Mary Mulvihill - Temecula Artist

Peter Wileman

2012-01-02T09:17:00.000-08:00

I've discovered a new landscape artist, Peter Wileman. The links below are to the video promos for his two videos. They are short but he says some true things. (Things I say!)

Wileman's book is "Painting Light in Oil". He works the design process and pays attention to the abstract composition behind the painting. The bold shapes are reminiscent of Colley Whisson and the subject matter and light are reminiscent of David Curtis. Curtis focuses more on the envelope of light, or atmosphere. The abstract focus of Wileman's paintings give them a very contemporary feel while still being representational. The pictures below click up to a larger size.

Plateau Reconnaissance

2011-09-21T16:24:00.000-07:00

June, Vicki and I were at the Santa Rosa Plateau by 7:30 a.m. with cameras and sketchbooks. My goal was to check out various vantage points at that time of day. The sun was well up and the light was beautiful with lots of color. The plateau needs that color because, at this time of year, the grass has weathered to browns and grays.

We checked out four locations. Stop One was the two trailheads from the main entrance at the Visitors Center. The trails were too "in the trees" to offer a vantage point. We could see only tree trunks, not entire trees. Along the path the vegetation was waist high and prevented a view from any direction. It has shade and possibilities for an intimate, close-up landscape. (Visitor Center, henceforth.)

Stop Two was at the south Sylvan Meadows parking lot. A half a mile hike, uphill, revealed a vista of large hills, dotted with California oaks and long views of the distant mountain ranges. Great for the iconic California landscape. The light, however, was either looking into the sun or with your back to the sun. The scene was flat. This might be a good location in the late afternoon. (Sylvan South)

The view from the south Sylvan Meadows lot, looking across the street to the north Sylvan Meadow parking lot was more interesting. The shadows were falling from left to right across the scene. No distant hills, though. It is a mid-distance view of oak trees. This is a short, level hike from the parking lot. (Sylvan North)

Stop Three was from the Vernal Pools parking lot, on the Los Santos trail. A short, level hike of about a quarter of a mile ended in a close range view of very rolling hills, studded with oak trees in the close to mid distance. The drama of the sweep of the hills would make a dynamic painting. (Vernal/Los Santos)

Stop Four was at the end of Tenaja where June, Tim and I painted earlier in the year. This is a view of a meadow and rock-studded hills in the foreground, with oaks in the middle distance and a far view of the San Jacinto mountains. (Tenaja Meadow)

By 9:00 a.m. the shadows were shortening and the color from the light was almost gone. When we finished at 10:30, the light was flat. If we want the morning light, we need to be set-up by 7:00 or 7:30 a.m. and finished by 9:30 a.m. June and I are going to return to all of these locations to assess them in the late afternoon light.

So, for morning color spots we will need to start early on the first day of the Plateau workshop. We will schedule a late afternoon color spot session, too. I will be taking photos in both the morning and late afternoon, for you to work from in the studio part of the workshop.

I am going to create a Flickr account for plein air photos from our locations, so you can access them all. I believe I can set up a group that will allow all of us to download photos, so we can share them.

When we went on hiatus in June, all of you had reached the point where the next step was to work the process of making a painting. We have the difficulty of being without a classroom, but the potential to move to the next level with the plein air and studio work is huge. In the coming months, we will return to our several locations (MIssion, Plateau, Fallbrook, Temecula wine country) in the different seasons and build a body of work that really comes out of what you know.

The attached photos may not show the best light, but you can get a feel for each location.

September Paint-outs

2011-08-27T17:16:00.000-07:00

I will be painting at a number of locations in September.

Thursday, September 8th, Rancho Bernardo Winery, with the San Diego Art Department, 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.; 13330 Paseo del Verano Norte, San Diego. Members and friends.
Saturday, September 10th, Tuna Harbor Park, San Diego, with the California Art Club, 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m; Tuna Lane at the foot of G Street, off North Harbor Drive in the Marina District. Members and friends.
Wednesday, September 21st, Santa Rosa Plateau, 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Students of Mary Mulvihill.
Saturday and Sunday, September 24th and 25th, Los Angeles County Fair, with the California Art Club, 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.; 1101 West McKinley Avenue, Pomona. Registered members and friends. (I'm registered!)
Wednesday, September 28th, San Juan Capistrano Mission, 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.; 26801 Ortega Highway, Capistrano. Students of Mary Mulvihill.

Anticipation Frustration

2011-07-14T23:39:00.000-07:00

I literally had placed the second brushstroke on a canvas, when life butted its head into my plans for the day. There was no workaround except to accept and let go of art until tomorrow. But, all day I felt anticipation frustration. There are times when I don't know what to paint, or how to paint or even why I want to paint. I find myself doing anything but paint. I've been known to count chocolate chips. Those days have a pain all their own. But today I was bursting to go hammer and tongs to work through some paintings with issues. Design issues. I felt the frustration of not painting ... all ... day ... long. I wanted to kick life in the teeth. I will paint tomorrow. The flame is still burning.

Studio Day

2011-07-14T09:20:00.000-07:00

My plans for the day are to work with my plein air sketches and sketchbook and develop comps for larger paintings. It is a learning experience to find a rhythm between information gathering (plein air, comps) and painting creation. There are so many more ideas than time to create paintings.

Yesterday, while driving to an appointment, I saw a beautiful cloud formation of flat topped, mushrooming cloud columns, behind the hills. No camera. No time. An hour later on the way home the clouds had dissipated. Plein air is the practice of opportunity. Always be prepared.

This morning was the fifth day in a row of "June gloom", so I've had no chance to go back to the Plateau for the morning light. Every night I'm packed and ready to go. Sooner or later ...

Painting on the Plateau

2011-06-30T10:45:00.000-07:00

It was a great day painting on the Santa Rosa Plateau. Because the majority of us managed to get lost, we did start later than hoped, so the sun was already high and the colors a bit flat. There was so much light that the paintings were high key. However, we were there and I told everyone to go for the color spots and paint what they saw. Everyone did great. Our biggest problem was umbrellas blowing over in the wind. Painting on location is addictive!

Tim and June on the Plateau with proper art gear!

My painting mid-point; light changed; time to stop.

Mary's idea; Gene's execution.

Are You and the Light on the Same Page?

2011-06-28T00:36:00.000-07:00

I went to San Juan Capistrano twice this week. One morning was overcast and almost foggy. The other morning had brilliant sun.

On the gray morning, the flowers stood out. They were fluorescent against all of the grays. The flowers were all I saw. The Mission architecture faded into the background. There was no way to paint anything but the flowers. They were the focal point.

On the sunny morning, I took my mother because I specifically wanted to show her the flowers because they had been so beautiful. They were still there but, amidst the brilliant light reflecting off the Mission walls and the pathways, the flowers were lost. They didn't dominate the scene. The light on the white-washed walls made the architecture dominant.

As much as we are the master of our paintings, sometimes nature dictates the focus. It would have been difficult to make a painting about the Mission on the overcast day, and also difficult to make a painting about the flowers on the brilliant day.

Look very closely at the light and the weather when painting on location. A painting is a story, but some of the story is written before the artist arrives. Some ideas might succeed better on a different day.

Ralph Love Plein Air Competition June 24, 25 and 26

2011-06-20T08:04:00.001-07:00

The City of Temecula with The Arts Council of Temecula Valleys has announced the 4th Annual Ralph Love Plein Air competition and auction.

The competition takes place within the boundaries of Old Town Temecula. Artists may register at 6:00 p.m. on Friday evening, June 24th, at Main and Mercedes Streets; or at 8:00 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday, June 25th and 26th. Paint to dusk on Friday and Saturday and until 3:00 p.m. on Sunday. The auction and award ceremony is at 4:00 p.m.

For information, call City of Temecula at (951) 506-5100. Registration is $15 per day or $25 for both days.

Idyllwild

2011-06-11T21:56:00.000-07:00

Idyllwild was great! I could see something to paint in every direction. I'm thinking ... WORKSHOP!!!

Plein Air Supplies

2011-06-09T18:59:00.000-07:00

Plein air painting requires the usual painting supplies, but pack as lightly as you can. I usually squeeze out plenty of paint in the Masterson palette and leave all tubes except white at home. Or try something smaller like the pill boxes with a limited palette. Every plein air artist has a personal plein air equipment solution. Here's what I bring:

easel

TV tray

Not needed if easel has a palette rest.

chair or folding stool

If you like to sit.

umbrella

palette

paint

brushes

Bristle filberts #2, #4 (two), #6 (two) and #8
canvas panels
6 x 8", 8 x 10" or 9 x 12"

palette knife

palette scraper
level
To check that canvas is level.

odorless mineral spirits

paper towels

sketchbook & pencil

viewfinder

black glass and color isolator
plastic grocery bag for used paper towels

hat

sunscreen

water

camera

bungee cord and masking tape

cart to carry all of this stuff

A word about umbrellas. They are a bother but really do make a difference in your ability to see color. I have been through half a dozen and have yet to find one without a hitch. The problem is the wind. If the umbrella can't be pushed into the ground, it requires a weighted base. I try to find a place in the shade to paint, so I don't need an umbrella. The cloisters at the Mission provide shade. I painted from the shady side of the street in North Park. If I must paint in the sun on a hard surface, I improvise a support for the umbrella - hence the bungee cord and tape. You can tape it to your cart handle. At University Heights I bungeed the umbrella to a parking meter.

As to the umbrella itself, some artists prefer white and some black. I prefer black. Sargent and Sorolla used white. Sergei Bongart recommended a cheap beach umbrella with the underside painted with black house paint. It required replacing every year. Both white and black plein air umbrellas are available through online art stores. Most clamp to the easel which I have found to be a dangerous proposition. Think Mary Poppins. Start with anything you have available and devise a solution from experience.

Kevin MacPherson's Limited Palette

2011-06-09T11:59:00.000-07:00

If you are looking for a smaller palette to take on location, try Kevin MacPherson's:

cadmium yellow light (CYL)

cadmium red light (CRL)

alizarin crimson (AC)

ultramarine blue (UB)

phthalo green (PhG)

titanium white (TW)

While limited to five colors, this palette is very flexible. You can mix high chroma and toned versions of the secondary colors because it includes both a warm and cool red. Phthalo green adds the ability to mix high chroma greens and ultra darks and blacks. Phthalo green also makes mauves and violets when mixed with AC.

