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a free email newsletter about art, marketing, inspiration and fine living for artists,
collectors and galleries (and anyone else who loves art).

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http://clintwatson.net/blog/17369/whats-the-lifetime-value-of-a-single-contact

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Preschool Art -Edible Color Wheels

2010-02-23T12:00:00.001-07:00

Supplies:

Simple color wheel template (I had one on my computer & printed a copy for each child)
Vanilla Wafers (0r graham crackers, etc.) 6 per child
Paper Plates 1 per child
Paper Cups
Spoons
Knives
Paper Towels/Napkins
Wet wipes or Damp Washcloths
Frosting divided and colored in the primaries red, yellow and blue
One finished project to use as an example

Preparation:

Because preschool art time is limited I did much of the work ahead. I made frosting and colored it in the primary colors. I recommend using commercial food colorings; they are thick and bright.

I also cut out the color wheels and glued them to the paper plates. If you have more class time you might have the kids cut their own as cutting skill practice.

Lesson:

We began by having the class frost a vanilla wafer for each of the primary colors. We put a dab of colored frosting on the plate in the circle of the same color. This let the kids know where to set their cookie and became the "glue" to attach the cookie to the plate.

My original plans were to give the class their own small paper cups and let them stir two primary colors together to make secondary colors but there was not much time and the three classes were big with 11-12 children each. Instead I mixed the secondary colors while they watched and then we gave them some to spread on their cookies.

We talked about the secondary colors and that they are found on the simple color wheel between the 2 colors that combined to create them.

The class promised not to eat their color wheels until they had first showed them to someone in their family and talked about what they did. We saved a few cookies for them to frost and eat after completing their color wheels.

Results:

This was a messy project but they turned out great. It seemed that many of the kids were catching on to the fact that they can mix their own colors.
Practice mixing the secondaries ahead of time. The purple mix was disappointing. Our first try was more brown than purple but the color did get a little better in the next two classes.
Have lots of paper towels or napkins for cleaning the knives between frosting colors or all of the colors will become muddy.

Quote of the Day

2010-02-21T07:15:00.003-07:00

"You can't do sketches enough.
Sketch everything and keep your curiosity fresh."
John Singer Sargent

Kids Art Class- Finishing Personalized Portfolios

2010-02-19T07:37:00.002-07:00

In my children's class we worked on Personalized Portraits. One session was not enough to finish the project so we carried the lesson over for a second week.

Before the second class I measured each portfolio for handles and marked the place with dots.

First they finished the drawings they started the week before. They chose to draw most of their pictures from their imagination. But from time to time I ran to find props that could be used as references.

After filling the portfolio cover with pencil drawings, they outlined them with black markers and used colored pencils and/or markers to to fill in the drawings.

We talked about layering colors with colored pencil for shading and variety.

As the class was coloring their drawings. I punched holes and helped attach ribbon handles .

I think we could have carried this over for a third week and most of the class would have been happy. But instead we decided to let them finish at home.

10 Free Art Tools and Programs by Karen Schweitzer

2010-02-18T07:11:00.003-07:00

Art software can be very expensive. Fortunately, it is possible to find comparable freeware that can be used to teach your students about painting, drawing, graphics, and 3D modeling. Here are 10 open source art software programs and tools you can download or use for free online.

Artweaver - Artweaver is a painting program that can be used by beginners or more advanced artists. The free version of Artweaver offers image editing tools, arrangeable palettes, brushes and individual configuration possibilities, and saving capabilities.

Tux Paint - Created for children ages 3 to 12, Tux Paint is a free drawing program that works across multiple platforms. It has an easy-to-use interface with fun sound effects and cartoons that encourage children who are just learning to work in the program.

Paint.NET - Paint.NET is award-winning image editing software that has been compared to Adobe Photoshop and similar programs. It is incredibly easy to use and free to download.

Inkscape - This free vector graphics editor can do many of the same things as pricey programs like Illustrator and CorelDraw. Inkscape is such a good program that is currently being used by schools to teach the students about graphics software and programming.

Kaleidoscope Painter - Kaleidoscope Painter is a free Java applet that allows users to paint on an online canvas--no download required. Finished paintings can be cropped, printed, or saved as a bitmap file.

Ninja Paint - Ninja Paint is a popular web-based tool that can be used to create digital art. Users can create a free account to save their images or play around with the tool just for fun.

IrfanView - IrfanView was originally created to be a graphic viewer, but has evolved into an image editor with paint options. IrfanView can be downloaded for free by home users, schools, universities, libraries, and charity organizations.

DrawPlus - This free drawing and graphics software from Serif can easily create vector drawings, graphics, and animations. DrawPlus features include drawing and sketching tools, animation tools, text tools, an export optimizer, an on-screen studio palette, and a border library.

Google SketchUp - This free Google software can be used to create 3D models of almost anything. Models can be created from scratch or from downloads of other images and may be turned into animations that can be exported and shared online.

Imagekind - Imagekind is a CafePress company that allows members to create prints, posters, greeting cards, and other products online using uploaded images. Products can then be showcased and sold online.

Guest post from education writer Karen Schweitzer. Karen is the About.com Guide to Business School. She also writes about online degrees for OnlineDegreePrograms.org.

Kids Art Class- Personalized Portfolios

2010-02-17T07:20:00.005-07:00

Recently I started teaching a new art class for kids 8-12. In the first lesson we began creating personalized portfolios for their future artwork.

Before class I scored full sheets of poster board, folded them in half and taped up the edges with packing tape to make a big pocket folder for each student.

At the beginning of class we took a few minutes to write down favorites...color, holiday, activity, etc. on a piece of paper. I also had them write words that described them.

We talked about artist's portfolios. I showed them some examples and we talked about how they could use those things they had written about themselves to personalize their own portfolios.

With #2 pencils the class was encouraged to draw lightly, big, and overlap using ideas from the lists they had made.

By the end of the hour most of the class was still working on their drawings.

We decided to complete the project in the next lesson (which will post soon). You can find it here.

Help

2010-02-16T11:27:00.002-07:00

Okay so I thought I had worked through the technical problems of last week. My camera cord had gone bad and pictures would not download from my camera to the computer. I worked through that...now it's something new.

As I attempt to upload the pictures to post they come with incorrect HTML which will not allow the article to post. UGH! I don't know HTML. I don't know how to fix this problem and don't know who to ask to help fix it. For months this process has worked. I haven't changed what I am doing but now apparently it's wrong.

