| Shiny! Iridescent! Watercolor! |
See Also: • Gifts Ideas for Artists • Before You Buy Watercolor Supplies • Buy Direct: Iridescent Watercolor Medium Photo © 2010 Marion Boddy-Evans. Licensed to About.com, Inc Shiny! Iridescent! Watercolor! originally appeared on About.com Painting on Tuesday, March 9th, 2010 at 00:05:06. Permalink | Comment | Email this |
| Sing True with a Brush |
"If I could make musicians of you, it would be to your advantage as painters. All is harmony in nature, a little too much, or a little less, disturbs the scale and strikes a discordant note. One has to learn to sing true with the pencil or brush, just as with the voice; correct form is like correct sound.See Also: • 6 Secrets of Painting Realism • Art Styles Explained: From Realism to Abstract Image: © M Boddy-Evans. Licensed to About.com, Inc Sing True with a Brush originally appeared on About.com Painting on Monday, March 8th, 2010 at 00:05:08. Permalink | Comment | Email this |
| On an Artist's Book Workshop |
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The definition of what an artist's book is seems to be wide enough to drive a bus through, and feasibly if an artist used the sides then the bus could be the pages of an artist's book too. It's not simply about a 'normal' book being filled with content (though it might be). It's an art that involves the c-word (craft) by needing the skills and techniques of bookbinding (though it might be a book in none-paper format such as a digital book). It's an art involving content and form (what's in it and the format it's presented in), installation and performance (the reading of the book). Read more... On an Artist's Book Workshop originally appeared on About.com Painting on Sunday, March 7th, 2010 at 03:12:51. Permalink | Comment | Email this |
| What's a Paint Conformance Statement? |
"What is a 'conformance statement' on a paint label?"It's a statement from the paint manufacturer that the product complies with requirements of a particular country or state. Usually there's a reference to a standard or specification too. For example, ASTM D4236 which covers the labeling of art materials and chronic health hazards. • See: The Fundamental Information on a Paint Tube Label What's a Paint Conformance Statement? originally appeared on About.com Painting on Sunday, March 7th, 2010 at 00:38:25. Permalink | Comment | Email this |
| Meet the Art Brush Defender |
Tired of fiddling with soggy bits of toilet paper to keep your paint-brush bristles in shape (see tip), or protected from squishing while traveling? Well, then, meet the Brush Defender (Buy Direct)It's a flexible little tube of woven plastic -- you may well have encountered larger versions protecting other things. You simply slide it up the brush handle and over the brush hairs. Being plastic it keeps its shape, so you can leave the brush to dry handle up; being woven air circulates through so the brush will dry. Different sizes are available. I suspect the largest ones are ones I'll have the longest because they're red. Far easier to spot something red when you drop it in an untidy studio than something black or white! Buy Direct: Brush Defender Photo © 2010 Marion Boddy-Evans. Licensed to About.com, Inc. Meet the Art Brush Defender originally appeared on About.com Painting on Friday, March 5th, 2010 at 00:05:20. Permalink | Comment | Email this |
| What Makes a Good Composition? |
"I have been think as of late on a problem of understanding composition. Someone stated once that the Tic Tac Toe grid works best, do you think so? What about those scenes that use the thirds grid, what then? What makes a good composition? What do I look for?"A composition wants to have a focal point where your eye is drawn to, something that grabs your attention, but it also wants to lead your eye around the whole painting, to take in everything. Read more... What Makes a Good Composition? originally appeared on About.com Painting on Thursday, March 4th, 2010 at 00:00:38. Permalink | Comment | Email this |
| Fundamentals Book by Wildlife Artist Katie Lee |
I've loved books as long as I can remember, and I've edited and rewritten non-fiction books on all sorts of subjects for many a year. But this year is the first time I'm seeing the publication of a how-to art book I've edited for someone who started as a work contact but has become a friend. Regular readers may recognize her name as being a contributor to this site too: wildlife and botanical artist Katie Lee.There have been various unanticipated hurdles in the process, but it seems finally it's all systems go and a printed book, Fundamental Graphite Techniques, will exist by August (Buy Direct). I can't wait as it's always special seeing what you've known as manuscript pages and individual photos together on a printed page. Whenever I'm pressing really hard on a pencil in a rush to get a dark tone, it's Katie's voice I hear in my head saying: "Create darker tones by applying another layer of tone not with pressure." A fundamental technique indeed. I've never quite understood why I can't be as patient with a pencil as I can be hunting down non-sequiturs... See Also: • Recommended Painting Books • Recommended Painting DVDs Image © Katie Lee Fundamentals Book by Wildlife Artist Katie Lee originally appeared on About.com Painting on Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010 at 13:00:50. Permalink | Comment | Email this |
| Old Master Painting Week in London |
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If you're going to be in London in early July and enjoy Old Masters paintings, you might schedule an afternoon to go looking at the nearly 30 galleries and auction houses involved in the Master Paintings Week London. Their brochure has a map showing the location of the 25 participants, all in central London. Don't think you need to be rich enough to buy a painting to go see them; the galleries and auction house preview rooms are open to everyone. Though you probably don't want to wear starving-artist rags... Old Master Painting Week in London originally appeared on About.com Painting on Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010 at 07:08:18. Permalink | Comment | Email this |
| Plein-Air Painting c.1900 |
• Tips on Choosing a Painting Holiday • Tips for Taking Your Paints Outside Photo Archives of American Art Plein-Air Painting c.1900 originally appeared on About.com Painting on Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010 at 00:05:48. Permalink | Comment | Email this |
| Thumbnails for Planning a Painting |
Thumbnail sketches are a great way for quickly considering options for a composition when you're looking at the photo for the Challenge #10. The photo shown here (see larger version) is a page from my sketchbook where I've quickly mapped out seven different ideas with a waterproof pen, then added a little watercolor.At this stage none are carefully plotted compositions nor detailed. Just a few fast lines drawn for the main shapes in the landscape, and then color blocked in so I can ponder possibilities. I might have a square format with lots of sky or minimal sky. A horizontal format with minimal sky or even no sky at all. What about putting the gate on the other side of the road? Having thumbnail sketches make it easy to compare possibilities, and usually leads to further ideas. Don't worry about making a thumbnail sketch perfect and beautiful; it's a working tool, not a masterpiece. See Also: • What is a Thumbnail Sketch? • Six Things To Decide Before Starting to Paint Image: © 2010 Marion Boddy-Evans. Licensed to About.com, Inc Thumbnails for Planning a Painting originally appeared on About.com Painting on Tuesday, March 2nd, 2010 at 00:05:43. Permalink | Comment | Email this |