Another limited palette is the one we used for the color block exercises:

cadmium yellow lemon (CYLe)

cadmium orange (CO)

cadmium red light (CRL)

alizarin crimson (AC)

ultramarine blue (UB)

phthalo blue (PhB)

titanium white (TW)

CYLe adds the ability to mix very cool greens; PhB adds the ability to mix high chroma greens and blue greens - because red bias has been eliminated. You have to mix warm yellows, however, because CYL has been eliminated from the palette.

You will develop your own system for working on location. Last week June used a pill box to carry a limited palette, putting one color in each compartment. Look for a pill box that has a separate lid for each compartment. Jo-Ann's carries them in the craft container section. The pill box moved around while painting, so attach it to the palette with several Velcro dots. Between painting sessions put the pill box in a Ziplock bag and store it in the freezer. The paint will keep indefinitely. The pill box eliminates having to bring the palette seal and paint tubes. Tape a piece of palette paper or freezer paper to a smaller board for a palette, open the pill box and you are ready to paint.

Remember, we are looking for color notes and painting color comps, not large paintings, on location.

Sorolla in San Diego

2011-06-09T10:18:00.000-07:00

The San Diego Museum of Art exhibition "From El Greco to Dali" will include ten paintings by Sorolla. The exhibit runs from July 9th to November 6th, 2011. All of the paintings are from the Pérez Simón collection and not previously seen in San Diego.

Joaquin Sorlla, "At the Beach"

Pérez Simón Collection

San Diego Museum of Art

Hey, Carlson Off the Top of My Head!

2011-06-08T16:35:00.000-07:00

Rather than take the time to dig this out of John Carlson, Carlson's Guide to Landscape Painting, let's remember what we've talked about before.

On a sunny day, the light from the sky passes through the sky and lands on the earth. The horizontal ground plane is very bright. It is hard to look at. You have to squint. But, you can easily look at the blue part of the sky (not into the sun) because the light has passed through it.

On an overcast day, the light from the sky stays in the sky. The horizontal ground plane does not reflect a lot of light. You can easily look at it. However, you squint when you look at the sky because the light is still in it.

So, what does this mean? On a hazy day the sky is very bright and the ground plane has lower values than you would expect. It is a gray day, but there are still darks and accents. Don't mistake overcast for foggy. Those are two different situations. An overcast day can have dark shadow values. A foggy or misty day has dark values more in the middle value range.

Also, on a hazy day, the light source is cool. It is the sky and not the sun. The shadows have a lot of warmth in them. This morning the rose garden, the sky was very cool - and I saw crimsons and oranges in the foreground shadows. On a sunny day, the warm light from the sun overpowers the cool, secondary light from the sky - and the shadows appear cool in comparison.

Today, I didn't use an umbrella. I've learned my lesson. My paintings are darker than I thought. There was so much light in the sky, I could see colors very well in my painting. But, because of that light my eyes closed down. Indoors, the paintings look much darker and less colorful in the shadows. Oh, that dratted umbrella. It is a must.

The Value of Plein Air Painting

2011-06-08T15:53:00.000-07:00

I have been plein air painting, in North Park, University Heights, Temecula and my neighborhood. I was immediately reminded how valuable it is. The location has more information than a photo ever shows. It is true information, not manipulated by the camera's limitations. The answer is always there, as close as correctly observing the color spots. There is an immediacy and trueness to plein air work that studio painting, no matter how accomplished, never attains. Plein air painting is a bother, with equipment problems, weather difficulties and carting mounds of stuff. Worse, there isn't always a bathroom. The gains, however, far outweigh the difficulties.

Information about the paint-outs will be on the blog. The class is in hiatus while I assess what next, after the closing of the gallery. In January, I changed the class to a learning intensive format, with less time for individual projects. The results were rewarding.

I will have several on locations classes, in addition to the paint-outs, in the next few months. The first is on June 29th and will be at the Santa Rosa Plateau. Your interest level directly affects my decision to continue teaching.

If you are serious about becoming a better painter, painting on location is a learning laboratory. It is always easier and less intimidating to go out with other painters than it is to go out alone. Jump in!

Plein Air Painting, Day 1

2011-06-05T12:43:00.000-07:00

The first day of my new painting life ...

I get up at 5:00 a.m. to be at University Heights for the early light. I get up this early about twice a decade, but this is my new life. The car does not start. AAA arrives, eventually, and jumps the battery. The dome light is on, but we can't turn it off. AAA has a solution - rip it out. It is in my ash tray. I arrive at University Heights at 10:30 a.m. The sun is overhead, the light is flat.

There is nothing but parallel parking in University Heights. The spaces are five feet long. I don't parallel park. There are parking meters in University Heights. I have two pennies and a 1 Euro that Jen gave me in my wallet. I find a spot in front of a garage driveway, but the drive has a trailer parked in it that has flat tires. They are more than flat; they are vented. I figure no one is going in or out.

My parking spot is at the bottom of a very long hill. The rest of the California Art Club is painting at the top of the hill. I decide to paint right there, in front of my garage. After all, a good artist can make anything work. The light is flat anyway.

Wind. Wind, wind, wind. I tape; I weight; I bungee. I hold the umbrella with my left hand while I paint with my right. My umbrella is vented, but I realize that the only venting that would work in this wind would be to slash the umbrella to bits.

I paint; I isolate; I relate. It's working. The painting looks great. I feel great. I am finished in time for the critique. The wind is not finished. My easel rises two feet into the air. The palette flies one way and slides down the front of me. The easel somersaults backward into the street. The turp jar spouts like a geyser and empties on my painting. Poor easel. It is ripped in two at the hinges. Poor painting. It is a meaningless puddle.

I skip the critique.

***

All of you should paint en plein air more often. It is good for you.

San Diego Art Institute C-Note Sale June 4th

2011-06-02T21:27:00.001-07:00

San Diego Art Institute's C-Note Sale

June 4th - 5:00 to 8:00 p.m.

Preview June 3rd & 4th - 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Runs June 3rd to June 19th, 2011

Admission $3

Twice a year the San Diego Art Institute holds a fundraiser and art sale of work donated by their artists. All art sells for $100, $200 and $300. 50% goes to fund SDAI's educational programs and 50% to the artists. The video below is from a previous year, but the C-Note looks like a lot of fun. To have your pick, the preview and opening night look like the way to go! I love seeing the little girl so excited about buying a piece of art.

The SDAI is located at 1439 El Prado, San Diego, CA 92101. Their phone number (619) 236-0011.

Thoughts on Landscape

2011-05-31T19:22:00.000-07:00

The landscape thumbnails we have been doing in class have brought up a lot of discussion points. Several of you asked if I could make a list of them to refer to. Landscape is a large topic and these points are only a jumping off place. Refer to my blog post on "Reference Books for Landscape" to learn more. John Carlson is indispensable.

Carlson's Guide to Landscape Painting

Questions that need answers:

· What is the direction and angle of the light?

· Is there a foreground, mid-ground and background?

· Where is your focal point?

· What is the story? There can be only one.

Design:

· Always design inside a design space (the four edges of your thumbnail or canvas).

· Always design to a ratio. A different ratio means a different design.

· Seek balance, but not symmetry.

· Use the steelyard balance. Think of your shapes as if they were on a teeter-totter. The greater the weight of the shape, the more compensatory actions will be needed to balance it.

· Think of everything in terms of dominance – dominant, subordinate, sub-subordinate. This applies to everything (value, color, texture, temperature, chroma, shapes)

· Avoid half and half in anything.

Distribution of values:

· When designing in B&W, initially think in terms of light, medium and dark value shapes. Do not divide them equally. Think dominant, subordinate, sub-subordinate. This is referred to as Papa Bear, Mama Bear, Baby Bear or Gallon, Quart, Pint.

Carlson’s Angles of the Landscape:

· I refer to them as planes rather than angles, but in terms of light theory or how the sun relates to the landscape determine which planes are directly facing the sun (light); which planes are in the process of turning away from the sun (halftone or medium); and which planes are turned away from the sun (dark).

· In landscape the three types of planes correspond to vertical planes (trees, sides of buildings), inclined planes (hills, angled rooftops) and horizontal (the ground, the flat top of a rock). Carlson called these the angles of the landscape. The fourth angle is the vault of the sky, which is a secondary light source.

· Before you paint, know which angle/plane of the landscape corresponds to which value.

· Remember that while you must have three values for the three planes, those three values can be close together or far apart. The closer two values are, the more the eye will link them. The sky can create a fourth value or link with one of the other three values.

Randall Sexton

2011-05-31T15:41:00.000-07:00

I first saw the art of Randall Sexton at the LPAPA Laguna plein air event. He does many things well, but I especially admire his design, use of shapes, how he links the darks, brushwork and color. He sees paintings in things most artists would pass by.

You can see Randall Sexton's paintings locally at the Debra Huse Gallery on Balboa Island. His complete gallery listings are on his website. Here are a few paintings from his website.

"Casa di Orsa" by Randall Sexton

"Crawdads" by Randall Sexton

"Puppets Here" by Randall Sexton

"School is Out" by Randall Sexton

"Spirit of 76" by Randall Sexton

June 1st Class

2011-05-31T13:57:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow is my last class. It has been a seven year ride full of learning, great experiences and good friends. I have no plans at this time for future classes but will keep you informed about what develops next. I believe my next foray into teaching will be along the lines of an atelier where students make a one year commitment to be part of a painting life for a year. This will involve a weekly class, but also a studio day, and a monthly formal critique and a monthly long form demo. It will be an opportunity to develop skills to the next level. Thank you to everyone who has been part of the past seven years!

Class tomorrow will continue in the same vein as the past two weeks. Bring B&W comps from the photo we chose or a photo of your choice. I will review them and you will then do several color comps in class. After lunch I will do a landscape demo.

CAC San Diego Quarterly Paint-out June 4th

2011-05-30T15:20:00.001-07:00

The California Art Club San Diego Quarterly Paint-out is Saturday, June 4th, from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Members and non-members are welcome to paint. Artists should meet at 4441 Park Boulevard in University Heights, San Diego. Parking is along the street.

The paint-out is followed by a critique at the Athenaeum's San Diego Studio, 4441 Park Boulevard.

San Diego Chapter Co-Chair, Pat Kelly, is hosting the paint-out and critique. Contact her at patmkellystudio@sbcglobal.net.

University Heights is one of San Diego's older neighborhoods, along the north edge of Balboa Park, with a revitalized, historic main street and bungalow neighborhood. This video gives an overview of University Park.

Idyllwild and San Clemente Plein Air

2011-05-27T16:13:00.000-07:00

I am officially registered for the Idyllwild and San Clemente Plein Air events.