I have a backlog of fun lessons to post- lots of ideas to share. Don't go away while this gets corrected. Hopefully it will be soon.

Watercolor Painting Demo

2010-02-13T10:07:00.007-07:00

This has been one of those weeks...lots planned to post but...unexpected technical difficulties along with no time made for little blogging. Hopefully now things are up and running.

A couple of days ago, I had the opportunity to attend a watercolor demonstration by Carl Purcell, a wonderful artist and a great teacher.

Carl taught college classes for 30 years and now paints and travels presenting workshops all over the world. The demo was great. His work is fresh and filled with life.

I've taken several classes from him over the years and they've always been a fun educational experience.

You can visit his gallery at Carl Purcell Original Watercolors
See his workshop schedule here.

Online Sketch Pad

2010-02-09T08:06:00.002-07:00

Kids will love this site. Paint with color or light. Use brushes stamps and spirograph tools. If you don't like what you just did use the History palette to go back in time to a previous step. Find this online sketch/paint pad at mugtug.com

It's fun.

Straightening Images

2010-02-08T07:39:00.015-07:00

So technically this isn't an art tip, but I want to share something I just learned to do in Photoshop (CS3)- Straighten Tilted Images.

This is a picture taken a few years ago in Albania. It's slightly tilted; (and overexposed but that's another lesson) the columns lean a little to the right.

To straighten the image first bring it in Photoshop. On the toolbar click on the bottom right corner arrow of the Eyedropper Tool to show the hidden tools. Select the Ruler Tool.

With the Ruler Tool active click and drag on a portion of a straight line anywhere in the image. Click again when you stop dragging. This puts a highlighted ruler line on that straight edge in the image. The black arrow is pointing to it in the above image. You may need to Zoom in to do this accurately.

Then go to: Image>Rotate Canvas> Arbitrary

This will cause a window to pop up showing the degree change needed to straighten the image. Just click ok and the image will straighten automatically.

Now use the Crop Tool to square the sides.

Easy! It took a lot more time to tell you how to do this than it does to actually do it.

Quote of the Day

2010-02-07T09:14:00.004-07:00

We are told that talent creates its own opportunities.
But it sometimes seems that intense desire
creates not only its own opportunities,
but its own talents.
Eric Hofer

10 Tips for a Better (Painting) Life

2010-02-05T07:30:00.004-07:00

10 Tips for a Better (Painting) Life

by Louise B. Hafesh

This post is by guest author, Louise B. Hafesh. This article has been edited and published with the author's permission. You should submit an article and share your views as a guest author by clicking here.

Last year around the holidays, a good friend sent me a list entitled: "40 tips for a Better Life," which I have since seen published with various additions and deletions as "Enjoy the Ride," "45 life lessons and 5 to grown on," "20 tips for a better New Year."

As I read over the 40 inspiring tips, I realized with a little tweaking, some of the themes could easily be applied to us artists and set about drafting a version that became my 2009 New Year blog post. Heading into 2010, I took up the challenge again. Here, then, revamped are my "10 Tips for a Better (Painting) Life."

1. Set consistent work habits and painting goals; then stick to them. Start each painting session by abandoning preconceived notions and stumbling blocks.

2. Be true to YOUR 'art and soul'. Encourage your inner vision; listen to your private voice; let your imagination soar, and don't concern yourself with what others may think of your work.

3. Take short breaks, particularly when you've hit a rough spot or are experiencing a painting block. Stand back from your canvas on occasion. Quietly review your day’s work and take it all in with a fresh eye.

4. Take pleasure in the painting process. Continually advance your skills. Read instructional books, attend workshops and exhibits, frequent museums, and study the masters.

5. Be generous with your knowledge. Whenever possible, exchange ideas, tips, techniques with other artists. Fine Art Views ("FAV") is a great place to start, as are Facebook and Twitter. The more you share, the more you learn, and the benefits of networking are limitless.

6. Be passionate about creating your art, but do make time to nurture relationships. As in all things in life, balance is key!

7. Clear out the clutter from your studio. It will help you hone in and focus. Reassess unfinished work. Categorize as salvageable or not. Discard or sand down any canvases that don't make the grade and start anew.

8. Learn from the challenges that each painting offers and move on to your next masterpiece. Keep a positive mindset and resist being over critical. Give yourself the right to make mistakes, a free rein to experiment. Remember, oil paint is forgiving, can be wiped out if wet; painted over when dry.

9. Bring HEART to your work. Treasure wisdom and innocence wherever you may find it.

10. Work from promise not fear... the best is yet to come! Think of that blank canvas as an opportunity to color your world!

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This article appears courtesy of FineArtViews by Canvoo,
a free email newsletter about art, marketing, inspiration and fine living for artists,
collectors and galleries (and anyone else who loves art).

This article originally appeared at:
http://clintwatson.net/blog/16278/10-tips-for-a-better-painting-life

For a complimentary subscription, visit: http://www.fineartviews.com

One Of My One Color Portraits

2010-02-03T07:52:00.005-07:00

This is a sample of a one color portrait exercise I painted from a published photo (not my own reference). Since I rarely complete projects, this is posted as a personal incentive to finish more paintings.

Watercolor Class- one color portraits

2010-02-02T07:10:00.006-07:00

Learning to paint faces (and almost everything else) is easier if you leave color mixing out of it. For this watercolor lesson, the next step after Coloring Book Portraits, we again painted using one color in different values.

This time the class sketched first from personal monochromatic photo references that had not been simplified or altered (most chose to turn the paper and the reference upside down).

Two samples of their wonderful work.

Student Finished Upside Down Sketch

2010-02-01T06:41:00.004-07:00

This is a photo of the finished student sketch started in the Upside Down Lesson posted earlier. Nice work!

I have heard from many of you who have tried this lesson and I have seen the wonderful work you have posted. Thanks for sharing. Upside down drawing and painting is a fun, educational and productive way to work.

Thank you for your comments on this lesson.

Quote of the Day

2010-01-31T11:13:00.000-07:00

"The painting is usually finished before you are."
Rex Brandt

Simplifing A Photo Reference

2010-01-30T08:13:00.005-07:00

Yesterday I posted Coloring Book Portraits. This is the steps I follow to simplify photo references for that lesson.

Use a digital photo reference or scan a photo to convert it to a digital image.

Bring the image into a photo editing program (I used Photoshop CS3).

