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If there were any artist, past or present, into whose studio I could magically transport myself and observe him paint, it would be Claude Monet. I have always been intrigued by his painting style, especially his highly textured and complex surfaces. When I lived in New York, I spent many an hour at the...
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Dutch still life painting set the standard for out-of-this-world virtuosity in the 17th century, and I'll never get over the unusual mix of objects artists chose to depict: food of all kinds, polished silverware and gleaming glass, embroidered and heavily worked tablecloths, and tons and tons of...
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Elton , 11 x 14, mixed media on gesso board, 2011. Yesterday was an interesting day for me. I thought I was near finished with a painting I had been working on for over three months, but when I sent it over to my agent in New York, who I call my third set of eyes, (hubby Matthew is my second) he called...
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Artists working today that I admire most all usually have one thing in common—they have developed their own unique contemporary practice while still utilizing classical methods. I've come to realize that I have a bias for artwork that has a well-thought-out narrative, but I'm also drawn...
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A painting brush isn't animate. It isn't going to teach me how to paint or go about painting art when no one is looking. It needs the hand of the artist to do its job. Penitent Mary Magdalene by Titian, 1560s, oil on canvas. But one thing a brush—by its very nature—is made for is...
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Old Cedar by Bill Guffey, oil, 18 x 24. Peasant by Joan Langdon, watercolor painting, 10.5 x 11.5. Tomiko by Adriana Guidi, oil on canvas panel, 14 x 18. That's Brian Neher's mantra for his upcoming free art contest , and it is one that I can certainly identify with. These are truly the three...
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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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When I asked friends and colleagues about landscape painting artists with the best use of color, the conversation got downright heated. Mostly because there's so much to consider when you look at each individual artist's color "theory" or purpose they have for the painting. Color schemes...
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The grapes establish dominance in an otherwise bland still life painting setup. Your still life! By following a few key guidelines when creating still life painting setups, you will be on your way to creating successful, dynamic paintings that really stand out. Here are a few pieces of advice to keep...
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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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Children on the Seashore by Joaquin Sorolla, oil on canvas, 1903 . I was once again reading through my copy of the catalog for the 1989 exhibition, The Painter Joaquin Sorolla , and came across this 1933 quote by John Paul Getty in an article called Creative Collecting . Ever the opportunist, Getty had...
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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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Eva Mullarky by Kristin Künc, oil on linen, 9 x 13, 2011. I can be a really hard sell when it comes to portraiture because from a beginner painter's perspective, I'm not always sure how to get the most out of a portrait painting session. So I wanted to talk to a close friend and amazing...
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Venus Awakes by Patricia Watwood, 2011, oil on canvas, 38 x 34. Karen in White by Paul McCormack, oil on canvas, 40 x 29. Enigma (Self-Portrait) by David Leffel, 2009, oil on canvas, 52 x 34. On Sunday, January 22 nd , the ACOPAL group will celebrate it's first museum show of American and Chinese...