The Idyllwild Plein Air is Saturday, June 10th. Artists will paint on location from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The champagne reception and sale, at the Quiet Creek Inn Gallery, is Sunday, June 11th from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Lily Rock, visible from many vantage points in Idyllwild, is a popular subject matter for the artists. Idyllwild has over a dozen different galleries and many excellent restaurants.

The 10th annual San Clemente Plein Air starts with a Quick Draw on June 18th, from 12:30 to 3:30 p.m. Artists will paint in front of the San Clemente Gallery and along Avenida del Mar to the Pier Bowl. The Quick Draw paintings will be on display for judging and sale at 4:30 p.m. Any paintings not sold will continue for sale in the gallery until June 25th.

The San Clemente event continues through the week with the Gala awards and sales event on Saturday, June 25th, 6:00 to 8:30 p.m. in the Community Center Auditorium. Tickets for the Gala are $35 and include catered food and drink - but also first chance to purchase paintings. The San Clemente event is nationally known, with $13,000 in prizes and attracts professional as well as local artists. Any painting not sold will be on show in the gallery through August 5th.

See you there!

A Good Day

2011-05-22T01:50:00.000-07:00

The reception for the North Park Plein Air at the San Diego Art Department on Ray Street was lovely. The gallery looked wonderful. Thank you to Marjorie Taylor, Andrea Rodriguez Chamberlin and Lesley Anderson for planning and executing the event. The judges were Anthony Bernal of the San Diego Art Institute, and Pat Kelly and Jeff Yeoman of the California Art Club.

I was very pleased to win First Place for my plein air painting, "Ray Street Afternoon" and also the California Art Club Award for Painting Excellence.

Again, thank you to SDAD, SDAI and CAC.

Are You Playing to Play or Playing to Win?

2011-05-16T15:22:00.000-07:00

Good question. It comes from Crys William's blogpost, "Bringing a Knife to a Gunfight". I can think of a half a dozen things to apply the question to. Playing to play or playing to win ...

My art. I let every head game in the book come between myself and the canvas. Stop thinking about the shows, the judges, the sales and focus only on what I can learn from putting myself on the canvas.

My teaching. I'm a good teacher, but I've been the best teacher I've ever been since January of this year when I focused only on what the students needed, rather than on what they wanted or what I thought they would pay for.

My students. Show them again and again that the process will get them where they want to go. Focusing on the product, the praise and the masterpieces will only get in their way.

A gallery. Unless it can self-sustain, the plug can be pulled at any time. Make the hard decisions. Be a business.

We Made the News ... Kind of!

2011-05-15T18:40:00.000-07:00

The North County Times took some publicity shots of the art league gallery and the back of my plaid shirt has had its fifteen minutes of fame. Helen Bancroft is seated next to me and June Kakowski is in the background. My students on the other side of the room - your day will come!

What Can I Say?

2011-05-13T16:35:00.000-07:00

A brief book on watercolor but full of advice on using values and composition. It just may be most productive 38 cents you ever spend. Everything in it applies to oil paint. I will be discussing some of it in class.

Claude Croney, "My Way with Watercolor ... a Three Value Approach".

The Landscape Process

2011-05-13T14:10:00.000-07:00

While we will be doing a number of landscape paintings during the next eight weeks, the process for each is the same.

Do a same ratio comp of the photograph. Block in the shapes of the large masses using only black and white. Aim for 3 to 5 main shapes. This comp will give you an overview of what you have to work with. There are no details or middle values in this comp.

Do a series of black and white comps using the shapes, adding, eliminating, moving, changing the aspect (horizontal versus vertical) and the ratio (1:2, 3:4, 5:6). Use three values: light, medium and dark. Again, use no details. This is the design phase and you have total freedom to try any possibility.

Choose the comp you feel is the most successful and, using the same canvas ratio, paint a small color comp of the painting. Adding color adds the properties of temperature (warm and cool) and chroma (bright and dull). You will find that adding color will affect your design. Chroma may change the balance. Colors become cooler and lighter as they recede (aerial perspective). This may change the balance. The color comp is an opportunity to try things out. Maybe you want to change the key or the contrast. Try several comps.

Not every landscape that you take through the design process may end up as a studio painting. Take many designs through the black and white comp and color comp stages. The very best become the basis for a studio landscape painting.

North Park Plein Air Competition

2011-05-13T13:07:00.001-07:00

The 3rd Annual Plein Air North Park is in the bottle. The competition spanned several weeks, but all paintings were done on location. It took a lot of looking and thumbnail sketches to become familiar with the urban environment - a new subject matter for me. The biggest challenge was the additional drawing time required for perspective and details, quite unlike rolling hills with California oak trees. It left a very narrow window to add paint before the moving sun changed the light into another painting.

The first painting is a scene of Ray Street, the heart of the art and cultural district of North Park. There were lots of cars! It was early afternoon and the light had a warm, yellow-orange glow.

The second painting is of the corner of University Avanue and 3rd Street. I was attracted by the shadows under the flat roof of the corner building in contrast to the light on the upper story. I painted early in the day when the temperature and light were both cool, but the streets were rather deserted.

The Quick Draw will take place between 10:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m. on Sunday, May 15th, and is part of the day long annual North Park Festival of the Arts. Several blocks in either direction from the corner of 30th and University Avenue will be blocked to traffic for the entire day. Galleries, artist booths, music, food and dance will be the entertainment.

The reception for the Plein Air North Park exhibit is Saturday, May 21st, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., at the San Diego Art Department at 3830 Ray Street in North Park.

Gallery News

2011-05-13T12:36:00.000-07:00

Yesterday the Temecula Valley Art League Gallery lost its lease and will be closing by the end of the month. The art league will continue without a gallery for the time being, while they search for a new location. It has been a great asset to the art community of Temecula.

I teach at the gallery so, as of the end of the month, I do not have a classroom space. My next session is scheduled to start on Wednesday, June 1st. I will have the session but am converting it to a plein air format for the summer, while I regroup. I will post details on the blog as soon as they are available.

The theme for Session 3 is landscape color and design. The new format will include painting on location for the early hours of the class, followed by a critique and lecture/lesson period.

Life is always changing and it is my philosophy to go with it and find something good in the new opportunity. There is always something to learn!

Landscape Painting Summer Session - Starts June 1st

2011-05-03T22:09:00.000-07:00

Oil Painting (Session 3)

Wednesdays, 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

6/1, 6/8, 6/15, 6/22, 6/29, 7/6, 7/13 & 7/20

$280 for eight classes

The Summer Session will focus on all aspects of landscape - color in landscape; atmospheric perspective; gathering information on location; creating a painting from black and white comps, through color comps to completed studio painting, and the principals of landscape design. Lectures, demonstrations and critiques are part of the class. The instructor will work with you at your level.

Demos this session will be Wednesday, 6/22 and 7/20, from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. Demos are free to students enrolled in the class.

To enroll in a class contact Mary through the email posted in the Profile of this blog or through her website.

Landscape Design Exercise

2011-04-30T12:09:00.000-07:00

Everyone did a great job on the tree exercise last week. A reminder that we decided to take it outside and try a tree from life next week, April 4th, by painting a tree in the parking lot. The sidewalk in front of the gallery is in shade all morning so we will set up there. I believe everyone discovered last week how little color you can see in a photograph. So, we will look for more color cues from life this week. A 9 x 12" Canva-paper will be fine. I'm working on a handout that discusses the planes to look for on a tree (sphere) in a double light source (sun and sky).

The following week, April 11th, we will shift gears and move from color in landscape to landscape principles. Again, look for a photo to work from that has information in the foreground, background and mid-ground. If you have found any, bring them in this week for me to vet. I've attached some photos that you are free to use, courtesy the WetCanvas Reference Image Library. I am not worried about composition in the photos, the artist provides that.

Even if you don't use one of these photos, print them out to practice doing B&W comps in a sketchbook. We will practice with them in class over the next month. A few are difficult because they have very little information, but there was something that attracted me. A few are difficult because they have too much information.

May Syllabus

2011-04-25T10:21:00.000-07:00

The theme for the current session is landscape. The first project is a tree study exercise with two parts.

First, find a tree or shrub that is roughly spherical in shape. Do not choose a tree that is feathery or wispy. It should be in your yard or close to home and accessible from different directions because you will return to this tree numerous times over a period of weeks (or even seasons). Choose a small format. I suggest dividing a 12 x 16" Canva-paper sheet into eight 6 x 4" rectangles.

You will paint a series of quick (20 minute) studies of the tree, painting it in as few color spots as possible for the light situation. The purpose is not to paint a realistic tree. We are studying color temperature and light theory. What colors and values do you see in sun, fog, morning, evening, backlit, side lit, etc. You should paint as many studies as various situations you encounter. These studies will become a reference library when you work larger landscapes from photos - so that you begin to see the color, temperature, and value that may not show up in a photograph.

We will talk in class about different light and temperature situations.

Second, on Wednesday, 4/27 and 5/4, we will do several tree studies from photographs that I provide. In this case, the purpose will be to understand the structure of the tree and paint a detailed study of that variety of tree. Over the next few months we will do several of these in-class studies ... of an oak, eucalyptus, palm, etc. Use 9 x 12" Canva-paper for these studies.

The rest of May will focus on discussing landscape principles (ala Carlson) and designing and painting a studio painting. I will bring some photos in or you may use a photo of your own that I have approved. Start bringing in photos now and I will take a look at them. The photo should be of a landscape not an urban scene and have useable information in the foreground, mid-ground and background. Don't worry about a perfect arrangement of the elements in the photo - we will solve design problems in the comp phase.

Don't forget, this Wednesday, May 27th, I will be doing a landscape demo from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. Pack a sack lunch so we can get right to it!

Spring Landscape Session

2011-04-14T09:30:00.000-07:00

Oil Painting (Session 2)

Wednesdays, 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

4/27, 5/4, 5/11 and 5/18

$140 for four classes

We will explore color in landscape with a series of studies of the same tree in different light situations. The principles of landscape painting will be introduced, as well as the principles of design and composition, as each student designs a landscape painting from black and white comps, to color studies, to a completed studio landscape. Lectures, demonstrations and critiques are part of the class. The instructor will work with you at your level.

There will be two landscape demos during this session: Wednesday, 4/27 and 5/18, from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. These are free of charge to students enrolled in this session.

To enroll in the class contact Mary through the email posted in the Profile of this blog or through her website.

Reference Books for Landscape Painting

2011-04-14T09:24:00.000-07:00

I recommend the following books about landscape painting. Start with Kevin Macpherson's books for your first foray into the subject.