If using a color image convert it to gray scale or sepia.

Navigate to filters/artistic filter/cutout (if you are using a program other than Photoshop these steps will be different)

Adjust the sliders to reduce the image to 3-4 different value shapes.

Coloring Book Portraits

2010-01-29T11:39:00.002-07:00

I believe that drawing skill and an understanding of color are essential factors in artistic growth. However exercises that eliminate the stress of color and drawing, can provide great learning opportunities.

Coloring Book Portraits is an exercise I do with new artists (it's also fun for those who are not so new).

Using a reference with strong value contrasts, trace only the large dark light and mid tone shapes (this photo was taken a trip to Mexico. I simplified and edited it in Photoshop to enhance the values.)

Paint the portrait with just one color.

This is another lesson where working upside down helps.

Coloring Book Portraits help artists learn to achieve value range with one color. It reinforces the truth that we see shapes because of the contrast between light and dark and that likeness can be achieved by accurate shapes and values.

This was painted by a new artist who had never before painted a person and who has only been painting a couple of months. Nice!

A Great Article

2010-01-28T11:48:00.002-07:00

A Multi-Faceted Life

by Trent Gudmundsen

Today's guest author is artist, Trent Gudmundsen. This article has been edited and published with the author's permission. Find out how you can become a guest author.

In Clint's recent post, "Why do you Create?", he quoted Hugh MacLeod, who said, "The Hunger [to create] will give you everything. And it will take from you, everything. It will cost you your life, and there's not a damn thing you can do about it."

I'm sure we can all relate to that "hunger" in our own way; and while I completely agree with Hugh's sentiment that our art can cost us everything we have, I'd like to talk a little bit about the other half of that equation, which actually can be harnessed to improve our art! And that is our relationships with our families and our friends (including collectors, but I'll focus on very close friends here), as well as some other worthy pursuits.

Art CAN take everything from you (if you let it), but it doesn't HAVE to...instead, it can be a powerful aspect of our lives that can add abundantly to the depth of our existence as humans.

When I was single, I definitely experienced the phenomenon of being completely taken-over by my art. I literally painted all day every day, dropped out of school, quit many jobs (some after just weeks...or even days in a couple instances), and moved back home with my parents several times. Art was more important than just about anything else.

What's interesting is that I still have that same drive to create, but I decided when I got married that I would never let that passion for art come before my passion for my family...rather, those passions work together to help the other aspect succeed. My wife and I made an agreement when we first got married: she would support me in my struggle to become a full-time artist, and in return I promised that I would never allow my family to go hungry, even if it meant that I had to work at McDonald's until things got better. Luckily, I've never had to work at a fast-food restaurant since making that promise (although I had to work in a mall kiosk for several years while improving my art in the evenings). I'm very pleased to say that my wife has more than kept her end of the bargain...she pushes me to improve my art even when I'm sometimes about ready to give up.

For the purist in all of us, I'd like to say that since dividing my attention between my art and my family (and several other equally lofty pursuits), I have come to find that my art has actually greatly improved as a direct result of my caring about things other than my art! How can that be?! Is it possible that dividing our attentions can actually have a positive influence on each individual pursuit in life?

THE ANALOGY OF THE GEMSTONE:

When I was buying an engagement ring for my soon-to-be fiancee at the time, I discovered that some of the most expensive diamonds were those that were cut most precisely. A precision cut in a diamond is one that "cooperates" with the other cuts or facets. Each facet in a diamond is designed to reflect light back inside the stone; that light, in turn, continues reflecting off as many surfaces as possible before leaving the gem as a more beautiful light than what it was before. If one facet is cut slightly off, it can hinder the distribution of light to the other facets of the diamond, thereby diminishing the quality of the diamond as a whole. In essence, a perfect diamond is one whose facets shine light on the other facets.

In life, there are many possible aspects, or facets, to our existence; each of which is as important to the quality of our lives as the next.

Just as a single-faceted diamond would have little brilliance, the life of an artist can hold little to be envied if not carefully crafted to balance with other natural aspects of human existence, not the least of which is the love of family and friends. I've always questioned the image of desperate, lonely, tormented artists who live on cigarettes and booze in dungeon-like studios and never seem happy. Good grief, I don't want that! I love creating my art...Painting, as it is in my case, brings me happiness; but I don't paint exclusively, 24 hours a day with no breaks for sleep or fun or food.

Speaking of which, good sleep and food are a couple of the things that make me happy; my family also makes me happy, my friends make me happy, nature makes me happy, creating art makes me happy...the list could go on for me, and I'm sure it could go on and on for you. We wouldn't want to embrace a single-mindedness that cuts us off from all of life's experiences that make our art deep and meaningful. A multi-faceted life is actually an asset and not a hindrance to our art.

Having said that, I admit that sometimes I can feel myself slipping towards that total-immersion approach to my art. I can tell when my life is off balance; and when those times come, I know that no amount of suffering for my art will bring me true happiness until I've given the needed attention to the other parts of my life. Now, I'm not suggesting that we necessarily give equal amounts of time to each part of our lives; rather, that we give the right amount of attention (whatever the amount of time it takes) to the necessary parts of our lives...the parts that add to our existence as a whole.

Each of us has a different life story, filled with it's own struggles and successes; but I think it's safe to say that if we give the proper attention to each important aspect of our lives, then each of those aspects will be better off. For me, art is a passion that's had to be controlled carefully so as to not outweigh the other things that are really important...I want to be one of those artists who enjoys happiness at home AND in the studio his whole life. :)
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Scratch Board Artist

2010-01-27T07:47:00.001-07:00

Thanks to Debbie at Art Anonymous for introducing me to this artist.

Oregon artist photographer Cathy Sheeter, loves animals and the outdoors. Her passions are inspiration for her art.

Her medium of choice was discovered during high school art classes. Cathy Sheeter creates art on scratch board, a clay coated Masonite panel topped with a layer of black ink.

Shire

Cathy etches into the ink revealing the white clay underneath and creating wonderful black and white images. Color and mid tone values are achieved through additional applications of various inks over her detailed drawings.

Raja

See more of her scratch board art at Aphelion

Cathy Sheeter's work will be shown in exhibits in Colorado, Arizona and Ohio during 2010

Working Upside Down

2010-01-25T09:50:00.011-07:00

Sometimes, when creating art, I worry about detail and forget about the bigger picture, the more important overall shapes. It's easy to get hung up on separate objects- the eye, the tree, etc. forgetting that these objects are part of larger value shapes.

