Watch Me Paint: World-Class Art, World-Class Instruction
Whatās important in painting? It all comes down to drawing and composition. Weymouth Bay, 1916, John Constable, uses closely analogous colors to create cohesiveness in a painting of raw natural elements. We enter every painting at some point, although there doesnāt need to be a literal āpath inā to a painting. Itās more typical (and …
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Two artists whose paintings in adversity remind us that we don’t always have to paint from our happy place. Forgotten Man, 1944, Maynard Dixon, courtesy Wikiart Maynard Dixon Maynard Dixon is less remembered than his second wife, photojournalist Dorothea Lange, but they shared the same social justice concerns. Dixon had just finished a mural for …
Fabric is an opportunity to support the composition with line and shape, and insert abstract design into even the most hyper-realistic paintings. Underwear and glass head, by Carol L. Douglas. Every artist needs to be able to paint fabric, either to clothe his subjects or to support a still life. Drapery used to be an …
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A good reference picture is not necessarily a good photo. A great photo is almost never a good reference picture. Headwaters of the Hudson, by Carol L. Douglas, private collection. This is one of several paintings I’ve done based on the following photograph. Sometimes Iāll post a photo to Facebook, only to have someone suggest, …
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The background of your painting is a key element of its composition. Prom shoes, oil on canvasboard, Carol L. Douglas Last week I wrote about the lost-and-found edge, and techniques to make edges and lines sink. That allows the viewer to focus on other passages that are more important. The painter has three tools to …
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Sometimes itās what you donāt say that matters most. Girl with the Red Hat, c. 1665-66, Johannes Vermeer, courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC. I once had a painting teacher who told me that heavy edges were āmy style.ā Like many younger artists, I just hadnāt learned how to marry edges in my painting. Beginning …
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Yes, inconsistency is immature, but that doesn’t make it a bad thing. Rocks and Sea, 1916-19, Edward Hopper, courtesy Whitney Museum of American Art The other day, Bruce McMillan sent out a blog post asking readers to identify an artist. (He kindly mailed me the images, which illustrate this post.) Iām pretty good at art history, …
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A student asked for book recommendations for Christmas. Iāve gone over my own bookshelves in my mindās eye. If the binding is worn from overuse, or itās a new acquisition Iām excited over, Iām recommending it. I frequently recommend Art & Fear: Observations On the Perils (and Rewards) of Artmaking, by David Bayles and Ted Orland. …
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As ever, these are armās length recommendations; I donāt receive a spiff. Mary Whitney with a Strada micro easel. Easels: beginners often buy French easels, but please donāt do that. Theyāre heavy and tough to set up. Instead, choose a smaller, lighter, more efficient easelāthe Mabef field painting easel M27. The pivot head makes it …
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Itās almost winter. Donāt despair. Still life is a great way to tell a story, especially the story of you. Merry Christmas (blonde Santa doll), oil on canvasboard, Carol L. Douglas. I often paint small still life as warm ups for a day in the studio; all four illustrations in this post are from that …
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