Fill Your Oil Paintings with Light & Color

by Kevin Macpherson

Start here, this basic book covers the basic building blocks of painting - seeing color, mixing color, light and shadow and seeing shapes with a focus on small plein air studies.

Landscape Painting Inside and Out: Capture the Vitality of Outdoor Painting in Your Studio With Oils

by Kevin Macpherson

A follow-up to Kevin's first book takes plein air sketches into the studio for larger works. A masterful breakdown on the creative process and design.

Carlson's Guide to Landscape Painting

by John Carlson

A classic must-read, but not an easy read. This book is dense on text, short on illustrations and requires attentive reading. For the serious artist, but well worth the effort. You will find something new with every reading.

Landscape Painting: Essential Concepts and Techniques for Plein Air and Studio Practice

by Mitchell Albala

A compilation of the best from many good books on the subject of landscape painting, including technical and equipment difficulties. The author accurately sets up the challenges of painting light with pigment. If you didn't know what you were up against as a painter, you will once you read this book. The solutions are what your journey as an artist is about.

Mastering Composition: Techniques and Principles to Dramatically Improve Your Painting (Mastering (North Light Books)

by Ian Roberts

An excellent study of design and composition with a focus on landscape and still life. The leap from "a painting is a picture of things" to "a painting is the abstract design behind the shapes" is a difficult concept to grasp. This book will move you from making pictures to creating paintings.

Composition of Outdoor Painting

by Edgar Payne

A classic by one of the greats of the golden age of landscape painting. Text-dense and a challenge to read. Don't tackle this until you are well into the subject.

Mulvihill Cheat Sheet - Post This on Your Easel!

2011-04-13T18:40:00.000-07:00

Squint !!!

First Pass – Cover the Canvas

To mix a color for each color spot, squint and ask:

Hue

Is it warmer or cooler?

Chroma

Is it brighter or duller?

Value

Is it lighter or darker?

Second pass - Relate or compare color spots that are next to each other in terms of hue, value and chroma.

Third pass – Relate within the entire canvas.

Compare like hues. Of all the blue shapes, which is the warmest, brightest, darkest? Of the reds? Of the greens?

Compare like values. Of all the light values which are the lightest and darkest? Of the mediums? Of the darks?

Set the chroma range. On the entire canvas, which color spot has the highest chroma? Which the lowest?

Set the value range. On the entire canvas, which color spot is the lightest? Which is the darkest?

Final pass - Only when all of the relationships are correct:

Push the focal point by manipulating relationships

Add Details

Edges (hard versus soft)

Highlights (lightest lights)

Accents (darkest darks)

3rd Annual North Park (San Diego) Plein Air Event

2011-04-11T18:41:00.000-07:00

California Art Club cosponsors North Park Plein Air Event. Text and photo from
CAC newsletter.

3rd Annual CAC/SDAI North Park Plein Air Event

WHEN Monday, April 18

9:00 a.m. - Paint-out

12:30 p.m. - Lunch

2:00 p.m. - Critique led by Carolyn Hesse-Low

WHERE University and 29th/Kansas Street

North Park, San Diego

EVENT 3rd Annual CAC/SDAI North Park Plein Air Event

COST CAC Members: $10 for 1 entry and $20 for 2 entries

Non Members: $20 for 1 entry and $30 for 2 entires

AUDIENCE All CAC members and friends

CONTACT Marjorie Taylor at taylorpaintings@gmail.com

DETAILS Street parking is available on the side streets and

residential streets throughout the neighborhood.

After painting, we'll grab a quick lunch at the Mission,

located at 2801 University Ave, followed by a

critique led by Carolyn Hesse-Low at 2 p.m. at the

San Diego Art Department, located at

3830 Ray Street. If you would like to enter your

paintings in the 3rd Annual CAC/SDAI Plein Air

Competition, you can register for the event at the

San Diego Art Department at 3830 Ray Street

anytime between April 4 - May 9. You can have as

many canvases as you want stamped, and the cost

for CAC members is $10 for one entry or $20 for

two entries. Download the prospectus for details at

http://www.sandiegoartdepartment.com/2011%20Plein%20Air%20Prospectus.pdf.

Color Block Exercise

2011-04-02T15:04:00.000-07:00

I highly recommend studies of colored blocks set up in a variety of light sources - one light source per painting. You will learn more about color by doing this exercise than painting from a photograph. Use a 9 x 12" or 11 x 14" canvas panel. Don't labor over these. It's an exercise. Observe the color spot; match the color; apply the paint.

1. Using a brush, draw the blocks on your canvas as close to life size as possible.

2. Observe each side of the block or the background adjacent to it and mix a single color spot and apply it with a palette knife or as few strokes as possible.

3. Cover the canvas before you go back and assess your choices or make any changes.

4. As you work compare each color spot to the one next to it by running through the three properties of color. Is it warmer/cooler, brighter/duller, lighter/darker than the spot next to it? Relate.

5. Don't jump all over the canvas. Relate each spot to the adjacent spot.

6. As you compare on your second/third/fourth pass at the canvas, make any adjustment you see. Trust your eye, not your brain. If the gray cloth looks alizarin-ish, add alizarin.

Keep in mind two types of comparisons you are making:

1. Compare the adjacent sides of a color block in the set-up. Then make the same comparison in your painting. So, in the set-up, compare the top of a block to the side of the same block. Then, compare the top of the that block to the side of the same block in your painting. Relate within the set-up, then relate within the painting. This is to this, as that is to that. The goal is to accurately see the relationships in the set-up and to create the same relationships in the painting.

2. You can double check the accuracy of your color spots by rapidly flicking your eyes back and forth between a spot in the set up and the same spot in the painting. Quickly glance back and forth between the top of a block in the set-up and the top of the same block in the painting. What is lacking in your color spot will rise to the surface. If your spot needs green, you will see it's lack as you glance back and forth.

So, relate this is to this as that is to that to make your color spots. Then, relate this to that to check yourself.

What you do in this exercise is what you should be doing all of the time when painting from life, whatever the subject matter. You cannot learn about color from photographs. The photograph is not subtle enough to make distinctions. It generalizes color. It does not accurately record relationships, so the information is simply not there for you to use.

Still Life Books

2011-03-24T09:35:00.000-07:00

These are the books we looked at in class during our still life discussion. The titles are links to the site that carries the book.

An Artist Teaches: Reflections on the Art of Painting

Oil Painting Secrets from a Master: 25th Anniversary Edition

Problem Solving for Oil Painters: Recognizing What's Gone Wrong and How to Make It Right

Alla Prima: Everything I Know About Painting

I must have been looking at a reissue date, because David Leffel's first book was published 25 years ago - so there are quite a few years between the two books. He just gets better!

Color Spot Painting

2011-03-17T14:06:00.000-07:00

In class on 3/16 the students worked on a still life of colored blocks painted in sunlight. The exercise dovetailed with the other lessons in Session 1 on seeing and relating color. The color block study comes from the Cape Cod school of painters. Charles Hawthorne was the founder, suceeded by Henry Hensche , then succeeded by Lois Griffel. Susan Sarback was also a student of Henry Hensche. The following books are a good resource:

  Hawthorne on Painting

  Hensche on Painting

  Painting the Impressionist Landscape: Lessons in Interpreting Light and Color

  Capturing Radiant Light & Color in Oils and Pastels

Class Instructions for 3/23

2011-03-17T11:11:00.000-07:00

Next week is the last class of the session and we will be painting outdoors again. The exercise should be doable in several hours and we will move back indoors. The following week is the first class of the next session and we will be starting a "personal" still life ... one you design, paint at your own pace and take to completion. A studio painting! This will be a chance to apply everything you have practiced this session. I know it has been outside your comfort zone to not take this session's exercises to completion. But, they were not paintings! So, let it go. I am very, very pleased with what you learned. That was the goal.

So, next week bring in 5 or so objects that you would like to use in your still life. I will bring all of my drapes and we see if you have the makings of a good still life set-up. You will be ready for a quick start, then, on 3/30.

A few things to keep in mind.

Nothing intricate, tiny or multi-colored(a busy, floral pattern on a plate). A green apple with a rosy blush would be OK.

Look for objects that have simple form (sphere, cube, cylinder or a combination). No cuckoo clocks!

Nothing incomprehensible to the viewer (crumpled paper, rock, your grandmother's knit booties, etc).

Not too many objects. Three to seven. I would prefer you do two small still lifes over one large one.

Consider variety of one color so you can relate and differentiate them, such as a bright yellow object, a low chroma yellow object, with a dark yellow drape.

Think about color. Use a complementary scheme (red/green, blue/orange or violet/yellow with one side of the pair dominant) or an analogous scheme (three colors next to each other on the color wheel) with one object that is the complement (blue/blue-green/green with an orange object or violet/red-violet/red with a blue-green object). Use your color wheel to figure this out.

Don't split the still life half and half with temperature (half warm and half cool). One side of the color wheel should be dominant. You can usually solve this problem by the color of the drapes you use.

Keep in mind that the goal is to paint the color spots on each object (color is form or a plane change means a color change) and relate them to the background or object next to them. Or what the past eight weeks have been about!

Have fun! Have FUN! It is a studio painting and you are going to work it to completion, but at this stage (and really forever) whatever you paint is always practice. Sometimes it works out and you have a masterpiece.

Remember that this week, 3/23, is our long day. We'll order tacos from Wahoo's or sandwiches from Submarina (or you can brown bag it) and I will do a still life demo. I will set up an overhead blue light with a warm side light - to simulate the double light source outside from the sky and the sun. I've never done this before, so as usual I am flying by the seat of my pants.

Finally, have an idea of your schedule for the coming session. I will ask which days you will be out of town and we'll see if we can choose the two long days to fit the most schedules.

February/March Syllabus

2011-01-26T15:20:00.000-08:00

The February/March session meets on 2/2, 2/9, 2/16, 2/23, 3/2, 3/9, 3/16 and 3/23.

The focus of this session is on seeing/mixing color and still life. Exercises include:

Double Primary Color and Complementary Color Wheel
Local Value versus Light Theory (Black and White on Red)
Reflected Light (Black isn't Black/White Isn't White)
Form and Color are Inseparable (Oranges on Green)
Form and Light Theory or Light/Halftone/Shadow (Where is an Orange Orange)
Complementary Color and Intensity (Orange on Blue/Apple on Green)
What say the Sun (Color Blocks in Sunlight)
What Say the Sky (An Orange and Grapefruit in Sunlight)

We will be working with a palette knife to paint clean, color spots.