In my own art and with my students I am constantly practicing ways to keep concentration on the bigger picture (at least until the work is almost done).

One great way to do this is to work with your materials- canvas, paper, references, etc, upside down.

This is a piece I did years ago (and posted earlier) on a day when I just couldn't get into the flow to work. I ended up turning my reference photo and watercolor paper upside down. I had so much fun sketching it that way that it's how I kept working until near the end of the painting.

In Drawing On The Right Side Of The Brain, Betty Edwards say that drawing or painting upside down forces our brain function to the right side (the creative side). Drawings done this way can be just as accurate and often more so than those created right side up.

This is a sketch a student started in class. Finished upside down work will post soon.

Kids Drawings as Photographic Inspiration

2010-01-23T21:30:00.001-07:00

Korean Photographer Yeondoo Jung uses children's artwork as inspiration for his photos.

With models and props Jung attempts to recreate actual drawings from children.

His exhibit Wonderland has shown in Beijing China, Barcelona Spain and New York.

Half Portraits

2010-01-22T07:11:00.003-07:00

For adult watercolor class we took time to do Half Portraits, a drawing exercise I've done with kid's art classes in the past.

To do this...

Collect magazine pictures of faces photographed straight on.
Fold the photo to divide the face in half lengthwise.
Cut the picture in two along the fold line.
Glue one half to the side of a piece of white paper.
Using this as a reference draw the missing part of the face.

The pictures are samples of class work. Nice work and a good learning experience.

Edgar Whitney on Painting Portraits

2010-01-20T07:10:00.003-07:00

In the book The Complete Guide to Watercolor Painting by late, great, art instructor Edgar Whitney, he included good advice for painting portraits.

First he named 2 main obstacles to overcome for successful portraits.

1. Likeness
2. Freshness

Then his solutions for overcoming these obstacles...
1. Likeness-
Do 5-6 studies of the subject first.
Learn which mass dominates the head.
Know the structure of the nose, mouth, eyes and ears.

He writes that after 5-6 tries he can finally reach a good likeness.
(If it took Edgar Whitney 5-6 studies to get it right, why do I have to force myself to do one?)

2. Freshness-
He writes that you should give yourself a 20-30 minute time frame to finish a portrait.
In that short time you have to be able to get the shapes right without much worry about detail.

Preschool Art - Painting

2010-01-18T07:09:00.009-07:00

January- a month to get back into routine. With December break over now it's back to preschool art classes.

This week we began by reading "I Aint Gonna Paint No More" written by Karen Beaumont and illustrated by David Catrow. It's a fun silly story based on a variation of the song"Oh It Ain't Gonna Rain No More". It's the story of a (slightly naughty) boy with a joy for painting that leads him to cover everything around him including himself in color.

The text is built on rhyme and the class tried to guess what the boy had just painted by listening to the rhyming word first.-“So I take some red...and I paint my HEAD!"

Preschoolers are hard on paintbrushes they use them to attack instead of paint the paper so we briefly talked about how to take care of paint brushes- things like not letting them soak in water and laying the paint on the paper not scrubbing it, etc.

I put out only three colors of tempera paints, the primaries- red, yellow and blue.

We put on classical music (slower soothing pieces) and had the children paint two different paintings-

one smaller piece during a 3 minute song and a larger piece during a 10 minute composition.

It was fun to watch as many of the kids discovered the secondary colors while painting.

Quote of the Day

2010-01-17T07:41:00.003-07:00

May it please the Lord,
light of all things,
to show me the way,
so that I may paint light worthily.

Leonard da Vinci

Lacy Steel Sculptures

2010-01-16T08:13:00.007-07:00

Oil Drum Tapestries

Cal Lane makes beauty from materials not usually considered beautiful-old rusted metal.

Wheelbarrow and Dirt, Tomato Paste & Rust Prints

The artist cuts into old shovels, wheelbarrows, etc. to create wonderful, intricate, lacy, delicate looking patterns.

Garden Shovels

I was introduced to the work of Cal Lane by stumbling on an article at Today in Art. You can learn more of her there and visit her wesite Cal Lane

A New Painting

2010-01-15T06:48:00.007-07:00

Last week we started adult watercolor class again after more than a month break. The time off has become tradition near the Christmas holiday. It was supposed to be time off from class only, not from painting, but you can guess how that went. No one- me included- did any painting during the break from class.

To be honest a little panic set in when class started up again this month. "Faces" were on the schedule and I, the teacher, hadn't even picked up a paint brush in many weeks. This week I set out to make sure I still knew how to put the paint on paper before teaching the class.

I painted this before teaching a lesson on monochromatic value portraits (which will post next week).

"Buffalo Bill" Cody is after a photo ripped from an old National Geographic magazine years ago. I couldn't find personal reference material with value contrasts as nice as this and had no live models to work from so the photo was perfect for this exercise.

The painting was created with only Burnt Sienna. Although it stayed in the ugly stage for almost two hours before it started to come together, I am happy with it- except for a few small areas I might tweak. The painting time was long overdue therapy.

ArtRage

2010-01-14T07:25:00.000-07:00

I've had Adobe Photoshop on my computer for years and have spent hours working with the program, but I'm still not much more than a beginning user. Although I'm glad to have Photoshop and love its possibilities I can see why it isn't for everyone. The price and complexity of Photoshop are enough to keep many from buying it.

ArtRage is an easy to use, reasonably priced program, $20-$80, that includes some of the same artistic features found in "Photoshop" and other sophisticated painting software.

As a painting program designed for both Windows and Mac OS X, Art Rage allows users to digitally paint with oils and watercolors or sketch with pencils. It includes a tracing feature so that artists can scan in drawings and convert them to paintable digital images. Ambient Design promises "ArtRage doesn't force you to learn complex tool settings, it lets you get right down to painting."

If you have used ArtRage I would love to hear your reviews of this software.

Wise Words

2010-01-13T07:35:00.002-07:00

June 2007 Dana Gioia poet and chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts gave the commencement address at Stanford University. He talked on the value of the arts in schools and in society.

Below are excerpts from his speech...words worth thinking about.

"The loss of recognition for artists, thinkers, and scientists has impoverished our culture in innumerable ways, but let me mention one. When virtually all of a culture's celebrated figures are in sports or entertainment, how few possible role models we offer the young.

