Tips For Mixing Oil Paints By Annette Labedzki

Oil Painting dates back to the ancient Roman times. In the ancient times, most of the Cave Paintings were done using Oil Paints only, though the art form and its techniques evolved with time. One of the oldest mediums of Painting, Oil Paint has been able to deliver optimally beautiful results. The trend continues even today and selling Oil Paintings is a big business to be in.

No doubt, Oil Paints have been able to make their mark quite well in the world of art. In fact, when we say painting it is an artwork of Oil Paints we are usually referring to. Oil Painting is all about striking the right mix of colors and their proportionate application on the Canvas. Most artists may though initially get frustrated with the output, if they are not able to mix the right colors. Mixing Oil Paints requires certain amount of understanding of the way, the colors work.

Choice of a color by an artist is a personal decision, depending upon the purpose of the painting and the mood of the artist. Sometimes artists use colors to arouse emotions, or simply because they like certain color (s). Utmost care however, should be taken so that the colors do not conflict with the basic theme of the Oil Painting. This is where a Color Wheel comes in as a savior.

A Color Wheel has six basic colors, which include Primary Colors, Red, Blue, & Yellow, and Secondary Colors, Green, Orange, & Purple. The Color Wheel has extra "in-between" colors as well, that are the blends of these basic colors. The in-between colors are called Tertiary Colors. Now, here are the tips for mixing Oil Paints:

• Primary Colors. Pick the Primary Colors i.e., Blue, Red, and Yellow, as base colors. As long as you have these colors, you can mix any color you want.
• Mixing Oil Paints. Mix these Primary Colors in the Palette and make sure that they are evenly mixed.
• Black & White. Make different shades and tints from these colors by adding Black and White respectively. Using too much of Black or White though, can take away the vividness of hues.
• Thinning. Now mix Turpentine or Artist Grade Mineral Spirits to create thin and fast drying Oil Paints. Thinning gives a fine wash and a transparent touch to Oil Paints. The use of Mineral Spirits is generally preferred, as they are less flammable in comparison to Turpentine.
• Texturing. Finally, change the texture of the Oil Paint by using Sand, Plaster, or Sawdust. It is done to thicken the paint.

Some of the accessory basic tips for mixing Oil Paints are:

• Palette. Keep your Palette clean and organized, in order to avoid undesirable shades from mixing up.
• Brush. Clean the Paint Brush before mixing any different color, again to avoid undesirable mixing ups.
• Pigments. Be careful while using Pigments such as, Cadmium, as they are toxic.
• Hues. Look out for Hues, as they are not the true Pigments and do not mix with the Oil Paints like them.
• Patience. Be patient while mixing Oil Paints, and follow the above given steps carefully.

Annette Labedzki received her BFA at the Emily Carr College of Art and Design in Vancouver, B.C. Canada. She has more than 25 years experience. She is the founder and developer of an online art gallery featuring original art from all over the world. It is a great site for art collectors to buy original art. Is is also a venue for artists to display and sell their art . Artists can join for free and their image upload is unlimited. Please visit the website at http://www.labedzki-art.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Annette_Labedzki

The world offers a lot of gorgeous things to everyone's eyes. As for photographers, they are obliged to capture this magnificent scenery and share it to the whole world without expecting anything in return. But like everything else, in the growing number of photographers competition is inevitable. What will you do, as a photographer to shine among the multitude of shutters and lighting? The internet offers hundreds of photo contest sites that allow users to post their work and let people vote which they think stands out from the rest. Photography is unlikely thing to many, but to some whose passion is in the art, joining online photo contest is the fastest way to get noticed.

There are several types of picture contests: baby photo contests, amateur photo contests, and wildlife photo contests. Picture contest is free to all as long as you let live the artist in you. Whether amateurs, professionals or just sharing your shots with other photography lovers, entering a photography contest might be a wonderful way to express devotion with your hobby. I have seen a lot of very good photos when I searched the internet for photography contest. Some are just good memories caught on camera, some are of grief, friendship and some are tear jerkers. Though at first glance, some pictures are not quite of an eye catcher but if you look closely, the pictures taken are very difficult. Pictures like lightning, a clear photo underwater, or even birds at close up. You will spend at least an hour to shoot a clear view, but photographers are killing their time just to take a good photo of their interest and that is something worth of a recognition. Very rewarding indeed!

