Respect the artist’s copyright
Do unto other artists as you would have them do unto you. Among other things, it’ll stop you from being sued.
Painting sails
Up to that point, my interest was purely pedantic; I just wanted to demonstrate painting sails and painting waves. But once I had my brushes in my fat little hand, the painting grabbed me by the scruff of the neck.
Let’s talk limited palette
There are disadvantages to limited palette, but the range you can hit with just three primary colors is amazing.
Forgery, plagiarism, and transformative use: the money machine of art
Transformative use is judged on a case-by-case basis, which is why famous artists like Jeff Koons keep stealing from less-well-known ones. They can better afford protracted legal cases.
Plagiarism
Copyright in the US is strict and enforceable. It’s there to protect creators, but, equally, you don’t want to get on the wrong side of it.
Putting yourself in the frame
It’s one thing to paint a pretty picture. It’s another to blur the line between the audience and the scene, to paint something where the viewer can step into the frame and build a relationship with the work.
Reference photos for painters
When your reference photo came from the internet, you’re expecting your audience to engage with an idea that you have no relationship with.
From conceptual art to NFTs
The crash of crypto may have put a temporary hitch in the NFT market, but there is still a need for a mechanism to buy, sell and display digital art. However it evolves, tangible artists working in traditional mediums should feel no compulsion to join. It offers nothing to us.
Art for the masses can be a mess
It’s just as bad as that Italian Alps painting your Uncle Louie bought from the back of a truck, but it’s really expensive. I’m not sure what the heck it’s supposed to be, but it’s a thousand dollars. Last week I saw a bloated bit of bad ‘original’ art for the equally-bloated price of $999 …
The greatest draftsman of modern times
A cinematic genius who could do his finished drawings in a single take. Wow! Storyboard with notes by Jack Kirby, provenance unknown. I was leafing through Facebook the other day and came across the above storyboard. Not only is it brilliantly composed, but it is worked out in a single draft across the panels. That’s …