There are so many other ways to lead a successful and meaningful life that are not denominated by money or fame. Adult life begins in a child's imagination, and we've relinquished that imagination to the marketplace" ...

"I have seen firsthand the enormous transformative power of the arts—in the lives of individuals, in communities, and even society at large."...

"Art is an irreplaceable way of understanding and expressing the world—equal to but distinct from scientific and conceptual methods. Art addresses us in the fullness of our being—simultaneously speaking to our intellect, emotions, intuition, imagination, memory, and physical senses. There are some truths about life that can be expressed only as stories, or songs, or images.

Art delights, instructs, consoles. It educates our emotions. And it remembers. As Robert Frost once said about poetry, "It is a way of remembering that which it would impoverish us to forget." Art awakens, enlarges, refines, and restores our humanity. You don't outgrow art. The same work can mean something different at each stage of your life. "

Read his entire speech at Stanford University News

Harbin Ice & Snow Festival

2010-01-12T09:28:00.000-07:00

China is currently hosting the 26th annual Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival (one of the 4 largest in the world) in the northeastern town of Harbin.

For the next month visitors can view colossal snow and ice sculptures many of which are illuminated at night with colored lights.
See more at The Boston Globe

Art From Money

2010-01-11T08:55:00.005-07:00

Brooklyn based illustrator, tatoo artist Scott Campbell not only makes money as an artist he makes money into art- with laser cut one dollar bills.

Photo by Wallkandy

An solo exhibit of his work Make It Rain showed in the O.H.W.O.W. in Miami in 2009

Scott Campbell

Quote of the Day

2010-01-10T08:29:00.000-07:00

If you... "have that insatiable hunger to create . . . . then it is only a matter of time until you succeed."

Cliint Watson- You Are The Diamond Cutter

Foot Painting

2010-01-09T10:36:00.003-07:00

British artist Peter Longstaff doesn't let obstacles get in the way of his art.

Life without arms (due to the morning sickness drug thalidomide, given to his mother during pregnancy) has not stopped Peter from creating his art.

From an early age Peter learned to use his right foot the way most people use their right hand- to open doors, turn light switches, and hold a paint brush.

As part of an international movement called Mouth and Foot Painting Artists (MFPA), Peter Longstaff uses his foot to create detailed landscape paintings and Christmas cards.

Read more about this inspirational artist at Mail Online

Creativity

2010-01-08T07:41:00.004-07:00

I have been reading some thought provoking articles on creativity by Ivan Campuzano at Ideas and Insights To Help You Grow.

Here is something to think on from "How to Reclaim Your Childlike Creativity"

"Being creative the deepest parts of your being are activated, you feel an amazing feeling of connection to your higher self. When you are being creative you realize that you already are everything you always wanted to be. All that matters is your creation and the creative process, your ambitions fade away, because they belong to your ego."

You can read this entire article and
"What's Your Creative Purpose"

Scrambler Drawings

2010-01-07T07:29:00.005-07:00

"Good-Time Mix Machine" acrylic on vinyl @ Queens Museum, Flushing, NY

Artist Rosemarie Fiore created this 60ft x 60ft design and others with the aid of, Scrambler, -an old (1964) amusement park ride.

A generator and air compressor were connected to paint buckets then secured to seats on the Scrambler. When the ride was turned on, paint sprayed from the buckets onto tarps creating the Spirographlike patterns.

Learn more about painting with Scrambler

Toothpick Art

2010-01-06T07:28:00.000-07:00

San Fransisco artist Steven J Backman nicknamed "The Essence of Patience" has been building art with toothpicks since he was a child.

His toothpick creations range from this less than one inch tall replica of the Eiffel Tower made from a single toothpick and glue...

...To this 13 foot long version of the Golden Gate Bridge made with more than 30,000 toothpicks and 100 LED lights, on display in Hollywood's Ripleys Believe It Or Not museum.

Mountainsong Galleries

Nathan Sawaya

2010-01-05T07:25:00.000-07:00

New York based artist Nathan Sawaya was commissioned to build this sculpture celebrating New Orleans for permanent installation in the New Orleans public library.

"The Rebirth of New Orleans" was inspired from drawings children submitted answering the question "What is important in the rebuilding of New Orleans".

Inspired by children "The Rebirth of New Orleans" was also built in a medium originally for children...

Legos...120,000 Legos.

Nathan Sawaya is a brick artist with more than 1,5000,000 Lego bricks which he uses to create these amazing sculptures.

You can find his work at The Art of the Brick

ArtSpace in the Crestwood Court Mall

2010-01-04T07:20:00.000-07:00

When St Louis' Crestwood Court Mall failed due to the recession the owners had an idea.

Instead of tearing down the mall they contacted the Regional Arts Commission with an offer to open the 200,00o square feet to artists and early 2009 ArtSpace was born.

ArtSpace has taken vacant retail space and filled it with dance, theater, studios, and galleries giving energy and life to a dying mall.

Read more South County Times

Quotes of the Day

2010-01-03T15:38:00.011-07:00

Some quotes I have been thinking about as I anticipate this new year.

Circumstances may cause interruptions and delays,
but never lose sight of your goal.

Mario Andretti

A successful man is one who can lay a firm foundation
with the bricks others have thrown at him.

David Brinkley

I stopped chasing my impossible goals,
which were depressing me,
and started refocusing on what I loved.

Linda Blondheim

Each one of us has a fire in our heart for something.
It's our goal in life to find it and to keep it lit.

Mary Lou Retton

I consider painting as a means of expression,
not as a goal.

Marcel Duchamp

Cast Paper Scuplture

2010-01-02T07:13:00.005-07:00

Allen & Patty Eckman met and married while studying at the Art Center of Design College in Los Angeles.

In 1988 after working 12 years in advertising, the couple discovered cast paper as a sculpting medium... and a new career

View their beautiful sculptures and learn about the cast paper process at
Eckman Fine Art

Happy New Year!

2010-01-01T06:00:00.010-07:00

It's been a long time; a month of unintentional break from Journeys in Art. Real life took over leaving time for little else but now the blog is back on track and ready to go.

The past two days I have been evaluating and making plans. Every year it's the same... I set a number of goals with great plans for accomplishing all of them...
start out with a lot of energy and a strong commitment... focus for a short time...then the interruptions start...the unplanned things that get in the way of what I want to do...the focus becomes less clear...the guilt comes...after a while things are back the way they were before I set the goals.
Knowing that this year would be like the rest I decided to simplify my goals. My only art goal for 2010 is ...Use Creativity Daily.