Entering a photo competition is fast and easy compared to other online contests. Have your name, your website and of course your photo and you are in. The best thing for in photo competition is having your work posted in the site along with other entries, whether you win or lose you will get the opportunity to share your photos with others for feedbacks and comments to further improve your skills for future contests. For starters, it will be better to join photo contests with free registration. There are more enough contests that does not require entry fees and since your are just starting, its better to gain enough exposure first and learn more experience before getting down to expensive picture contests. Some free entry photo competition give small cash prizes, but win or lose you can get experience and exposure at the same time.

Here are some quick tips to help you win photography competitions (by Photo Critic):

1 - Stick to the topic

2 - Know the rules

3 - Keep it simple

4 - Tell a powerful story

5 - Technical perfection in pair with strong vision

6 - The X factor

And the final tip... Develop your own style

Whether photography or something else, the most important thing is you are having fun on what you do. If you enjoy your work, success will come in lightly.

About the Author

James D. Humphrey is one of the developers and sales executive of Photo laureates. The site's photo contest provide a platform of artistic expression for amateur and professional photographers to gain exposure and recognition.

The 10 Most Popular Artists in History and the Art Supplies They Used by David H. Urmann

If one were to study the history of art, he would be introduced to the top ten artists as well as the chosen style and genre of each one. Also, he would have a good idea of the supplies that were used by each artist in creating his works.

Below is a list of the ten most popular artists in history and a general overview of the supplies they used.

Considered as a monumental figure of the Golden Age of Holland, Rembrandt Van Rijn is known as an artist that can expertly capture human mood and gesture in his portraits. His most famous works involve scenes of biblical and mythological events and characters. Through his masterpiece "The Nightwatch", Rembrandt has presented the pinnacle of his own artistic language. Being a painter and an etcher, he made use of different types of brushes, paint, and pieces of canvas.

Georgia O'Keefe, a product of the Art Institute of Chicago and the Art Student's League of New York, stands as one of the founders of emotional representation through stylized representation. She is most well known for her trademark series of cattle bones and southwestern landscapes. Various types of brushes, paint, and canvas were used by O'Keefe in her paintings.

Wassily Kandinsky, a lawyer by profession, started to take up painting in his 30's. Beginning with pointillist techniques, he then shifted to abstract representations of music as well as internal feelings. His style would later be known as abstract expressionism. In creating his paintings, he used pencils and paintbrushes and a wide array of paint.

Henri Matisse, a painter and a sculptor, is another famous artist who is best known as the father of fauvism. This term comes from the French word "fauve", which means "wild beast". Although considered by critics as bestial, Matisse's work, including the popular "The Dance" showed his ingenious use of color and shape. Sculpting tools as well as paintbrushes and pieces of canvas were the common art supplies utilized by Matisse in his time.

"I am surrealism" were the famous words of artist Salvador Dali. His famous works depicted intricate and oftentimes frightening dreamscapes which had distorted figures, double images, and insects. With regard to his art supplies, aside from the brush and canvas, he made use of sculpting tools as he is also a known sculptor.

Known as the premier pop artist, Andy Warhol gained much recognition for his works which involved painting, film, and silk screening. In contrast to other artists who created images of nature and historical events, Warhol focused on making pictures of soup cans, bottles of beverages, and celebrities. His art supplies consisted of stencils, brushes, and different types of paint.

Claude Monet is considered as one of the founders of impressionism, a style which, at his time, was revolutionary. This style gave emphasis to visible brush strokes and the dominance of color and light over line. His masterpiece "Impression: Sunrise", from which the term impressionism was derived, shocked his French fellowmen. Canvas, brush, and various shades of paint were his supplies in creating his works.

Regarded by many as one of the most universally gifted persons in history, Leonardo da Vinci created numerous Renaissance paintings. But apart from being an exceptional painter, he also showed his genius as a sculptor, philosopher, musician, scientist, inventor, and engineer. As a painter, he made use of several types of brushes and canvas. Also, he used a set of sculpting tools for his sculptures.

Creating around 840 paintings and one thousand drawings, Vincent Van Gogh is considered by many to be one of the most accomplished artists in history. He invented his own style of expressive brush strokes and vivid colors through carefully examining genres such as Dutch realism. Van Gogh utilized various paintbrushes, paint, and canvas for his paintings and several pencils and paper for his drawings.

As the founder of cubism and one of the most versatile artists in history, Pablo Picasso has created paintings, prints, and sculptures within his 70-year career. His most renowned works include Les Demoiselles d'avignon, which perfectly demonstrated his style of cubism. As a painter and sculptor, Picasso made use of tools as well as brushes and canvas.

About the Author

For more information on "The 10 Most Popular Artists in History and the Art Supplies They Used" please visit our website.

