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Not if artist Claudia Seymour has anything to say about it. This year I had the pleasure of meeting Seymour at the Salmagundi Club in New York City to create two three-hour DVDs with her, including this year's The Art of Painting Flowers in Oil . Spring Things by Claudia Seymour, oil on linen, 2011...
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Lea Colie Wight drawing of a seated female. I am sure I have said this before, but it's true and deserves repeating. Watching great artists at work can be so instructive, especially if they follow a general process of work. Lea Colie Wight does exactly that; she draws in a way that organizes the...
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"It may seem controversial, but I really think artists are born, not made," says Meagan Shein. Definitely bold words, especially coming from someone who has advanced degrees in fine art and art history. "It doesn't mean that the innate skill is there," the artist quickly adds...
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While I was working recently on American Artist's new special issue, The Complete Painter's Handbook ( order now! ), I had a little debate with myself. The question at hand: If you are working to learn how to paint, is it better to focus on following the practices of one artist, or to learn painting...
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I am not a finicky person, so getting my hands dirty to get a job done is totally fine with me. But with painting, I can get so uptight and hesitant that the physical joy of it all goes right out the window. I'm trying to be better about what I'm calling my straightjacket tendency, and one way...
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End of the Season by William Merritt Chase, 1885, pastel, 13¼ x 17¾. Pastel painting or pastel drawing starts with an implement of pigment mixed with chalk or clay and combined with gum to make a paste that is then hardened and made available as soft or hard pastels, pastel pencils, or...
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We have always felt that as plein air painters we are observers of the landscape—recording moments and places that can rapidly transform with fleeting changes of light. In a pure landscape, figures and animals are rendered small and insignificant against the vast and awe inspiring backdrop of nature...
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Portraiture is, in my humble opinion, the domain of artistic masters. All the greats, such as Velazquez, Rembrandt, Goya, and Sargent, can be counted as incredibly skilled and innovative portrait artists in addition to being pretty brilliant at everything else they chose to paint. The Milkmaid of Bordeaux...
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Intimate Gathering by Russell Irwin, 2002, acrylic and torn paper on board, 48 x 60. When I was flipping through the American Artist magazine archives for mixed media art inspiration, I was prepared to do some pretty extensive digging. I assumed that most artists tend to silo themselves in their media...
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I know it is only January, but I'm already thinking spring! And so is the Pantone Color Institute . The organization has just released their seasonal color report, and while this is specifically written for the fashion and design industry, we art-minded peeps are sure to find it equally interesting...
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Spring in the Hills II by John Hulsey, 5 x 7, oil painting. Whenever we get to feeling that there is nothing really new to be discovered in art or the world, we have to keep in mind that the "undiscovered country" often lies in our own backyards. Recently, scientists at the University of Duisburg...
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Cirque Tents by Terri Ford, pastel painting. It's what I thought to myself when I started to look into how to get layers of pastel to build up. It just didn't seem possible, or easily possible. But I did my research, and that dog will hunt! Here are a few tips on how to get the layered effects...
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Two Women with Still Life by Willem de Kooning, pastel and charcoal on paper, 22 1/4 x 18 3/4 in., 1952. The artifice of line is one of the aspects of drawing that I am most in love with. The fact that we can take line—which doesn't exist in the natural world—and create works of art that...
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I remind myself that even artistic legends like Michelangelo struggled. When he did the Sistine ceiling in fresco, a medium he wasn't familiar with, the first few sessions were stressful and trying for the artist. But he persevered and created one of the wonders of the art world. It's okay. Breathe...
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Winter Radiance by Claudia Seymour, 2005, pastel, 15 x 11. What sort of fixative, if any, should pastel artists apply to finished works? "Used properly and sparingly, fixative is a godsend," says artist Claudia Seymour. Our experts agree—but they also offer words of caution about using...