Of course there are tons of things I want to do in art- watercolor paintings, drawings, learning illustrator, teaching classes, oils with palette knife, and more. But I know my life and how things go. This year I commit only to use creativity daily. Some days that goal will be nothing more than planning a project. Other days it will be a painting or drawing. Regardless of how the day goes and what unexpected things arise, this is a goal I should be able to realize. I'll let you know how it goes.

Goldwell Open Air Museum

2009-12-08T06:30:00.003-07:00

Founded in 1904 Rhyolite, Nevada was once a flourishing mining community of 10,000. By 1916 it was deserted. Today Rhyolite stands as one of the most interesting ghost towns in Nevada, with the remains of stone buildings, a mission style railroad station and a home constructed of 50,000 liquor bottles.

Just outside of Rhyolite you will find one of the most interesting museums in Nevada-the Goldwell Open Air Museum founded by Belgian artist Albert Szukalski "The Sculptor of Ghosts". In this free, always open, outdoor art center you will find...

"life-size, ghostly interpretation of the Last Supper painting by Leonardo Da Vinci; a 25-foot high pink woman made of cinder blocks; a 24-foot high steel prospector accompanied by a penguin; a blossoming tangle of gleaming chrome car parts; and an exquisitely carved winged woman reaching for the sun from high atop a wooden pillar by the original Belgian artists, as well as new pieces by contemporary American artists."

A detour you may want to explore if you are traveling State Highway 374 near Death Valley.

Redneck Art

2009-12-01T07:19:00.000-07:00

You might be a redneck if...

Art Music Video

2009-11-27T08:01:00.002-07:00

This from Patti at Art Anonymous: A catchy You Tube music video by Andrea Dorfman for Tanya Davis' song Art.

Thanksgiving

2009-11-26T07:04:00.004-07:00

(one of my leaf prints)

Happy Thanksgiving!

Drawing Tutorials

2009-11-25T09:12:00.003-07:00

At Smashing Magazine I found this post from Aquil Akhter listing 50 Tutorials with Techniques for Traditional Drawing. It's a great resource with free tutorials on everything from human portraits lessons to prisma colored pencil pet portraits.

I was excited to see the tutorial on taking a hand sketch to a vector image.

Palette Knife Rocks in Watercolor

2009-11-24T07:51:00.005-07:00

The palette knife in watercolor? Most students in my painting classes have never thought about using a palette knife with watercolor.

In class we played with palette knives to create rocks.

This is the result with the palette knife and no tweaking

Either hot or cold press paper can be used for this. While the end result was nice for either paper, the palette knife caused more damage to the cold press paper by scraping off the paper texture and leaving pieces of it in little balls to dry on the painting. I like the hot press paper better for the palette knife rocks.

The Process...

On watercolor paper draw the outline of the rock shape. Don't waste time drawing many interior lines; they will be covered up with the paint wash. You can draw the rocks first with more detail, in a sketchbook, for a reference to use when painting.

Mix puddles of the colors you want on your rocks. I use 3-4 different colors. Use a lot of pigment in the puddles.

Dampen the paper within the rock shape. Don't use a lot of water or it will wash out the paint when you apply it.

Drop in the paint. I like to start by laying in one color in scattered areas of the shape. Then pick up another color without washing out my brush and without mixing them together on the palette. When you have a thick wash with a lot of color and while that is wash is just starting to set but still very wet, pick up the palette knife.

I get the best results by holding the knife on the back of the blade. Turn it on its side and use the long straight edge to push the paint to the side. Use angular strokes push paint away from the light planes of the rocks and towards the shadow planes. Sometimes when you push the paint it may be too wet and flow right back to where it was. Wait a minute and push it again.

As you move the paint it, will leave a lightened area of the wash colors. You don't have too long to work as the paint will begin to dry. When it gets to that point leave it alone until it dries completely.

After the rocks are dry you can go in with a brush and the same colors you used in the wash to tweak the rocks if needed.

Sorry no pictures of the process. I had too much fun painting and forgot about the camera

Ten Lessons The Arts Teach

2009-11-23T08:07:00.003-07:00

"Ten Lessons the Arts Teach" by Elliot Eisner posted @ the National Art Education Association

1. The arts teach children to make good judgments about qualitative relationships.
Unlike much of the curriculum in which correct answers and rules prevail, in the arts, it
is judgment rather than rules that prevail.

2. The arts teach children that problems can have more than one solution
and that questions can have more than one answer.

3. The arts celebrate multiple perspectives.
One of their large lessons is that there are many ways to see and interpret the world.

4. The arts teach children that in complex forms of problem solving
purposes are seldom fixed, but change with circumstance and opportunity. Learning in the arts requires the ability and a willingness to surrender to the unanticipated possibilities of the work as it unfolds.

5. The arts make vivid the fact that neither words in their literal form nor numbers exhaust what we can know. The limits of our language do not define the limits of our cognition.

6. The arts teach students that small differences can have large effects.
The arts traffic in subtleties.

7. The arts teach students to think through and within a material.
All art forms employ some means through which images become real.

8. The arts help children learn to say what cannot be said.
When children are invited to disclose what a work of art helps them feel, they must reach into their poetic capacities to find the words that will do the job.

9. The arts enable us to have experience we can have from no other source
and through such experience to discover the range and variety of what we are capable of feeling.

10. The arts' position in the school curriculum symbolizes to the young
what adults believe is important.

SOURCE: Eisner, E. (2002). The Arts and the Creation of Mind, In Chapter 4, What the Arts Teach and How It Shows. (pp. 70-92). Yale University Press. Available from NAEA Publications. NAEA granted reprint permission for this excerpt from Ten Lessons with proper acknowledgment of its source and NAEA.

Art in Paper

2009-11-21T11:51:00.001-07:00

English artist Sheri Christopher builds her work in one medium only-paper. Sheri sculpts unique figures with paper collected from around the world.
Visit her gallery

Quote of the day

2009-11-20T19:14:00.005-07:00

The love of beauty is taste.
The creation of beauty is art.
Ralph Waldo Emerson

The artist sees beauty in the ordinary. Where the world sees this...

The artist sees this!

Mark Mawson - Photographer

2009-11-19T07:02:00.003-07:00

Sydney photographer Mark Mawson creates these beautiful shots by photographing paint as it is dropped in water. Wow!

