I am getting ready to launch myself into The Painting A Day revolution. I am not a "joiner" by nature, but this movement really inspires me. It makes me want to paint more and that's a good thing.
If you don't mind, I have some questions for you. I need to ready myself for this process and want to be prepared.
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What made you want to take part in A Painting A Day?
What size work do you create on average?
Do you paint on canvas, canvas boards, gesso boards or something else?
How do you prep your surface?
Do you work from photos?
How do you sign your small works?
How long does it take for you to paint one Painting A Day on average?
When do you post your photo of the new work on your blog --right away or when it is dry? (Oil painters specifically)
Has creating a painting a day made you a better painter or a more disciplined painter or both?
Are there any challenges to working this way?
I thank you in advance for helping me work my way into this adventure. I realize that I have a ton of questions here, and I so appreciate you taking time for this.
I am wondering how
many of you sign your work. My regular (as in checkbook) signature is
very "flourishy". I swear I was one of the last kids of my generation
((I'm 45) to be schooled in penmanship. So the nuns taught us The Palmer
method. Anyone remember that? Well, it was even going out of fashion
then. I learned it well, but of course it took on a bit of its own
"flava" as the years went on.
So now with my middle name being
my maiden name, my signature is ungodly in length! So I have shortened
it by using my first initial and married name. Yawn but acceptable.
I
have trouble using a signing brush on my paintings.. Do I change my
signature and make it more "print"-like? That seems odd to me. I don't
know why this seems so important, but it does..To me a bad signature can really change a painting.
Do any of you oil painters ever use a signing PEN? I know of one oil painter that uses an oilbased pen of some sort.
I mostly paint in a "painterly" impressionistic way. I can paint super realistically, but I just don't dig it. So today, in line with my upcoming canine art show.. I decided to play around with Expressionism. (I hate labels..) So I decided to create an almost ABSTRACT piece. Its a real WORK IN PROGRESS, but it helped me get out of my own way so it was a fun exercise.
I have never painted this way before so this was very NEW to me.
I have been asked to do some paintings for the gallery part of a new upscale doggie daycare. This is going to be one of three locations and they want to showcase my canine art! Cool, I thought.. So I better get busy and start painting dogs and canine themes. Luckily, its up to me as to WHAT to paint. I uploaded two in progress pieces.. One "Waiting" is a small 8 x 10.
The other is "The Poet", modeled after Henry, my Basset Hound. It is 18 x 18 also a work in progress, but I am "rounding the bend" with this one.
I understand artistic property and being protective of one's creation, I really do.
But I just got back from a small art fair near my home and I have to say, some artist's really take it too far. I was taking photographs for my own reference--not closeups of anyone's specific art, but long shots of the booths, and folks rambling around. Nice light, good for a painting I thought.. I asked most everyone permission to shoot near their work or booth and almost everyone said "No." Now I am a very amiable person, not harsh or pushy (unless I need to be), so I backed off and did not shoot anywhere at the fair--except for crowd shots and shots of animals.
My husband is a special effects makeup artist and his field is VERY hush hush and rarely shares ideas and concepts. But he does. He is a teacher and shares everything with everyone. It has not hurt his career in the least.
What's the deal with all this insecurity? Is it really a problem out there.. the stealing of artistic ideas? Please illuminate me oh wise ones!
Artist Instructional DVDs: Love 'Em or Not So Much?
DATE: 05/18/2008 00:56:22 / MOOD: full of life
I love learning from other painters.. I like learning one or two really useful things from other painters to make my paintings more interesting, better or fun.
I just watched a Painting The Figure DVD by Scott Burdick. Really good stuff. Just watching him paint was interesting. How artist approach their canvas and how they work really interests me.
I learned some interesting things I can use. I like how he works wet into wet..And how he forces himself to do big shapes first. I know I do this, but I like hearing that someone of his caliber still struggles with things. It always challenges him. ANd unlike other artist DVDs, Scott seems to really LIKE teaching.
I am watching another video series with Elin Peterson. I will review one tomorrow or Monday. Do you like certain artist teaching DVDs? Not as a replacement for learning, but in addition to workshops, schools, classes and painting on your own--?
Day Four of my "Back In The Studio" recovery program. All going well so far. No masterpieces, but I am loving the act of creating again. I love faces and figures in paintings.. Drawn to them really. But I am easing back into them with painting my dogs.. Pure unconditional love that's what is getting me back into painting breathing beings again. I started with my aging princess Pug, Annie . A small 6" x 6" canvas.
Pretty challenging actually, to work small. Today, I begin Henry--my soulful poet of a Basset Hound. I have never painted animals before, so its been a journey for me.
Ahhhh, I love the smell of oil paint in the morning
DATE: 05/07/2008 15:29:14 / MOOD: happy
Okay,I may be weird. But I love the smell of oilpaints, linseed oil and the mixture of the two! I am back in the studio for the second day and to walk in with my cup of coffee and to smell that "studio" smell was joyous to me. I missed it so.
Working on small (6 x 6) practice canvas boards..Nothing to show, but getting back into the swing of things is glorious.
I think one goal I would like to set soon, is to become a "painting a day" painter. Small, managable works/sketches (maybe to become bigger pieces later. I love to work LARGE so working small is new to me. Fun, though.
