I am not a weepy person. I think the years have coated me a bit in a tough, cynical shell, but sometimes I come across a painting that breaks through my armor, reminds me of why I became an artist and makes me want to run to my easel. My ideas suddenly bigger...
Composing simple shapes in a painting is one of the most important things you can do compositionally. And the hardest…… Having variety in shapes leads to a more interesting painting and to a more sophisticated-looking design. Here is a painting I did a while ago…...
Once upon a time there was a thought. She was small and wispy, just a ghost of a form. She was born in the kitchen among a scribble of words. She grew into a hope. Scrawny with scarred knees, running into consciousness whenever she could. A reminder of what could be....
Ok. Time for a vent about a pet peeve. I was recently online and ordering an art book and found myself amazed at how many books have “Made Easy” in the title. “Watercolor Made Easy”, “Pastels Made Easy”, “Abstracts Made Easy”, “Pencil Shavings Made Easy……...
I have often heard over the years….”How do you do it all? You have 3 kids, 2 cats, a beast of a house, a husband that runs a company, family health issues and yet you still paint…” Well, in the words of a famous Disney song, I have learned to “let it...
Pastel can’t be mixed like regular paint. We pastellists typically have to hunt and peck for the correct hue, value, temperature, tint and chroma in our available sticks. This can lead to the never-ending curse of trying to find the “perfect” stick and a sense that we...