Mark Mawson - Photographer (Sydney) | TheGrafikMuseum

Comunication?!

2009-11-18T11:18:00.000-07:00

Sometimes what we attempt to communicate and how that communication is received are two very different things.

This is not only true for oral communication it is also a problem in art...even simple art.

Wonder about the message in these warning signs?...so do I.

View a collection of confusing art Telegraph.co.uk Stick Figures in Peril: Bizarre and Confusing Warning Signs From Around the World.

A New Way to Think About Creativity

2009-11-17T21:30:00.003-07:00

Elizabeth Gilbert author of bestselling book Eat Pray Love, presents a view on creativity worth examination.

Recycle Cardboard As Canvas

2009-11-16T07:01:00.004-07:00

German artist Berni Valenta draws animation on recycled cardboard. He has 100 pieces of his recycled cardboard art on display at "My 100 Cardboards"

When I came across Berni Valenta's work I thought of children's art classes. It would be a fun lesson to introduce the artist, show his work, talk about using recycled materials in art and then let the class play. I have not done this yet. If any of you do I would love to hear about it.

If you like art with recycled cardboard you may want to see the work of cardboard sculptor Chris Gilmore

Hair Art Helps Hunger

2009-11-14T10:42:00.000-07:00

The more I do this, the more I see that artists can, will, and do use anything and everything to create art. I think I have seen it all only to learn that I really don't know much at all.

The International Fantasy Hair Competition (held in Manchester, NH this past April) is a competition for "Hair" artists.

The event ,with prizes including $7,500, attracted stylists from around the country and proceeds from the event went to the New Hampshire Food Bank.

And the winner..."The Proud Peacock" designed by Kevin Carter of "The Artistry of Hair" (model Amaris Brown)

Deadline for Mum artwork

2009-11-14T07:49:00.002-07:00

Please send in artwork from the mum reference photos today (by 11:59 pm tonight). They will be published here next week

Preschool Art-Imagination

2009-11-13T07:36:00.000-07:00

This week our lesson was on imagination in art.

I had planned to read Harold and the Purple Crayon by Crockett Johnson but when I went to the library to check it out I learned there was an HBO production on DVD of all the books in the series including Harold and the Purple Crayon.

Instead of the book we watched the 21 minute movie.

After we talked about Harold's imagination and his purple crayon art.

Throughout the movie the moon follows Harold on his adventure. We began our project with each child gluing a moon on their paper.

Then they drew pictures from their imaginations with crayons.
With the movie fresh on their minds most of the drawings included things from the movie but with their own twist. One little girl drew her whole family in Harold's boat.

The finished pictures were fun and creative. Children don't really need lessons to practice using their imagination. They're already experts.

Bubble Art

2009-11-12T07:25:00.005-07:00

Pep Bou is a performing artist who also creates visual art
in a very unusual medium...
soap bubbles!

In the 1970's the Spanish artist began performing as a mime.
Later he turned to bubbles, mastering techniques that allow the medium to create amazing visual effects.

His fragile temporary art delights and entertains viewers

Another Reminder- Artwork From Mum References

2009-11-12T07:00:00.000-07:00

Remember to send in your artwork from the mum reference photos by Nov 14. They will post next week.

Texture Leaf Prints

2009-11-11T07:51:00.003-07:00

Fall leaves were beautiful this past month. I have experimented with them before by pressing leaves into watercolor washes. This year I wanted to do this project again with my adult watercolor class.

At The Artful Parent there is a post on this idea for children where plastic wrap is added over the leaves on the wash. I wanted to try that as a class project. We had been working hard and needed a month of fun, simple, creative projects.

This was fun and the leaf prints were really beautiful.

To do this you need...

watercolor paints
paper
brushes
fall leaves (pick leaves the day you will use them so that they don't dry out)
plastic wrap
a book (or something like it to weigh down the painting while it dries)

The steps...

Dampen paper (not too wet you don't want to wash out the colors)
Make puddles of the colors you will use with lots of pigment
Drop in paint on the paper. (I like to use a lot of paint with areas where the colors mingle together and other areas with no paint at all just the white paper)
Lay leaves flat on the wash underside of the leaves on the paper. Start with the smaller leaves first, then the larger ones, overlapping them)
Crumple plastic wrap and lay over the top
Hold down with a book or something with weight
Let dry at least a half hour
Uncover

The results...
The prints had great texture, patterns and designs. They could have been matted and framed just as they were or painted over in spots to accent, darken or sharpen areas. They could be used as a textured background for a painting over the top. One student created a painting of cabbages over the top of her print.

We also had fun painting directly on to the leaves (the backside) and pressing them onto watercolor paper.

Personalized Sketches

2009-11-10T10:12:00.003-07:00

I love to learn about artists who create work that's fun and a little out of the ordinary. Last night as I was blog surfing I discovered this wonderful artist who has lived all over the world, (a fellow child of the air force).

Maria Sambs Botelho draws personalized sketches. Those who order her work request a word of their choice and decide on the picture they want created with that word. Her sketches are made by drawing and redrawing the same word over and over in a pattern that creates the image.

See Maria's work at Personalized Sketches

DoInk- a place to create and share custom animations

2009-11-09T21:20:00.000-07:00

DoInk is a site for creating animation. It offers free drawing and animation web tools. The site includes a collection of clips, props and backgrounds made by users and open for sharing. DoInk creations can be embedded in a blog, website, in Facebook or MySpace, uploaded to YouTube or e-mailed.

Check out DoInk

Trick Art Museum

2009-11-07T07:40:00.001-07:00

Japan's Trick Art Museum in Furano City, Hokkaido hosts art that morphs and tricks viewers.

Three dimensional medieval art changes shape as viewers change perspective. Built in 1995 the museum encourages visitors with a hands on museum experience.

Ansel Adams Images?

2009-11-06T14:30:00.000-07:00

Almost ten years ago collector Rick Norsigian visited a Fresno garage sale looking for an antique barber's chair. He left the garage sale with a purchase but it wasn't the barber's chair.

After seeing the poor condition of the chair Norsigian noticed a wooden box which was also for sale. Inside the box were 61 glass photographic negatives stacked in manila sleeves. Norsigian was interested in the landscape images and picked up the find for $45 .

As the negatives were studied, similarities between them and the known work of photographer Ansel Adams became apparent. Handwriting on the negative sleeves was found to match that of Ansel's wife Virginia. After nearly ten years of testing, confirmation on the origin of this garage sale find could come in weeks. If proven to be the work of Ansel Adams, the photos will travel on public tour beginning in Fresno fall 2012.