Call for Artists - Fallbrook Public Library

2011-01-24T20:27:00.000-08:00

Call for Artists - Fallbrook, CA Library

The Art Selection Committee is now seeking submissions for the following 3 shows:

Show Title: "Watercolor Images of North County San Diego"

Deadline for submissions: February 11, 2011

Show opening: March 8, 2011

Criteria: All styles of Watercolors (Framed, matted, wire on back, not to exceed 24 x 30" framed)

This show will depict the variety that exists in northern San Diego County, from the mountains, deserts, towns and ocean to the people and the lifestyles.

Show title: "Wildlife Art"

Deadline for submissions: April 1, 2011

Show opening: April 27, 2011

Criteria: All two-dimensional media, including photography (Framed, matted, wire on back, not to exceed 18" x 24" framed)

An exploration of wildlife, reaching from America to the rest of the world.

Show title: "America: One Nation, Many Voices"

Deadline for submission: May 13, 2011

Show opening: June 7, 2011

Criteria: Two-dimensional paintings, all media (Framed, matted, wire on back, not to exceed 18 x 24" framed)

An exhibition designed to illustrate the multitude of contributions to our national heritage by people from diverse cultures and backgrounds.

To apply, submit digital pictures along with your contact information through the Friends of the Fallbrook Library website OR Artist Opportunities at Fallbrook Library.

Please submit no more than eight (8) images per exhibit per artist. Images must be submitted as jpegs or tiff files.
Clearly mark each submission with title, medium and dimensions (h x w).
All interested persons are encouraged to apply. Priority will be given to Southern California residents. Submissions should appeal to diverse populations and ages, reflect community interests, be representative of diverse cultures and points of view and support local cultural activity.
Work shall be delivered three days prior to the show or at a mutually agreed upon time and picked up after the exhibit in a timely manner.
Items that exceed 80 lbs. will not be accepted.
Artist agrees that images of artwork may be used promotionally by the San Diego County Library and the Friends of the Fallbrook Library, without fee or obligation.
Artists will be required to complete a waiver of indemnity and liability releasing the Fallbrook Branch Library, the County of San Diego and the Friends of Fallbrook Library and any of its agents from liability for any loss, damage or theft.
The San Diego County Library and the Friends of the Fallbrook Library will handle standard promotion. Any special promotion of the work shall be the responsibility of the artists themselves. Additional promotional materials (fliers, posters, press releases, etc.) need to be reviewed and approved by Library staff prior to the show.
Work may be "for sale." Prices will not be posted on the works; however a complete list of works and artist contact information will be available to the public at the library by request. If work is sold it must remain in the library for the duration of the exhibit.

2011 Oil Painting Class Calendar

2010-12-31T19:22:00.000-08:00

I will teach five 8-class sessions of oil painting in 2011. The first session begins on February 2nd, 2011. Each session is $280.

The sessions are as follows:

Session 1 - 2/2, 2/9, 2/16, 2/23, 3/2, 3/9, 3/16 & 3/23

Session 2 - 3/30, 4/6, 4/13, 4/20, 4/27, 5/4, 5/11 & 5/18

Session 3 - 6/1, 6/8, 6/15, 6/22, 6/29, 7/6, 7/13 & 7/20

Session 4 - 7/27, 8/3, 8/17, 8/24, 8/31, 9/7, 9/14 & 9/21

Session 5 - 9/28, 10/5, 10/12, 10/19, 10/26, 11/2, 11/9 & 11/16

There will be no class between Thanksgiving and the end of the year.

Thank you very much for being my students in the past and I look forward to seeing you in class again!

Happy painting,

Mary Mulvihill

December Class Syllabus

2010-11-30T13:08:00.001-08:00

The focus in December is on figurative painting. A figurative work is not a portrait. It is about the interaction between the figure and the environment around it. A figurative piece has a narrative quality. It can be about the light, mood or design. The figure is a prop in the larger design.

December 1st - Design Day

Bring several pieces of reference that interest you. The reference should have enough information for you to paint the figure, but you also need an environment in which to place them. It is possible to supplement the environment with reference from a second photo.

The class will work as a group on black and white comps from everyone's reference. You will need drawing materials - pencils or markers and a sketchbook. Comps are the start of the design process, not the ultimate solution. Do a lot of comps and work further on those that are more successful. Always do design comps in a rectangle that has a specific ratio. 1:2, 3:4, etc. You cannot judge a design without related to the four edges of the design space. Work in large shapes of black and white or black, white and one value of gray.

December 8th - Add Color

You should have several black and white comps with good potential. Today, color is added to the mix. Bring small canvases (5 x 7", 6 x 8", etc.) that have the same ratio as your black and white comp. Paint quickly in large shapes. Don't put in detail or worry about edges. Black and white comps deal with design and value. Colors have value but the property of chroma or intensity is added. A larger shape of low chroma may not have the same emphasis of as a small shape of high chroma.

December 15th - The Big Picture

Choose the best color comp and enlarge it to a full size painting. Remember, the larger painting must be the same ratio as the color comp. Start by blocking in the large light and dark value design shapes. Because the majority of the design decisions have been made, painting should go quickly. You can focus on paint quality, edges, light temperature, detail and focal point. None of these are enough, however, to make a great painting if you do not start with a good abstract design.

A few words about reference:

Your goal is to become an artist and that is not so much about painting what you see as painting your response to it. Find a subject that inspires you, has meaning to you - not what would have meaning to me. This is your journey. Look at you family photos until you find one that excites you.

Very few reference photos, if any, make a good painting as they stand. Shapes need to be rearranged, focus identified, oddities eliminated, composition improved, etc. Don't search and search for the perfect photo. You won't find it. You will create a great painting by the creative decisions you make.

The Gauntlet is Re-thrown!

2010-11-27T16:17:00.000-08:00

We have done this before and several of you took on the challenge. At the Colley Whisson's workshop he re-threw the guantlet! I double dog dare myself and all of you to meet Colley's challenge of painting quick still lifes.

What kind of still life? Anything simple. No more than one to three objects. Don't focus on the finish.

Colley's take: Use large brushes. Don't spend more than a half an hour or so. Focus on the light and dark masses (light and shadow).

My take: Concentrate on juicy, accurate color spots. One for each plane - front, side, top, turning, up-plane, reflected light. Anything that makes one spot on the object different from another. Make the stroke ... and let it be.

Relax, this is practice! They can be small, 5 x 7" or so.

Realism Show at Laguna Wendt Gallery in December

2010-11-24T14:27:00.001-08:00

The Wendt Gallery in Laguna Beach is having a realism show in December.

Upcoming Laguna Beach Exhibition

Champions of Realism
December 2 - 27, 2010

Open Reception: Thursday, December 2 from 6 - 9 pm

A group exhibition featuring works by:

Joshua Langstaff
David Gray
Bryan Larsen
George Gonzalez
Glenn Harrington
Cesar Santos
Peter Van Dyke
Serge Marshennikoff
Tang Wei Min
Patrick Devonas
Jeffrey Hein
Casey Baugh
Juliette Aristides

And More...

Sonoma Plein Air Festival

2010-11-22T16:15:00.000-08:00

Here is the application for the Sonoma Plein Air Festival. Additional information and the artist's choice awards for recent years are here.

Please join us this spring for a week in the beautiful wine country of Sonoma Valley! It all happens at the 7th annual Sonoma Plein Air Festival, May 23-28, 2011.

Application Deadline: January 26, 2011

Application Fee: $50.00

Paint on location in private estates, wineries and coastal locations. Our area is chock-full of vintage barns, Victorian houses and water towers, eucalyptus groves and meadows dotted with Valley oaks, rolling grassy hills and wooded waterways - Plein Air heaven. Commune with other Plein Air artists from around the country.

We provide complimentary lodging, maps, suggested scenic locations,welcome wine reception, many meals, ticket to the Gala on Friday, and much more.

What's That Twitter Feed

2010-11-22T10:06:00.000-08:00

You may or may not have noticed my Twitter feed in the column to the right in this blog. I link through my Twitter account to many interesting art related blogs and websites. So, glance at it occasionally. Today I linked to a new blog devoted to the teaching notes of Frank Reilly, one of the greats in American teaching of the figure. It's good reading. You don't have to have a Twitter account follow the links on my feed. Just click on them.

Here is a link to The Reilly Papers by John Ennis.

PS Yes, I do talk about the weather a lot on Twitter, too.

Our Usual Palette

2010-11-19T13:57:00.000-08:00

Tsk, tsk, tsk ... someone asks what our usual palette is! The full palette is titanium white, burnt umber, burnt sienna, raw sienna, yellow ochre, cadmium lemon, cadmium yellow light or medium, cadmium red light, alizarin crimson, ultramarine, cerulean or phthalo blue, viridian or phthalo green and sap green. I'm about to drop the burnt umber and replace it and the burnt sienna with transparent red oxide. Add the ultramarine blue to TRO and you have a cleaner, more transparent burnt umber.

Feel free to try Colley's palette. There are fewer colors but they do get the job done. I missed the warm blue, though (cerulean or phthalo blue). Maybe the sap, too. You can mix a warm green with Colley's palette, but they tend to be opaque and, as you know - I love transparent darks!

Colley Whisson's Supply List

2010-11-19T13:25:00.000-08:00

The medium Colley Whisson uses is Chroma Arcihval Oils Lean Medium. Dick Blick carries it. The medium contains an alkyd drier that speeds drying time between layers. This can be an advantage and a disadvantage ... so like all new materials and techniques, there is a learning curve. The quick drying time allows you to move through the stages of your painting quickly. It also shortens the time you can work wet into wet.

Colley paints with large flats (#10, #12) in both bristle and synthetic. He also uses a #6 bristle filbert and a #2 or #3 synthetic liner brush. As always, it's the artist at the handle end of the brush that counts!

His palette is Chroma Archival Oils in titanium white, light red ochre (Venetian Red in Winsor Newton), yellow ochre, cadmium yellow light, cadmium yellow medium, cadmium orange, cadmium scarlet or cadmium red light, permanent alizarin, ultramarine blue and phthalo green.

Colley paints on a variety of surfaces, both board and canvas panel. The board was primed with amber shellac. The canvas was primed with acrylic gesso sometimes toned with a light wash of acrylic paint in red ochre. It does not matter what the surface, Colley is a master painter.

We will use our usual palette in December, but give the medium and larger flats and liner a try. A substitute for the Archival Oil Lean is Gamblin Galkyd Painting Medium. It is slightly thicker in consistency but can be thinned with OMS (Odorless Mineral Spirits). When using either, keep your brushes clean as you work, because the paint will set in your brush much more quickly than when working with paint alone.

