Art Tip #106

The Tools 

I have a few jars of brushes but tend to stay with the assortment above.  I use Winsor Newton's Monarch series.  They are synthetic mongoose brushes and brights & filberts are my favorite.  The brights give me such a strong stroke & the filbert provides a wonderfully, fluid line.  While they can be a little pricey, they last forever.  I've been painting with 4 brushes for more than 3 years and they just keep getting better.  Without my brushes, I'd be lost.  Buy the best you can, treat them well & they can serve you for a long time.  

What's your favorite brush?

Art Tip #102

The Beauty of a Limited Palette

How many paint colors are on your palette?   I have 6 plus white.  A warm & cool of each primary.  I mix my own dark/black which is also the base of my greens.  I can usually obtain any color within 3 mixes and thereby avoid muddy or dead colors.  Having so many tubes of paint doesn't make it easier to get the right color, it fact makes it more difficult.  You can get overwhelmed with too many choices.  My limited palette is like having a good basic cake recipe.  You can mix it without thinking and then have the ability to make different cakes from that basic recipe.

I don't think of my palette as limited but as unlimited because I know how my paints react & compliment each other.  I've yet to come up with a color I can't mix.  I'm a much more confident painter with my limited palette.  What about you?

Art Tip #101

I've been teaching oil painting for 8 years.  After painting miles of canvas and trying to articulate those tips for my students, I thought would share these with you.  The lessons will range from talking color, loosening up, finding your style, painting from photos to how to clean your brushes.  Some will be profound, some funny and some abstract but hopefully all useful.

Tip #101
Thank God for baby wipes

Almost every student hears me say..."What a lovely shade of lipstick, is that Cad. Red Light? or you could do the "Got Milk" commercial, if milk color was Viridian".   Baby Wipes save the day.  My favorite wipes are Rite Aid's brand but Pampers works good too.  So before you leave the studio, make sure if there is paint on you, it at least coordinates with your outfit.

If you have a question that you would like me to answer, email me.