Observation

The longer I paint, the more I find myself observing and soaking up my surroundings.  There is a quiet cafe in my neighborhood that provides me the chance to just observe life as it passes by.  Last week, I took my drawing class there.  They naturally assumed that they would be drawing. While they did some quick gesture sketches, they rarely had a pen/pencil in hand.  We watched, absorbed and generally discussed what we saw.  One exercise I had them do was to stand for 3 minutes and just look.  They assumed that they would have to come back and sketch what they saw. Instead, I simply asked them to describe what they saw in one word. Many came back with trees, lady walking a dog, buildings. They were so focused on things that they missed the feeling of just standing & allowing themselves to observe the overall scene in front of them. Anybody can do a painting or drawing of trees or buildings but if you can invoke a feeling then you will have a more successful piece of art. About 20 minutes later, I had them do it again. This time they were more descriptive. Hustle, streaming light, patterns. Naturally students are concerned about the actual objects or subject matter but to become an artist one must place their on stamp on the scene before them.  Learning to see as an artist is a necessary tool for your toolbox but one often overlooked. So take time this week without a brush, pencil or camera and just observe. It's become one of my best tools.  

Click here to see the first oil sketch of my series "Mornings on Green Street". They are the result of my observations from my favorite cafe.

Guest Contributor - Kim VanDerHoek Art Tip

It's been a little crazy at my house as of late, so I'm grateful to have such wonderful artists willing to share their art tips with me.  Today's tip is from a wonderful California painter, Kim VanDerHoek.  Kim is an avid plein air painter & she has some great tips for “How to Nail Down Things That Move When Plein Air Painting”.  Thanks, Kim and Happy Painting.

"Quiet Day at the Cove"

"Maritime Reflections"

When painting outdoors everything is in a constant state of change and it’s part of your job as an artist to capture the essence of what is there while doing your best to create a successful painting.

It’s challenging trying to paint a view that changes every 15 minutes; here are some tips to help you overcome that challenge.

1. Observe the scene when you are setting up your easel. Often artists are drawn to a view because of a beautiful light condition, a shadow pattern, a bold color note or other dramatic element. By the time your easel is set up and you have a brush in your hand the element that initially caught your eye might have already moved or lost some of its drama. Paying attention to the scene, thinking about how you want to paint it, carefully observing it before you get started will help you remember what that fleeting element looked like when it first grabbed your attention and before it started changing.

2. Have a plan of attack. If there is an element or lighting condition, like a shadow, reflection, cloud, etc., in your painting that will move as you are working it’s a good idea to draw that element onto your canvas as part of your sketch or, if there is time, create a thumbnail value sketch on paper before you begin mixing color. That way you have a guide that will help keep you on track even as the view changes.

3. Paint it right now. Don’t wait until you are 3/4 of the way through your painting to start working on that fleeting element. Paint it in while it is still fresh in your mind and before it’s changed so much that you’ve forgotten why you wanted to include it in your painting in the first place. This is especially important for things that are key elements in your painting that are a focal point. How devastating would it be if you had a boat as the focal point in your painting and you spent most of your working time painting in the water under the boat only to have the boat owner hop in and sail your focal point away before you could get around to painting it?

4. 4. Don’t chase the light. Highlights and shadows are elements that always change in plein air landscape painting. For example, if you’ve been working for several hours the shadow underneath a tree could move from one side of the tree to the other during that time. Be mindful of where the highlight needs to be on the tree casting the shadow in relation to it. It’s your job to make sure the light is consistent in your painting. If a tree has a shadow on one side, then the highlight needs to be on the other. Don’t get caught up painting in every changing lighting condition you see or you might end up with a tree that has a highlight and shadow on the same side, which won’t make visual sense to anyone viewing your painting.

"Have a Seat"

For more about Kim & her work:

Kim lives in Orange, California with her husband and two children. She has a BFA in 

Illustration from the California College of the Arts in Oakland, California. She began 

painting en plein air because it combined her love of being outside and creating art. "I 

enjoy the challenges plein air painting poses. Dealing with the weather, changing light 

and the other hurdles of outdoor painting has forced me to learn to make decisions 

quickly, to paint with commitment and above all, to have a plan for each painting." Kim 

feels that her plein air work has, in turn, strengthened her studio paintings.

Kim’s website – www.KimVanDerHoek.com

Kim’s Blog - http://vanderhoekart.blogspot.com