David Curtis, "Painting with Impact"

2010-11-19T09:15:00.000-08:00

I own all of David Curtis's books and never tire of looking at his art. His newly released book, Painting with Impact, is a delight - both the text and images. His paintings get better and better. I recommend his book to anyone inteerested in landscape painting and plein air paintng. He works effortlessly between watercolor and oil.

These images are from David Curtis's website. Click on the images to enlarge them.

Kettleness Point

Gunnera by a Pond

Last Light, Staithes

Earth Reds

2010-11-04T18:48:00.000-07:00

Here is a color comparison of the earth reds. Colley Whisson has light red ochre on his palette. Archival Light Red Ochre by Chroma, an Australian paint company is made of PR101, a synthetic iron oxide, and is opaque.

Winsor Newton carries a number of earth reds, all made from PR 101. They are all opaque with the exception of Transparent Red Ochre. (Click on the chart to enlarge it.)

Archival's Light Red Ochre leans to the red violet and WN Venetian Red appears to be the closest match. Anything in this family will get you where you need to go.

What I'm Up To

2010-10-14T12:54:00.000-07:00

Class was great yesterday. Welcome to our new student, Susan. I love it when we work on drawing and faces. Congratulations to everyone for jumping in and being fearless. Tim, your best portrait drawing yet!

This morning I was up early and painting. I corrected the lay-in from yesterday's demo - meaning I looked at shapes, shapes, shapes and made better decisions.

I started a painting using a limited complementary palette of blue/orange. The palette is from The Yin/Yang of Painting: A Contemporary Master Reveals the Secrets of Painting Found in Ancient Chinese Philosophy by Hongnian Zhang. This book is out of print, but well worth searching out. There are major sections on value, temperature and chroma; a thorough explanation of the three complementary palettes; a look at creating texture and then three chapters where Hongnian Zhang applies all of the above to the three genres of still life, landscape and figure. I highly recommend this book!

The blue/orange palette is cadmium red scarlet, cadmium orange and cadmium yellow deep as high chroma oranges with burnt sienna as a low chroma orange. The blues are blue violet, cobalt blue and phthalo turquoise blue as high chroma blues with indigo as a low chroma blue. The palette also includes titanium white and ivory black. Notice there is a warm, cool and true hue for orange and blue.

Reference Books for Drawing the Head

2010-10-10T15:11:00.000-07:00

I recommend the following books for study of the head:

"Drawing: The Head (HT197)" by Andrew Loomis covers the proportions of the head for different ages, the placement of the features, visualizing the head in planes and the simple bone structure of the head and neck. $8.95

"The Human Figure" by John Vanderpoel focuses on the features of the face as shapes of light and shadow. It is text dense and not an easy read, but very worth the effort. The margin drawings illustrate the text description of the planes and muscles of each feature from different angles. I recommend reading the text and copying the margin illustration in your sketchbook. $6.95

"The Artist's Complete Guide to Drawing the Head" by William Maughan is excellent for both drawers and painters. It covers line versus value, form and cast shadows, negative shapes, the two masses of light and shadow, perspective in the head, proportion and anatomy of the features. All of the drawings are in white and sanguine pastel pencil, but the information and approach applies to all media. $16.50

Portrait Reference

2010-10-09T18:14:00.000-07:00

These photos are courtesy of the WetCanvas archive. I will post them temporarily so you can see if there is something you would like to work from.

Monet Exhibit

2010-10-05T10:39:00.000-07:00

Jacques Demarthon/Agence France-Presse

OK, who is organizing our Christmas trip to Paris to see the Monet exhibit at the Grand Palais?

Here is the link to online catalog of the exhibit. It is the best online presentation I have ever seen. You can enlarge every painting in the exhibit to full screen.

Here is the NYT's review. The photograph of the two Monet's side by side has me drooling. Click on the image in this blog post to enlarge it.

Class Starts October 13th

2010-09-24T11:22:00.000-07:00

We are on our break and class will begin on Wednesday, October 13th. Watch the blog over the break because I will be posting my work over the break - starting with the finish of last week's landscape demo.

Class in October will focus on portraits, or the face - so be looking for reference photos to work from. Remember - no flash photography. The best photos have a single light source. Shots taken outdoors with only the light from the sun work great. Unlike a portrait photographer, however, look for strong lighting that defines the planes on the face. Pose your model with the sun coming from the right or left. Photos with the sun full-on or backlit are more difficult to paint, because the planes are not clearly defined.

I'm going through reference now and will post some for you to choose from, if you don't find something in your photos.

Have a great break!

Frame Source in Irvine

2010-08-10T10:50:00.000-07:00

The frame source that Michael Jacques recommends is Fine Art International, 13 Autry Street, Irvine. Their phone number is 949-859-7898.

Compose It Grid

2010-08-05T13:40:00.000-07:00

Compost It Grid

This is the grid that Jen had in class. It is 8 x 10 inches and has six common canvas ratios divided into thirds. It cost $15.29. It will save money to combine postage. If we order six there is a price break. Think about it and we will put an order together in class on August 18th.

Let It Go

2010-08-02T10:42:00.000-07:00

"Painting should never look as if it were done with difficulty, however difficult it may actually have been." Robert Henri

A good reason to clear out old paintings, unfinished paintings or paintings you are ambivalent about is if they look labored, tired or overworked. It doesn't matter if you've solved the problems. If you've lost the joy, you've lost the painting. Let it go.

If you need an art book to pack in your suitcase, read in bed before you turn the light out, or carry in your purse for when you're waiting in line - try The Art Spirit by Robert Henri.

Mini Comps - Color Notation on Site

2010-07-16T11:23:00.000-07:00

I was pleased with class last week. All of you dove in and spent the entire class working in sketchbooks on black and white comps. I feel that the process clicked for a few of you. Do more this week at home. They don't have to be landscape comps. It is about seeing the abstract shapes in any design ... so you could do a comp of the breakfast dishes before you clear the table.

Remember next week in class, July 21st, you will be working in color on several small landscape paintings from your black and white comps. I will bring in examples. In the afternoon, however, you are invited to stay and try mini color comps, no larger than 2 x 3". This is a dry run for the class on the 28th. Place only enough color spots to describe the light and shadow families of landscape. Hopefully, this will develop into a quick notation system you can use on location, one that will record information about chroma and temperature (hue). A black and white comp can record only value and design. Why is this important? Because a photograph simply does not record the wealth of information about color that a color sketch or even written notes taken at the scene can. Also, if you take the time to do a color spot sketch or take color notes, you will remember the scene much more vividly that you would taking a photograph.

I will add some examples of the above to this post before class next week.

Class Syllabus July 2010

2010-07-13T19:28:00.000-07:00

The floral still life from June was a breakthrough painting for everyone. Color, composition and creative wild abandon for all. Congrats!

We will focus on landscape painting this month, from your photos. Please bring some to class. You'll need a sketchbook, pencils or markers, small canvases (no larger than 8 x 10" or 9 x 12"), and on July 28th a gessoed piece of cardboard and a ruler.

If you have Kevin Macpherson's books, bring them to class because we will be referring to them. I will recommend sections to read and field questions.

Consider trying Kevin Macpherson's limited palette. See what you can mix from a few colors. His palette is titanium white, alizarin crimson, ultramarine blue and cadmium yellow pale (lemon, pale, light are all OK). After you have worked with the basic palette for awhile, see what happens when you add phthalo green.

14 July

We'll take a look in class at pages 92 to 95 of Fill Your Oil Paintings with Light & Color and pages 56 to 61 of Landscape Painting Inside & Out. We will do some black and white comps from your photos.

21 July

We will continue in the same vein, but move into a small color study. Look at the demos on pages 80 to 88 in Landscape Painting Inside & Out. Take it step by step. Simple is the answer.

28 July

Look at page 69 of Landscape Painting Inside & Out, the description for Day 4 and the top and middle photos. Bring lots of photos to class; put your name on them so we can pass them around. Bring a piece of cardboard you have gessoed or some canvas paper. We are going to work quickly and paint tiny color studies.

Class Notes:

We have the classroom for the full day this month, so paint into the afternoon.
Class meets on 7/14, 7/21 & 7/21.
I will hand out invoices on 7/14 for $105.
Adria will be back east this month for Marlena's second surgery. Marlena and Adria, you are in our thoughts.

Reference Books for Landscape Painting

2010-07-13T18:01:00.000-07:00

I recommend the following books about landscape painting. Start with Kevin Macpherson's books for your first foray into the subject.

Landscape Painting Inside and Out: Capture the Vitality of Outdoor Painting in Your Studio With Oils

by Kevin Macpherson

Start here, this basic book covers the basic building blocks of painting - seeing color, mixing color, light and shadow and seeing shapes with a focus on small plein air studies.

Landscape Painting Inside & Out by Kevin Macpherson

A follow-up to Kevin's first book takes plein air sketches into the studio for larger works. A masterful breakdown on the creative process and design.

Carlson's Guide to Landscape Painting by John Carlson

Landscape Painting: Essential Concepts and Techniques for Plein Air and Studio Practice by Mitchell Albala

Mastering Composition: Techniques and Principles to Dramatically Improve Your Painting (Mastering (North Light Books)) by Ian Roberts

Composition of Outdoor Painting by Edgar Payne

A classic by one of the greats of the golden age of landscape painting. Text-dense and a challenge to read. Don't tackle this until you are well into the subject.

Shawn Mckelvey at the Ralph Love Plein Air Festival

2010-07-11T10:16:00.001-07:00

Shawn McKelvey won the People's Choice award at the 2010 Ralph Love Plein Air Festival, held the last weekend in June in Old Town Temecula. Here are two of his paintings. Great job, Shawn!

"Hot Summer Nights" by Shawn McKelvey

"Come Sit a Spell" by Shawn McKelvey

July Critique Session for Artists

2010-06-24T17:31:00.001-07:00

Temecula Valley Art League July Feedback Forum for artists is Tuesday, July 27th at 7:00 p.m. It is open to all artists and does not require membership in TVAL. Meet with other artists to critique work, network and exchange ideas. The first meeting is Tuesday, June 22th, at 7:00 p.m. The forum will continue to meet on the fourth Tuesday of every month. Bring a finished painting or a work in progress. The Feedback Forum is the fourth Tuesday of every month.

I was at the June critique forum. All levels of artist and media were represented. Several excellent artists and teachers assisted with the critiques. It was friendly and helpful and would be beneficial to any artist working to take their art to the next level.