Introduction to Oil Painting Techniques by Ralph Serpe

Introduction to Oil Painting Techniques by Ralph Serpe

Oil paint is an amazing versatile medium. It can be applied in a thick buttery fashion or thinned down to a watery consistency. This versatility opens the door to a number of different painting techniques.

My personal preference is to begin my oil paintings by first sketching out the composition using acrylic paint or with water-soluble oil paints. The popular approach to oil painting is to thin the paint with turpentine to apply your initial layers. Turpentine is quite toxic and I prefer not to work with it. Acrylic or water-soluble oil paints can be thinned down with plain old water and are more pleasant to work with in my opinion.

You can also begin your oil painting by first drawing out your composition. There are a few drawing mediums that work quite nicely with oil paints. My two favorites are vine charcoal and water-soluble pencils. I prefer vine charcoal because it doesn't smudge like other charcoals and it can be erased easier. Water-soluble pencils are wonderful because they can be applied like ordinary colored pencils and can also be dampened with a brush allowing you to spread out the color.

If you are the impatient type, you may want to try your hand at the Alla Prima oil painting technique. The Alla Prima method is when you complete the painting in one sitting rather than paint in layers and wait for the paint to dry. Although I usually prefer to work out my paintings in layers, I occasionally enjoy this exciting and spontaneous approach to oil painting.

If you are the careful, patient type of painter, you may be interested in working with glazes. Glazing has lost popularity these days, partly because of the time needed to complete such a painting and it's difficulty, but the results are something truly unique to any other type of painting technique. The composition is first painted with an opaque monochrome underpainting, usually in shades of gray. After this initial underpainting is thoroughly dry, thin layers of transparent oil glazes are applied. Colors are not mixed directly but added in separate layers to get the desired color.

If you are the adventurous type, put the brushes aside and try a set of painting or palette knives. You can achieve some very interesting results with knives that aren't possible with brushes. The oil paint can be spread on thickly and scraped off with ease. What I enjoy most about using knives is the tendency to not focus on the small details. I am forced to paint in a more relaxed fashion that creates an impressionist style painting. Get yourself a set of painting knives and try to complete an entire painting with just the knives. It's challenging at first if you are used to brushes, but it's an enjoyable exercise.

Perhaps you would like your painting to have more body and texture. You could try the impasto technique and apply your paint in thick heavy strokes, leaving evidence of all those wonderfully artistic brush strokes. Take a look at a Van Gogh painting and you will see this technique in action.

It's really no wonder why oil painting is such a popular choice for painters. There is so much to discover in oil painting. You will never get bored trying out all the wonderful tools, mediums and techniques.

 
About the Author: For more oil painting techniques, including free step-by-step demonstrations from experienced oil painters, head over to http://www.creativespotlite.com/oil-painting-lessons.htm today.

 

How to Care for a New Oil Painting by Marc Eliuk

When purchasing or obtaining a freshly painted oil painting, it is very likely that it has not truly "dried" yet. Oil paints can take between a few months to a year to "dry" despite feeling dry to touch. Therefore, let's make a distinction between these two states of dryness:

Dry: being dry to physically touch (taking a week to a month).

Cured: being dried chemically (taking several months to a year).

Although determining if an oil painting is physically "dry" or not, is relatively easy; however, determining if an oil painting is "cured," is a little trickier. Provided that the painting is dry to touch, there are a four major considerations in caring for your painting:

1. Uncured paintings are damaged more easily, especially in the early stages of curing. In the early stages of curing only, you can physically feel the difference between a cured painting and an uncured one, as the uncured painting will feel, "soft" almost rubbery. (Please don't test this by running your fingers across a new painting that you intend to keep, the painting is very susceptible to damage, even rubbing off color if the painting has just dried). Therefore, keep in mind that you want to protect your painting from being scratched, rubbed against, or from rubbing off color (such as touching or using a regular cloth). When dusting any painting, use a soft cloth, feather duster or lightly forced air to dust with as paintings can still be scratched after they have cured.

2. Oil paintings require oxygen to cure. Oil paints cure through oxidation, and how you store the painting will make a difference in curing times. Therefore, closing it in a case with no ventilation, or placing it right up against a sheet of glass when framing, will greatly slow your curing times. If you wish to use glass with a frame, ensure that you have at least 1.5 cm or about ½ inch of air between the glass and the painting. This might slow your curing time but it will at least cure and protect it from being scratched.

