Seeking Perfection

 This entry was originally posted on Thursday, December 20, 2012

"Artists who seek perfection in everything are those who cannot attain it in anything."

-Gustave Flaubert

Entertain the Creative Genius

   This entry was originally posted on Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Back when I first started this blog, I mentioned some guidelines to follow when starting a painting.

One guideline was to separate yourself from your genius.

I also mentioned that when you are ready to paint, your creative genius might show up in the studio or it might not.

However, when that creative genius does decide to come into your studio, make sure you entertain it.

Think of it as a guest coming to stay for the day or the week.

What do you normally do when a guest arrives at your door?

Most of us make time for our guests.

We clear our schedules.

We don't answer the phones.

We don't make other commitments.

We excuse ourselves from doing other things because our guest needs our attention.

The guest has arrived and we will entertain and be entertained as well.

 

I know it can be hard to entertain certain guests but think of the creative genius as your favorite guest.

Clear your schedule for the day.

Turn off the phone.

Cancel or postpone your appointments.

Ignore all the Facebook posts.

 Your best friend just arrived at your door and you need to spend some time entertaining your guest.

 

And if you make time for that creative genius of a guest, it will become your best friend.

 

Removing Dents

  This entry was originally posted on Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Today I had a call from a friend that had a problem with her watercolor paper. 

She had dented it when she pressed too hard with her pencil.

My friend reminded me of the time when I had a similar situation and asked how I removed the dent and hoped that it would do the same for her lines. 

My painting happened to be a beautiful commission portrait of a young girl.

I had spent many hours on it and as it was nearing completion, my lamp next to my table fell over on top of it. The lamp ended up putting a huge dent right in the middle of the forehead. Fortunately it did not tear the paper. It just left that dent.

Instead of  panicking,(okay I did panic a little) I asked myself how this little  disaster can be fixed. 

I decided that maybe I could iron it out. But I was afraid to use an actually iron. So instead I used a hot spoon. First I dipped the spoon in boiling water (for the heat and the moisture) then I very carefully ironed it out on the back side. (a butter knife also works) 

I am happy to say that it worked!

There was no evidence of the dent.

Since then, I have had a few mishaps with dents and pressing too hard with my own pencil and this method seems to work well for me every time.

 

Keeping the Viewer's Eye Within the Painting

 This entry was originally posted on Monday, December 17, 2012

When trying to assess if your painting is working, track the movement of your eye.

Make sure it stays within the painting and isn’t led off the paper.

You want the viewer's eye to stay in your painting and not have it go to the painting next to it.

 

Your eye also needs to keep going back to the focal point.

If your eye keeps going to an element that is not the focal point, perhaps some adjustments need to be made.

 

Sunday Secrets #48

   This entry was originally posted on Sunday, December 16, 2012

Reflection

Varnished Watercolor

11x14"

Recently I have been varnishing my watercolors so I don't need to frame them under glass. 

Since I have started varnishing, I have had several people ask if these paintings are allowed in competitions.

My answer is that it depends on the competition.

 

Watercolor and watermedia competitions usually request that paintings be on paper and framed under glass.

So no, they would not be allowed, especially since they would not be framed under glass. 

 

Some watercolor competitions request transparent watercolors only.

(Transparent Watercolor Society of America is one of them)

That means that the use of white, gouache, or acrylic is not allowed.

There are some other specific requirements that are usually included in the competition rules.

 

Other watercolor competitions are also watermedia competitions.

Watercolor, egg tempera, gouache, and acrylic are all allowed as long as they are on paper and framed under glass.

You can also mix watercolor and acrylic into one painting.

 

Then there are competitions that cover all forms of painting.

A varnished watercolor will be accepted in these competitions.

You can call it either a varnished watercolor or mixed media (since you have added another medium to varnish the painting.)

 

Most mediums are still porous until they are varnished.

Varnishing a watercolor would be similar to varnishing an oil, an acrylic, or an egg tempera.

 

Be sure to check the competition rules before you enter though. 

It will make things go so much more smoothly if you do.

 

 

The Reverse Side of A Disaster

  This entry was originally posted on Saturday, December 15, 2012

"In watercolour, playing around on a scrap piece of paper, or the reverse side of a "disaster" invariably produces something interesting and uninhibited."

-Wayne Robert Hall

Take It Off

 This entry was originally posted on Friday, December 14, 2012

 

I love putting tape around the edges of my paper, even when I stretch and staple the paper.

That is because when I am done, I can take the tape off and have an instant border!

And what a difference that white border does to the painting.

 

Give the Gift of Art

   This entry was originally posted on Thursday, December 13, 2012

One of my most favorite gifts to receive during the holiday season is the gift of art.

I am blessed to receive many of such gifts from my students.

They almost always come in the form of a card that features a painting that they completed during the year.

It is a joy to know that they put time, thought, and a lot of themselves into such a wonderful gift.

 

This year you might consider giving such gifts to loved ones.

Art is a way to share the beauty of our world, the joy of painting, and the awesomeness of you.

Could there really be a better gift?

Crop It

    This entry was originally posted on Wednesday, December 12, 2012

  

One of the wonderful things about working with watercolor on paper is that adjusting the size is an option even after the painting is finished.

It is also one of the simplest ways to fix a painting.

Cropping your painting into a smaller size or if you are lucky, into 2 or more paintings can work wonders.

 

To create an adjustable cropping tool, 

cut an old mat into 2 L's.

Now you can play around with cropping all your old and forgotten paintings into fabulously new works of art.

 

Sacrificing For the Greater Good

   This entry was originally posted on Tuesday, December 11, 2012

 

Yellowstone Gold (before)

There are times when we have painted something really awesome into our painting.

The object is well rendered, the texture may be awesome, and the concept is really cool.

However, it doesn't fit with the painting as a whole.

 

It is times like this that it is better to sacrifice this really awesome portion to the greater good of the overall painting.

 

For instance, in my painting of Yellowstone Gold, the dead tree near the bottom center had a beautiful trunk.

It was all twisty on the bottom and it looked really wonderful in the photograph.

I also like the concept of the dead tree because of battle with nature that is part of Yellowstone.

The earth sometimes just can only sustain growth for a short period of time.

 

However, when it was painted, I struggle with the composition.

The dead tree now stuck out like a sore thumb.

I had to make the decision to cut it down.

 The result is much better.

 

Yellowstone Gold, 20x24"