TVAL Gallery is located at 41789 Nicole Lane, across from the Costco entrance on Overland. The gallery is in the Creekside Plaza along with Frankie's Steakhouse and Seau's.

Tim Russell Still Lifes

2010-06-22T22:07:00.000-07:00

6/9/2010

I recently challenged my students to do fifteen one or two object still lifes from life. I will create a blog post for each of them, and add to it as they finish them. These are studies done in one to two hours with the object of making accurate color spots - accurate in hue, value and chroma.

Impressionism at the De Young

2010-06-15T17:15:00.000-07:00

June 3, 2010, The Week Magazine

De Young Museum, San Francisco, through Sept. 6

"Birth of Impressionism: Masterpieces from the Musee d'Orsay"

While the Musée d’Orsay undergoes renovations, two exhibitions assembled from its collection of impressionist paintings will travel the world. The De Young Museum in San Francisco is the only musuem that will host both.

While its historic building undergoes renovations, Paris’ Musée d’Orsay “is taking its act on the road,” said Charlie McCullom in the San Jose Mercury News. The world’s most important collection of impressionist and other 19th-century French art “has packed up its Monets and Manets, its Cézannes and Renoirs, even that painting of Whistler’s mom.” Two exhibitions assembled from the collection will be crisscrossing the globe this year, “but only one museum in the world will host both”: San Francisco’s de Young Museum. The first show to visit the de Young attempts to trace the creation of the impressionist movement by showing some of its finest exemplars alongside lesser-known contemporaries.

“Rather than presenting a mere hit parade,” the show illuminates what was truly so different about the impressionists, said Janos Gereben in the San Francisco Examiner. The then-dominant art style, academic painting, rendered historical and mythological scenes in a polished but often lifeless style. The impressionists introduced an appreciation of “visible brush strokes, an emphasis on changing light and movement, and a focus on everyday people.” Paintings such as Édouard Manet’s The Fifer and Gustave Caillebotte’s The Floor-Scrapers challenged viewers by showing them humble subjects from the real world. Likewise, artists such as Paul Cézanne confronted them with a style that seemed almost primitive, said Jennifer Modenessi in the Contra Costa, Calif., Times. The indistinct forms and rough surfaces of his Gulf of Marseille Seen From L’Estaque “must have looked very strange to people accustomed to slick, highly finished paintings.” It can be hard for today’s museumgoers, long accustomed to the impressionists’ innovations, to “look at these famous works of art with fresh eyes.”

It may be even harder for us to give the impressionists’ predecessors a fair shake, said Kenneth Baker in the San Francisco Chronicle. Take Adolphe-William Bouguereau’s Birth of Venus—an airy mythological scene that has all the “calculated false feeling, historical irrelevance,” and other qualities that the impressionists hated. Even if you agree with their judgments, however, you “must admire the technical dexterity” of such a work. This exhibition defines the fault lines between traditionalists and innovators, but also points out the complex connections among, say, mythologists like Bouguereau, symbolists like Gustave Courbet, and impressionists like Pierre Auguste Renoir. “Forget nomenclature for a while, and look hard at the rich range and variety of physical detail in the paintings.” Unless you travel to Paris, you’ll never see their likes again.

Len Chmiel - Part 2

2010-06-02T11:21:00.001-07:00

Len Chmiel, the more I see, the more I am in awe. Composition, abstract design, paint quality, quality of the light.

Len says, "A successful painting for me must satisfy my intent to convey beauty, however obvious, subtle, or ambiguous, while pushing the boundaries of reality rather than merely depicting it. "

All of these images are from Len Chmiel's website.

Shawn McKelvey at the Merc

2010-06-02T10:16:00.000-07:00

The new art exhibit at the Merc in Old Town Temecula is landscapes by Temecula artist, Shawn McKelvey. Shawn was the Best of Show winner at the 2009 Ralph Love Plein Air event. The reception is this Friday, June 4th from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. You can also see Shawn's paintings on his blog.

The Merc is at 42051 Main Street in Old Town Temecula. Click on the image above to see a larger version.

Ralph Love Plein Air Event

2010-05-31T18:44:00.000-07:00

The Ralph Love Plein Air event will be held in Old Town Temecula on Saturday and Sunday, June 26th and 27th. Entrants register in advance, at 6:00 p.m. on Friday evening or at 8:00 a.m. on Saturday or Sunday morning.

There is a $500 Best of Show purchase award and a $200 First Place award.

Further details are in the prospectus.

Len Chmiel

2010-02-26T18:38:00.000-08:00

Len Chmiel

A few paintings by Len Chmiel, a new favorite I found a the "Masters of the American West" exhibition at the Autry Musuem. I am impressed by the quality of the light in his paintings.

Oil Palette Colors

2010-02-21T12:09:00.001-08:00

My basic palette is:

Burnt Umber

Burnt Sienna

Raw Sienna

Yellow Ochre

Cadmium Yellow Lemon or Pale

Cadmium Yellow Medium

Cadmium Red Light or Cadmium Scarlet

Alizarin Crimson

Ultramarine Blue or French Ultramarine Blue

Cerulean Blue

Viridian

Sap Green

Titanium White

This is a double primary palette, with a warm and cool of each primary and green. A true blue and red are also useful so I sometimes add cobalt blue and napthol or pyrrole red.

Occasional colors that I add when the subject requires them. Most are transparent colors, with high chroma and tinting strength.

Quinacridone Rose - florals

Phthalo Blue and Green - seascapes

Dioxazine Purple - florals

Indian Yellow - transparent yellow that warms without lightening

Transparent Red Oxide - replacement for Burnt Sienna which is opaque.

Phthalo Yellow Green - opaque, convenience color made from Cadmium Yellow Light and Phthalo Green.

Masters of the American West Exhibition

2010-01-19T16:27:00.000-08:00

That was fun! I was impressed to see how able to critique you were. What struck me most? Yes, there were a few masters there but most were competent, top in the field painters - and getting there is do-able if you take the time and put in the effort to learn. I hope to see some of you in the Masters show someday!

Tucker Smith, "Wyoming Sky"

Our field trip to the Autry Museum's "Masters of the American West" exhibition is Saturday, February 20th. Admission is $9. Terry, Adria, Tim, Jen, June, Marcia and Mary are signed up to go.

Map

Reference Books for Landscape

2010-01-19T11:52:00.000-08:00

I recommend these books for painting landscape:

"Carlson's Guide to Landscape Painting", by John Carlson.

"Fill Your Oil Paintings with Light and Color", by Kevin Macpherson

"Landscape Painting Inside and Out", by Kevin Macpherson

"Composition of Outdoor Painting", Edgar Payne

Two New Product Lines - Alkyd and Acrylic

2010-01-19T09:22:00.000-08:00

Two new paint lines have recently been released, giving artists more paint choices.

C.A.S. AlkydPro is a safflower-based oil paint to which alkyd resin is added to speed drying time. All colors in the C.A.S. line dry within 24 hours or less. Drying mediums in the line can speed drying time to under two hours. Impasto and gel mediums are also available. These are not water-based and require Turpenoid. Alkyds are great for plein air painting and for glazing techniques. In the studio I often use Griffin alkyd titanium white with traditional oils to speed drying time. Oil paint and alkyds are mixable. My main objection to using a full alkyd palette has been pigment load. The C.A.S. line claims to have a professional rather than student grade pigment load. Winsor Newton Griffin Alkyd has been the only alkyd available prior to C.A.S. So, if you like oil paint but prefer the layers to dry more rapidly, AlkydPro might be worth a try.

Winsor Newton Artist's Acrylic is replacing their Artist's Acrylic Colour line. The new line is packaged with a black label. Winsor Newton is my favorite acrylic line because of the buttery consistency and high pigment load. Recently other acrylic paint manufacturers have gone in the direction of increasing the open time of acrylics resulting in Golden Open and Chroma Interactive. Winsor Newton decided to tackle a different problem of acrylic paint - value shift. Winsor Newton claims their new line has no value shift from wet to dry. This by far has been my greatest problem with acrylics. They dry as much as 40% lighter and this makes it very difficult to maintain accurate values. I have not been taken with the longer open time of Golden Open or Chroma Interactive because when I use acrylics, I use them because they dry quickly. If I require slower drying I use oils. So, Winsor Newton's new line is a huge step in the right direction for me. I hope they have maintained their pigment load! The secret in their sauce ... the traditional acrylic suspension shifts from opaque to translucent as it dries and in so doing shifts the paint to a darker value. Winsor Newton's new acrylic suspension starts out transparent.

Paint the Redwoods Prospectus

2010-01-04T09:34:00.000-08:00

A worthy cause with the top 50 winners published in a catalog ... paint the forests of the United States.

Charles Reid on Planning Lost and Found Edges

2009-12-29T00:15:00.000-08:00

by Charles Reid

For those joining me on the contour line and color adventure on Tuesday afternoons this January and February, here's a sneak peek at where we are headed. This PDF courtesy of www.artistsnetwork.com covers Charles Reid's approach to lost and found edges. We'll be talking about this!

Late Renoir and American Painting Exhibits at LACMA

2009-12-21T16:53:00.000-08:00

Two exhibits at LACMA (LA County Museum of Art) February 28th through May 9th, 2010.

Renoir in the 20th Century

February 14–May 9, 2010

Renoir in the 20th Century focuses on the last three decades of Renoir’s career, when, following his rupture with impressionism, he turned to an art that was decorative, classical, and informed by a highly personal interpretation of the Great Tradition. Renoir’s paintings from this period, which have never been studied and shown as such, are often misunderstood as they do not fit comfortably into the history of high modernism. This exhibition is the first monographic study dedicated to Renoir since the comprehensive retrospective of 1985 at the Galeries nationales du Grand Palais in Paris, and the first one ever mounted by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Offering an unprecedented look at Renoir through the lens of modernism, the exhibition bridges the divide that exists in many people’s minds between art of the nineteenth and the twentieth centuries

American Stories: Paintings of Everyday Life, 1765–1915

February 28–May 23, 2010

From the colonial period to the present, Americans have been inventing characters and plots, settings and situations to give meaning to our everyday lives. American Stories: Paintings of Everyday Life, 1765-1915includes seventy-five paintings, from before the Revolution to the start of World War I, that tell these stories in scenes of family life and courting, work and leisure, comic mishaps and disasters. These daily experiences were all subject to the artist’s searching and revealing eye and many of the works on view are famous images known to almost every American. Major artists such as Thomas Eakins and Winslow Homer, John Singleton Copley and George Caleb Bingham, John Singer Sargent and Mary Cassatt, are included in this important survey, the first of its kind in over thirty years.

