Where Painting Meets Sculpture
Jul 28, 2010 On my Easel
When does painting become sculpture? I have no idea, but perhaps I’ll find out!
I’ve been doing a lot of work on my abstract art recently. I’m working on a new series that involves the re-arranging of a canvas cut into 25 squares. As the paintings progress, they’re becoming more and more three dimensional. They began as layers of wood, but I’m experimenting with putting spacers between the layers, creating more depth.
Part of my strategy is working on more than one piece at a time. This lets me play with different ideas and different colour schemes while working within the same parameters.
To read more about my process and thoughts about this piece, visit the news page at my abstract art site. I’m going to be treating this section as a blog, updating it when I finish new paintings and talking about my approach to my abstract work.
To keep up with my abstract art, you can also subscribe to the RSS feed or my newsletter.
I’m finishing up three other abstract pieces based on a red/orange colour scheme, working on two smaller, monochromatic pieces and a larger contrasting piece. My studio has taken over the entire house and it’s great!
Tags: acrylic painting
Planning a Painting – The Value Study
Jul 25, 2010 Painting
So, you have a great idea for a painting. You’ve done some thumbnail sketches and created an interesting, dynamic composition. You know exactly what you want to paint…
Time to jump in? Not quite!
Before you dive into the real thing, it can be extremely helpful to do a value study: a smaller, monochromatic version of your painting.
A value study strips your painting of all colour, letting you work with the lights and darks, which is just as important to your composition as form. This is also your chance to make sure you have a range of lights and darks to create good contrast. If your painting isn’t interesting at this stage, it won’t be interesting when you add colour! Stan Prokopenko does a great job of explaining how a value study can help you create an interesting composition.
Also check out this post where Stapleton Kearns critiques a painting where the artist has confused colour with value. According to Kearns, “Value is more important than color, as it is a part of drawing. Color is a decoration you hang on your drawing.”
If we digitally altered the painting on Kearns’ blog to make it greyscale, we would see a very dark, very flat painting. That’s a hint!
Doing a value study can help you solve these problems before you get to them in your final painting. It’s easier to match the value (not the intensity) of your colour to the study than it is to figure it out on the fly. The intensity of the hue can be very distracting.
When I did my African Sunset painting, I knew that getting the values right was going to be essential in making the sun look like it was shining. Doing a quick value study (above) helped me see just how dark the sky needed to be to make the sun look bright in contrast. This kept me from wasting time and paint on painting a too-light sky. Below is the completed painting converted to greyscale.
If you’re having troubles with the values within a painting, taking a digital picture and converting it to greyscale can really help. This lets you see the lights and darks without that distracting colour. A bright or intense colour doesn’t always make for a dark value. Solve these problems in a value study and you will have a much easier time with your painting!
Tags: acrylic painting, oil painting, paintings, value study
Giving Interviews – Did I Say That?
Jul 22, 2010 Promotion and Exhibition
- Photo by Mike Simmons -Summerland Review
I recently had opportunity to do an interview when I had my work on display at an Okanagan winery. The article turned out great: the journalist did a wonderful job of making sense of what I said and clearly articulated my relationship to both realistic and abstract art. Read the interview!
This got me thinking about artist interviews.
For my very first show, I was asked to do an interview for the newspaper as well as for a local TV station. I have a recording of the TV interview, but to this day I haven’t watched it; I can’t bear to see myself on camera!
When I had my second exhibition, I did another newspaper interview. I had a great chat with the journalist and towards the end of the interview, the conversation turned much more casual. I mentioned in passing that one of my profs always thought I was very anal, as in “anal retentive.” When I got the newspaper a few days later, I was surprised and mildly embarrassed to see that she had included that in her article. It’s not exactly a word I want people to associate with me and my work.
For artists, it’s very important to be able to talk about their work in a way that the general public can understand and follow. Interview skills are like anything else: they need to be learned and practiced. Joanne Mattera has an excellent article on how to talk to the press.