View more news videos at: http://www.nbclosangeles.com/video

Watercolor Cart

2009-11-03T07:43:00.000-07:00

In my quest for an organized art studio I picked up this little cart (less than $20) for my watercolor supplies. I wanted something lightweight and on wheels so that it can be moved to any part of the studio.

The cart is small and it doesn't hold everything I want but it does keep most of the supplies I need on hand while painting. While not a perfect solution it has helped a lot.

As my studio is still a work in progress, I would hear what kinds of things you have done to organize your studio.

Reminder- Artwork From Mum References

2009-11-02T06:53:00.002-07:00

For those of your working on paintings from the mum flowers reference photos, this is a reminder to have images of your work sent to me by Nov 14 for them to be posted.

Find the mum references here.

FYI- Check out a couple of newly posted pear paintings from the earlier free pear reference photos.

Pumpkin Carvings

2009-10-31T10:43:00.008-06:00

Texan Scott Cummins carves his art on pumpkins.

His creations take between one to two hours to complete and last for only days.

See more of his work at the carving gallery on his website Pumpkin Cutter

To view carving tips visit
Pumpkin Masters Pumpkin Carving 101

Happy Halloween

Using Adobe Photoshop's Camera Raw

2009-10-30T07:35:00.006-06:00

As I mentioned before, my daughter spent a study abroad month in Scotland this summer as part of a graduate student university photography group. She went over with very little photography experience and came home with a lot of knowledge and some really great photographs.

I wrote in an earlier post about some of the very simple edits she taught me that work for photos taken in camera raw and brought up through Adobe Photoshop's Camera Raw option. Today I wanted to show how those edits can be used to improve painting reference photos.

Above is the photo the way it came from the camera.

This is that same image opened in Camera Raw. Look carefully to notice the position of the sliders on the right side of the screen. For some reason the control bar does not show in the post. If you click on the individual picture it should enlarge to show the bar.

This is the image edited in camera raw. Again click on the individual picture to see the position of the sliders. The first slider is the color temperature bar. This is new to me so I don't understand all the reasons but I have been told that the Kelvan number for lighting outside in the sun is about 5600 so that is where I moved this slider.

The other sliders- exposure, brightness, contrast, etc. I just played with until I liked the results. A good rule I heard in a class once is that you should move the slider until it looks good to you and then back it off a little. A small adjustment can go a long way.

More care should be taken with pictures that will be printed. For those images that will be just a painting reference, the changes do not need to be as restrained. Sometimes reference edits that are exaggerated can be helpful for creating a painting.

Check out the earlier post on editing photos in camera raw.

Starry Starry Night

2009-10-29T06:30:00.001-06:00

Watch this video, a slide show of Vincent Van Gogh's work accompanied by the music of Don McLean's "Starry Starry Night" written in memory of Van Gogh.

It's part of an art and creative writing lesson plan created for patients at Mississippi State Hospital.

View it here

Pop Art With Paint Balls

2009-10-28T07:46:00.004-06:00

In this video, a group of paintballers use their guns simultaneously to create a portrait of Marilyn Monroe.

Check Your Painting's Values

2009-10-26T07:14:00.007-06:00

As you're painting it can be hard to tell if you're keeping values where they need to be. My friend Geri passed this idea to me years ago and it has been a great help...

A sheet of red acetate placed over artwork dulls down the color making it easy to see value shapes.

With the acetate I realized that this beard was too hard edged and the shape was too flat and solid.

It also showed me that I needed to tone down the dark shadow on the cheek. The acetate made it easier to see what needed to be corrected.

Red acetate is not easy to find. In class we came up with another option which works almost as well.

We bought a roll of red plastic (sold with gift wrap) and cut it into different sizes. It's not as thick as the acetate so to add stiffness we taped it to an old mat.

If your painting is bigger that the value finder and you want to see the entire painting under it, instead of laying the finder right on the work, hold it away from the painting until the whole piece is covered by it. Even with the distance you will still be able to see overall value shapes.

Quote of the Day

2009-10-25T07:10:00.001-06:00

I hope that I may always desire more than I can accomplish.

Michelangelo Buonarroti

Preschool Art - Another Line Lesson

2009-10-24T07:15:00.012-06:00

This week we had our second preschool art lesson- another exploration of line. We viewed line drawings by Vincent Van Gogh, Leonardo da Vinci, Henri Matisse, and Albert Durer.

Then we played "The Line Game". Thanks to Paula for recommending this version of "Simon Says" in her comment on the last lesson post. The children made lines with their bodies by standing tall for a vertical lines, arms stretched out to the sides for horizontal lines, wiggling for wavy lines, etc.

Our project was puffy line paintings. I bought little squeeze bottles of dimensional fabric paint. I also had this simple recipe for puffy paint on hand if the bottles needed to be refilled but as it turned out we didn't need to make it.

Puffy Glue Paint

Supplies
White glue
Mixing containers
Spoons or mixing sticks
Tempera or poster paint
Squeeze bottles (empty glue bottles work well)

Directions
Pour glue into mixing containers.
Starting with a small amount, stir paint into each container.
Mix until the two are thoroughly blended.
Add additional paint if needed to increase color intensity.
Pour mixture into squeeze bottles.

The children painted their lines on black paper. We talked about contrast with the bright paint against black paper. As paintings were completed, we glued them to white card stock and signed them on the white mat.

A blow dryer helped set the paint but most still needed to sit overnight to dry completely.

It wasn't easy for some to squeeze the bottle and draw at the same time. They ended up making blobs while trying to make lines. Also it was hard to keep them from smearing their work. Still this was good small motor skill practice and a fun line/texture exercise. They were happy with their creations.

See the first preschool line lesson here.

Color In Motion

2009-10-23T10:09:00.001-06:00

During one of the re-certification classes I completed this last year, we were introduced to this fun animated, interactive color theory experience by Claudia Cortes, Color in Motion.

Color in Motion presents colors as movie stars. Viewers learn about the color "stars" by opening 3 different doors. Through the first door there is opportunity to read the stars profiles-their positive negative traits, their friends, blood type (primary, secondary, tertiary), etc.

Through the next door are movies featuring each color. The final door is the entrance to the lab where viewers can participate in interactive color experiences. This is a good site for older children, who can read, - adults. A fun way to learn about color.