Brushing Up on Your Art

Just "some" of my studio brushes--The good, the bad, the old..

Happy late August! I love summer but as a painting teacher (and an artist who loves to also take classes myself) I always look forward to this time of year. Not only is it the perfect time of year to take a class or workshop, I think it’s great time review of your art and/or craft supplies.

As an instructor, I see some well-loved supplies (as in they haven’t made that brand in over 20 years). Some “antique” supplies may be just fine but others, well frankly, it may be time to just let go.

Nowadays we could include technology in that studio enhancement as well. Every time I upgrade my "older but still OK" laptop, tablet, website, camera, phone, etc. I think—Wow this is so much easier/better/faster...I should have done that sooner.

I’m really careful when it comes to studio expenses. But I also believe that if you invest in a class or workshop it’s worth having “up to date” fresh supplies that won’t hinder your experience. There’s a good reason for instructors to include a supply list. They want you to have the tools you need to get the job done.

Another thought:  What if you’re next painting is one of your favorites or even your “chef d’oeuvre?” You’ll want to be sure you’re using the best supplies you can practically afford.

Do you like art supply deals? This is a good time of year for that too. Often local art/office/craft supply stores or online art stores (i.e. Jerry’s, Blick) feature sales and/or special pricing, free shipping, coupons, etc. this time of year. (Tip: Google shipping coupon, etc.)

Personally, my art supply spending approach is “happy medium.” This means not “found in attic/garage” or “borrowed from my kids” but also not the break the bank either. And of course you don’t have to upgrade your studio all at once.

In my next post I’ll share my thoughts about what specific supplies you might want to shop for/replace and why. Until then, I hope you all enjoy getting ready for fall art or painting classes! You may find more info about my Denver area painting workshops and classes here.  

Red Bird Wednesday

It's a beautiful sunny spring day in Denver so a wintery cardinal study might be a bit of an odd choice for a painting today. But I really wanted to paint something bright red and I had the studio doors open to the backyard and could hear the vociferous songbirds (cardinals have about 12 songs, I read). 

And while owls (obviously!) are my personal favorite bird, my grandmother always loved cardinals and red, as I do, so that was additional inspiration for this little 8x10 cardinal oil painting study.  Did you know seven states have cardinals as the state bird? And this is a male of course because of the showy plumage.

I also knew it would be fun to play with the green complement as well as the red hue temperatures--balancing the warm and cool reds in this case. This study was painted with a limited oil palette of: Titanium White, Ultra Blue, Cerulean Blue (which I don't often use but thought I would use for my cool blue today since Thalo is sooo strong), Cad Red Light, Permanent Rose, and some Cad Yellow Medium.

To soften the edges I used a flat sable brush (rather than a stiffer oil bristle brush) which I don't always use either because I tend to loose some of my edges, but it's the perfect tool for for feathers and fur.

For more information about my classes and NEW Colorful Connections workshop please click on the Classes link on the top right. Have a wonderfully creative day!

Art Springs Eternal

Good Morning Everyone--First I want to welcome my new students (three this week!) and any prospective students from TeachStreet. I'm happy to say that this week I'm a Featured Denver teacher. So thank you all for stopping by.

Also, I'm featured in the Creative Coupon Book produced as part of our Create Denver Week and am looking forward to attending the Creative Denver Expo downtown this afternoon (as you'll likely see me Twitter.)  As an artist, I feel very lucky to be in a city where the "Creative Class" is recognized as a growing and integral part of our economy.

Also, I'm hoping to announce as soon as tomorrow my new Colorful Connection Painting Workshop which will be a fun group workshop focused on color but for all media (watercolor, oil, and acrylic) one day a week. So please stay tuned for more info about that.  If you haven't painted in a group setting before it's a great way to meet new artists and learn from them as well.

Finally, I unfortunately was a bit pressed for time this week teaching and planning the workshop, but I was able to practice some watercolor and tried this quick negative painting of spring trees taken from an exercise by painter Linda Kemp.

For more information about my classes or new group workshop please email me--I'm looking forward as I hope you are to a fantastic season of color, art, painting, and creativity! Namaste!

Good Day Sunshine

Yesterday I noticed the light levels are really beginning to get much stronger as spring approaches.  In the kitchen, I spotted the sun hitting a plate of pears and took a few snapshots for my oil painting study this morning. I was really drawn to the strong shadow patterns and organic shapes.  As I often do I painted this small 8x8 study on bright red toned canvas board--one of my favorite painting approaches. It's interesting to play with the "lost and found" red edges.     

For this study, I decided to do a quick (30 min) acrylic underpainting to help me map out where I wanted to go with my expressionistic colors. My favorite palette for working on acrylics by the way is the Richeson Lock Box palette. Sure, it could be larger and the donut-shaped inserts are rather funky, but I love the round shape (so I can mix around the color wheel). And it really does keep acrylics quite pliable for at least a few days and I live a very dry climate.  (Just wet the sponge inserts, lightly spray the palette with water and close the lid.)

Why bother with an underpainting for a small oil study? One of my new students is working on a master copy oil painting using the classic grisaille underpainting approach.  This layered classical method had me thinking more about approaching a painting in this way, which is not something I would normally do especially when I only have an hour or two to paint.  But the results can be well worth your patience, so while I've not done a traditional glazed oil painting with a lot of detail in a while and am thinking that will be my next painting.

For more information about my oil painting classes (located in Denver, Colorado) please drop me a line at the email above or visit me on Teach Street (search Scarlet Owl).