Be prepared for your interviews, practice and be aware that everything you say is fair game! You don’t want to read your interview and think, “Did I say that?”
Tags: exhibitions, interviews, promotion
From Smooth to Extreme: Texture in Painting
Jul 20, 2010 Painting
Whether you want a super-smooth finish or a rough, grainy feel, there are strategies you can use to enhance the texture of your painting. Whatever style you prefer, texture is not an element to be over-looked.If you enjoy this article, sign up for our newsletter to get more art tips!
Smooth
If you’re painting style is highly detailed and realistic, you may want a smooth texture. To achieve a smooth surface for your paintings, you have to start with your support. Canvas has its own texture, so try a finer fabric like linen. Pre-stretched linen can be purchased from an art supply store. Another option is masonite board. This is what Lori McNee uses for her paintings. Read her tutorial on how to gesso a masonite panel.
Brushstroke Texture
One of the beauties of paint (oil especially) is the texture you can achieve simply by applying paint. Visible brushstrokes add another layer of interest to your work. From far away, the viewer can see the image you have rendered, up close they begin to see the paint and the way you’ve used it. Stapleton Kearns has an excellent article on how to prevent “licking,” the smoothing away of visible brushstrokes. I highly recommend reading this article!
Use Mediums
Gel mediums are a great way to add texture to your paintings. These are substances that you can use to prep your canvas to start with a textured ground or add to your paintings as you work. They come in a range of different textures. Read more about painting mediums.
Extreme Texture
Don’t be afraid to get wild and experiment with textures. You can use gel medium to glue almost any substance to your canvas and make richly textured paintings. Try things like tissue paper, saran wrap, sand, and anything else you can come up with. This can be an all-over texture, or localized to create a focal point. Take a look at Julia Trops’ still life painting. She is a great example of an artist using extreme texture.
The type of texture you use depends on your style and subject matter. Experiment with different techniques and decide what is right for you!
Goals are for Skeptics Too!
Jul 15, 2010 Art General
Remember those goal setting sessions you had to do in high school?
I used to hate those things. I thought it was a stupid, pointless exercise. The act of putting pen to paper and formally stating short and long term goals seemed utterly redundant to me. Obviously, those who were going to accomplish their goals would and those who weren’t wouldn’t, regardless of who wrote down what.
As a high achieving, goal oriented person anyways, I was skeptical of something so organized and deliberate. Surely it was enough to know what you wanted and just go ahead and do it.
That frame of mind worked when I was a teenager and life was simple. Now that my aspirations involve more than getting a “B” in math and getting a summer job, I have learned the value of goal-setting.
When I started this blog over a year ago, it was one part of an ongoing attempt to take my art career to the next level. I started keeping a “journal,” a notebook where I would jot down art ideas, write articles, and yes, goals.
A year later, I make a point of flipping through my notebook periodically to refresh my memory. Some goals I have accomplished. Some I’m still working on, even after a year. Others I haven’t touched yet, and others still aren’t even relevant anymore.
The important thing is that there is a record of my ideas. For us creatives, inspiration can come in an overwhelming flood. Writing down the things you want to accomplish gives you a constant reminder so that those spectacular ideas don’t slip your mind when you get distracted.
Setting goals to paper also serves another purpose: it turns that abstract idea into a concrete, tangible thing. It’s like a butterfly fluttering around in your mind that you capture and pin down so that you can look at it closely. Maybe not the best analogy, but you get the point!
The simple act of acknowledging your goals can get other ideas rolling. Once you know what you want to do, you can start examining the steps you need to take to make it happen. Even the most intimidating goal can be broken down into smaller tasks, letting you tackle one thing at a time. Getting a gallery show is an intimidating goal, but once you break it down, it’s a lot easier to manage.
Goal-setting doesn’t need to be a rigid and structured process. It’s up to you!
Keeping track of ideas in a notebook is simple, informal, and has transformed this skeptic into a believer of the benefits of goal setting!
Tags: art tips, artists, goals, motivation
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