My Painting Students Get Some Ink!

2009-12-17T12:28:00.000-08:00

I had to opportunity to speak with Carl Love at the TVAL Open House and I enjoyed the conversation very much. The gallery is featured in his column in the Press-Enterprise. We greatly appreciate the coverage. Thank you, Carl. Let's get out and paint Temecula!

"Local Artists Paint Bright Future"
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
By CARL LOVE
Special to the Press-Enterprise

'Are you related to Ralph Love?"
It's a question I hadn't heard in at least five years, but I heard it twice in one night on Saturday. It must have meant I was around artists, a rare treat in these parts.
Love -- him, not me -- was Temecula's most famous artist. There is the Ralph Love Plein Air Festival held in Old Town Temecula, but artists here are focusing on the Temecula Valley Art League's open house for its gallery at 41789 Nicole Lane.
Eighteen league members have about 100 paintings on display on the walls of the front room. It's one of a few local galleries, a sad commentary for an area that's become so urban.
Temecula fancies itself as a destination with its Wine Country, Old Town and balloon festival. Yet our shortage of galleries is not what you'd expect from a place that's trying to be sophisticated.
Doing its part to change that is the Art League, founded as a nonprofit in 1977 by Mary Davis, who was there Saturday.
This is the first time the group has had a permanent home, about 1,600 square feet to hold its monthly meetings, display art, conduct classes, host shows, and serve as a gathering place for artists.
One art teacher, Mary Mulvihill, said four of her students -- Adria Di Maria, Jennifer Morlan, June Kakowski and Tim Russell -- have work displayed here.
"There is something exciting about being in a gallery," she says.
Works in the front room included lots of flowers, animals, a few western scenes and some snow and beach paintings. Yet it was hard to find anything local from our Wine Country, Old Town, balloon festival, agriculture heritage and trademark subdivisions.
"We are lagging" in paintings of local scenes, Mulvihill says. So much so that Japanese tourists who visited recently had to be referred to Temecula City Hall, where works featuring local scenes can be found.
"If anybody is going to do it (create art of local things), we're going to do it," Mulvihill says.
Nobody knows better than Davis, an artist who won the community citizen of the year award in 1972. She also took lessons from Love, who she says worked in a room that was all black. An ordained minister, she said at times he also gave sermons while painting. You know artists; they can have their quirks.
"He was very religious, very quiet," she says. "What he said was the word."
Love, who owned a studio called the Art Shack, sold paintings for a fundraiser to get the art league up and running. She bought some paintings and is willing to display them at the new gallery.
"They are kind of priceless," she says.
No doubt he would have enjoyed the new space, which has almost tripled the Art League's membership since it opened. Membership is $30 a year and President Carol Landry, at 951-303-8100, has more information.
Landry has big plans for the Art League's new space, staffed by volunteers. Art walks and juried shows are held every month. A western wildlife art show is planned in May.
Bea Taylor is one local artist thrilled to have a spot to display her work.
"After 32 years we finally have a permanent place to show our art," she says. "It's wonderful that I can share my work."
Besides her art in the front room, Taylor also has her paintings displayed in the back rooms, including two in the restroom.
"I don't mind," she says happily.
When it comes to a permanent place to show their work after all these years of wandering, local artists aren't about to be picky.
Reach Carl Love at carllove4@yahoo.com.

Reference Material for Drawing the Head

2009-12-06T12:14:00.000-08:00

I recommend the following books for study of the head:

"Drawing: The Head", by Andrew Loomis, covers the proportion of the head for different ages, the placement of the features, how to visualize the head in planes and the simple bone structure of the head and neck. $8.95

"The Human Figure", by John Vanderpoel focuses on the features of the face as shapes of light and shadow. It is text dense and not an easy read, but very worth the effort. The margin drawings illustrate the text description of the planes and muscles of each feature from different angles. I recommend reading the text and copying the margin illustration in your sketchbook. $6.95

Andrew Loomis

John Vanderpoel

William Maughan

December Syllabus Wednesday Painting Class - Colored Blocks

2009-12-03T10:16:00.000-08:00

The syllabus for December is to continue ... most of you are working on painting projects of your own choice. However, I will be setting the colored block still lifes up for the month and I highly recommend them to everyone who has not done them. You will learn more about color from this than you ever can painting from a photograph. If you asked my advice, it would be to do these. You need 9 x 12" or 11 x 14" canvas panels for them. I will set a different one up each week. Do one, do them all. One week per ... don't labor over these. Observe color spot; paint color spot. It's an exercise.

There are several steps to the process.

1. Quickly block-in the blocks on your canvas. Draw them as close to life size as possible.

2. Quickly make a single choice (or color spot) for each the side of each block and the background adjacent to it.

3. Cover the canvas before you go back and assess your choices or make any changes.

4. As you work compare each color spot to the one next to it by running through the three properties of color. Is it warmer/cooler, brighter/duller, lighter/darker than the spot next to it? Relate.

5. Don't jump all over the canvas. Relate each spot to the adjacent spot.

6. As you compare on your second/third/fourth pass at the canvas, make any adjustment you see. Trust your eye, not your brain. If the gray cloth looks alizarin-ish, add alizarin.

Keep in mind two types of comparisons you are making.

1. Compare the adjacent sides of a color block in the set-up. Then make the same comparison in your painting. So, in the set-up, compare the top of the orange block to the side of the orange block. The, compare the top of the orange block to the side of the orange block in your painting. Do relate the top in the set-up to the top in the painting. Relate within the set-up, then relate within the painting. This is to this as that is to that. The goal is to accurately see the relationships in the set-up.

2. Check the accuracy of your color spots by rapidly flicking your eyes back and forth between the same spot in the set up and the same spot in the painting. Quickly glance back and forth between the top of the orange block in the set-up and the top of the orange block in the painting. What is lacking in your color spot will rise to the surface. If your spot needs green, you will see it's lack as you glance back and forth.

So, relate this is to this as that is to that to make your color spots. Then, relate this to that to check yourself.

Wow, see what I mean ... you need to do this exercise. Because what you do in it is what you should be doing all of the time when painting from life whatever the subject matter. This is why you cannot learn about color from photographs. The photograph is not subtle enough to make distinctions. It doesn't see them, so you don't see them.

Photographing Your Artwork

2009-12-03T10:08:00.000-08:00

I get a lot of questions about how to photograph artwork. I am far from an expert on the subject. Here is a blog post with a list of links on the subject. It is from ://the Crafted Webm@ster: Internet Marketing for Artists.

Authenticity - from Art Marketing Secrets

2009-12-03T07:37:00.000-08:00

We have been talking in class about sincerity in our art and to paint what you are passionate about. This fits right in!

From Art Markeing Secrets:

"The topic of authenticity has been in our attention a lot at Art Marketing Secrets lately. It started with an innocent discussion about why some art feels like decoration and other art truly feels like art. And what is art really anyway?

Well – we could all sit around debating that last point until the cows and the pink elephants come home, but the question of real art vs. decoration and why is one which doesn’t go away.

My opinion is that it’s all about authenticity. It explains to me why it’s possible to have a technically perfect piece of art that leaves me feeling nothing and yet sometimes I see a work that exhilarates me but is lacking in a mastery of the craft. It also explains why some artists can create a truly great piece of art with just a single stroke of a pencil or a few brushstrokes of paint apparently applied quite haphazardly.

Indulge me and I’ll give you my personal view on authenticity. And I didn’t study psychology so be warned!

I think each one of us has a chariot and a team of very powerful horses – just like Charlton Heston’s character in “Ben Hur”. Each of the horses represents a different aspect of our nature and our dreams.

Our subconscious program which is often operating on very basic thought processes like survival and pleasure or what our parents or teachers wanted for us.
Our conscious thoughts which can be very focused or scattered like autumn leaves.
Our emotions which run independently and explore the whole spectrum of pleasure and pain, sometimes from moment to moment.
Our physical reality where we are challenged with learning and mastering the actual techniques that can translate all the impulses from those other parts of us onto the canvas or into the clay or glass or metal we work with.

And then, beyond all that noise, standing in our chariot, very calm in the midst of this vortex of experience and activity is the true us – the dreamer of the dream. We had a plan and a purpose for this race but what was it?

Will we remember and take charge of the horses and run the best race? Or will we stay half conscious and let every horse run in its own direction and rip the chariot apart?

When we connect with our true dreams and purpose and master the incredibly powerful team of horses pulling our chariot we launch forth at maximum speed into a zone where anything is possible and our dreams can pour forth freely into our work.

Its a recipe for creating great art or a true dream or a true life.

What does this have to do with selling art? People can sense authenticity a mile away. It is such a powerful thing to see the work of a person who is truly aligned in their purpose and efforts. Like a big electromagnet, it can attract exactly the right people who will love and purchase your work – if that is your dream.

But all of this is just my thought. What do you think?"

The Rule of Thirds

2009-11-09T13:26:00.000-08:00

From The Little Mermaid. I was noticing the focal point, the mouth of the cave is exactly at the intersection of thirds. Why is this a timeless rule. Any focal point at the intersection of thirds will NEVER cut the picture in half. There is either more above or below and more to the right or left. Never the same. By using values the background also uses an "O" composition. Dark at the edges getting lighter until the focal point which is the darkest dark next to the lightest light.

Wall Photos

By:Walt Disney Animation Studios

You can bet, though, that when the Little Mermaid is added to the picture she is lighter, has more contrast, more detail and more color than anything in the background. Because she is the real focal point.

Drawing Marilyn Monroe - Jason Baalman

2009-11-06T11:47:00.001-08:00

This is another drawing video by Jason Baalman. Time lapse photography reduces the drawing time of one and a half hours to eight minutes. He applies the principles in the earlier videos. When he starts the drawing he focuses on plotting and placement of the large shapes. Each large shape is created by plotting both vertically and horizontally the points that make up the outline of the shape. Because he is experienced he does this very quickly. He then fills in the value of the large shapes. He is not thinking about what the shapes are, just the height and width of each shape and its value. The nose, for instance, is not a nose. It is the shadow under plane, the halftone side plane and the light front plane. The planes that face the light remain the white of the paper. He never draws a "nose". As he progresses he breaks the larger shapes into smaller ones, some darker, some lighter by erasing out. He then focuses on edges, blending them out or sharpening them.

He creates Marilyn Monroe entirely by focusing on the size, placement and value of the shapes with final attention given to the edge between each shape.