Art Tip #119

Set for Success

 I see students struggle because they set themselves up for failure rather than success.  This might seem trivial and/or obvious but here's my advise.

• Don't bite off more than you can chew.  Many painters pick incredibly complicated subject matter, work from horrible photos, try to create/change a subject without the necessary knowledge or ability.
• HAVE A PLAN for your painting, do composition & value sketches, determine focal point
• Don't include the entire value scale in a painting
• Just because something is in a photo or you see it (when painting from life) doesn't mean that it should be included.  Ask yourself, does it serve a purpose for making the best painting?
• Palette - spend time getting to know your palette (By now you know I'm a limited palette kinda gal) but no matter the # tubes of paint on your palette, learn how they interact with each other.  
• Don't use a color just because it's pretty...pretty is overrated.
• Brushes - once again, get to know what your brushes can do.  Some artists have the worst looking brushes & create masterpieces.  
• Best tools - buy the best you can afford is trumped by knowing what tools you have & how to use them to their best ability
• Consistency in paint - I consistently use the same brand of paint, I know what to expect. Not all hues are the same (there can be huge differences of the same hue across brands)
• Get comfortable with your subject.  Don't just dive right in.  I spend time with my subject & I'm always amazed at what I see after just a few minutes of observation.
• Painting is not a speed contest.  If you've only got an hour to do a painting, don't try to complete a 16x20.  Perhaps a quick 6x8 study would benefit your understanding for a larger piece.  
• Don't let your only goal be to complete a painting.  So many students just want to have a finished piece but if you're flying through to just reach the end, then you've undoubtedly lost a lot along the way.  

Composition, value, color, information,shapes, variety & application are pieces of the puzzle.  They come together to form a work of art.  Jumping straight to the easel rarely guarantees a successful painting.

Remember...HOW TO EAT AN ELEPHANT?  

ONE BITE AT A TIME!

Art Tip #115

Do you think while you mix color?

The next few posts are going to hopefully get you to think & evaluate more about how you approach color mixing.  Here are a few questions to ask yourself.  I will be breaking these questions down into individual posts as we go along.  Just the tip of the iceberg.

1. Do you premix the majority of your palette?  Premixing helps you harmonize your painting.  Having the entire color scheme mixed next to each other allows you to see the spectrum of values, hues & saturation.   It also weeds out any "Screaming Mimi" colors that don't work before they hit the canvas.  This will help keep your painting "fresh" because you aren't constantly scrapping & remixing colors.                                                                                                      

2.  Do you have temperature variety in your palette.  Ex. If you are painting a pomegranate, did you just mix a range of light, halftone & dark reds or did you think about shifting the temperature & saturation of the reds as well?      

3.  Do you think about the saturation of colors?  Putting the purest of color in your focal point will work but if what's around it is just as saturated doesn't that dilute the focal point?            

4.  Do you mix colors that will be next to each other on the canvas?  I tend to mix color from my focal point out.  Mix colors that lie next to each other in order to judge value, temperature & saturation.

5.  Do you mix with a color in mind?  A student recently asked me how to mix Cerulean Blue.  I said I didn't have a clue.  I don't mix to a particular "color name".  My goal to mix the correct color for a specific spot in a painting.  I never think "Oh, I need Cerulean Blue" there.  Instead, I'm thinking that the color needs to be more warm or cool or more saturated or less or needs to shift in value.  Keep tube colors out of your head, let what's next to the color dictate what direction you go.

If you were to watch me mix color or paint, you'd think I was just letting the paint flow without a care in the world.  Reality is that my brain is going full speed.  I constantly have a running list of questions.  Not thinking is the worst thing for me.  It gets me in trouble every time.  While some of it is intuitive that comes from years of building my fundamentals but it doesn't allow me to turn my brain off.  So grab your palette knife & start mixing but bring your brain along for the ride.

Art Tip #108

In the Black

I use a limited palette which doesn't include black.  I make my own for several reasons.  One, I can control the temperature of my black.  From the photo, you can see the the cooler black/greys on the left with the warm version on the right.  I also find that tube black can be such a dead color & my blacks have life to them.  My standard mixture is 2 parts Ultramarine to 1 part Burnt Sienna (this will vary with the brand that you use).  This is also the base for my green (mother color) mixture which will be my next art tip.  I make just about every green that I need from this main color.  Hard to believe but greens are never an issue for me.  

 If you struggle with mixing believable & harmonious greens be sure to catch next Tuesday's post.  Happy weekend.

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 #104

Butter!!!!

Several people have asked what the warm yellow is on my palette.  It's Indian Yellow.  If you are unfamiliar with Indian Yellow, let me introduce you to the wonderful possibilities of this tube of paint.  It's a transparent warm yellow which compliments the opaque Cad. Yellow Light on my palette. 

Mixing Ind. Yellow w/ Titanium White and call it my BUTTER.  It's an ideal way to lighten colors without adding pure white, it's the base of my transparent "mother color" green mixture (another tip for later) & it mixes to the most natural yellow that I seem unable to sufficiently achieve with the Cad. Yellow colors.  Many years ago, I realized that my palette was heavily weighted with opaque colors & in the process of switching out for more transparent paints, I discovered Indian Yellow.  I only use Gamblin Indian Yellow.  There is such huge swing in the quality & color with other brands.  

 I find Gamblin's Indian Yellow to be the most pure hue.  It's such a personal preference but if you aren't happy with your paint...what's the point?

Do you love Indian Yellow as much as I do?

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?