3. Uncured oil paintings can be light or dark sensitive. Since curing an oil painting is a chemical process, some pigments will react to extremes in lighting. As with any painting, avoid hanging it in sunlight or near bright halogen lights as it will fade; however, only during the curing period (of up to a year) should you avoid keeping it in the dark all the time. From experience, I've found that keeping a freshly painted oil painting in a dark room for the curing process caused the white pigment to yellow. The closer the painting is to being cured, the less dark sensitive it will be; therefore, when it is cured, it is no longer dark sensitive and no longer an issue..

4. Never use any varnish or any liquids of any kind (at least) until it is cured. During the curing time, or the first year to be safe, leave the painting alone from anything liquid. Liquids of any kind, especially solvents can react, even ruin your oil painting, even when cured. Please research the topic thoroughly on items to use in protecting your oil paintings, and do not test them out on your painting until after they have cured. Keep in mind that some chemicals will still react with a cured oil painting or soften the oils and ruin your painting.

Finally, keep in mind that with proper care, an oil painting will virtually last forever. Photos typically will not, even acid free photo paper will eventually age, oxidize and become brittle over time. With care, oil paintings can remain pristine for centuries and hopefully become family treasures to be passed onto your descendants.

About the Author:

 

If you have an interest in creating family heirlooms in the form of oil paintings, or are interested in learning more about the accomplishments of the author, please visit my website: www.artzmark.com

 

The Expressionist Art Movement by Kirsty Semple

Expressionism was an artistic style which grew like a rose out of the soil of the late 19th early 20th century society. Originating in Germany and Austria and following the anti-authority thinking of people such as Freud, Nietzsche and Dostoyevsky, the expressionist movement focused on the expression of inner experience and emotion. It was less concerned with the reality of what a subject looked like and expressed the artist’s emotional reaction to it.

Expressionist paintings can often be characterised by distorted forms drawn in bold colours and two dimensions, without perspective. But always sought to depict intense emotion and was always strongly subjective. Often the images were full of angst such as Edvard Munch’s The Scream, or the latter paintings of Vincent and Gough such as The Starry Night.

Around the time of World War II the expressionist art movement had migrated to the shores of America. Indeed, it was the artists of this time which established New York as a place of importance in the art world. It has been said that expressionism was a precursor to surrealism and influenced artists such as Dali.

A huge part of the movement in America became abstract expressionism, characterized by dripping paint onto the canvas. One of the most famous of the abstract expressionist painters of this period was Jackson Pollock.

Interestingly the artists pioneering this movement never described themselves as expressionists, it was a label given to them, and as an artistic style is still very much alive today within the work of many contemporary painters.

I myself use this style because I draw musicians. Music itself is an embodiment of the inner emotional experience and with my art I seek to express this subjective image. Expression of emotion through music is something I try to capture in drawings and I can think of no better artistic style with which to achieve this than the expressionist one which provides me with all the tools I need to depict the exquisite passion, soulful blues and poignant heartache expressed by the true musician.

About the Author: To view my art visit me here: http://www.squidoo.com/moonshine-art

Interactive Art Installation for Art Exhibition Promotion by Antonia Marino

There are so many art exhibitions around that it is essential to make your exhibition stand out from the crowd. One way to achieve this is by having a drawcard to attract visitors. An interesting and successful idea is to create an interactive art installation at the venue to entice visitors into the exhibition and to engage them with participation.

An interactive art installation is usually a large sculptural piece specifically created for the event which the audience can use, play with, interact with, influence, solve and/or manipulate in some way. Their participation allows them to experience a result of some kind. This adds an additional dimension to their exhibition experience and is particularly successful if your installation is unique, fun, challenging or enlightening in some way.

When designing your art installation consider the overall theme of your exhibition, your intended target market, and the available facilities at the exhibition venue.

Exhibition Theme

It is important to make your art installation and art exhibition theme cohesive. If your audience cannot see a logical connection between them your drawcard may not be as successful. Therefore give plenty of consideration to this aspect of your idea. For example, if your exhibition theme is ‘Urban Landscape”, choose an industrial type installation using inorganic materials, hard shapes and modern fittings.

Other questions to ask yourself when designing your art installation are the possible results of audience participation. Do you want them to have a unique experience, or a pre-determined answer? Are you trying to make a statement, tell a message relating to your theme, or do you want your audience to come up with their own conclusions? These questions will help you to refine your idea and create a installation that best suits your exhibition.

Target Market

Tailor-make your art installation to your target market for maximum success. This is important in all areas of business marketing and your art exhibition should be no exception. A target market is usually defined as demographics such as age, gender, geography and socio-economic group.

If your audience is predominantly young middle class college students, your installation should be young, fresh, innovative and modern. On the other hand, if your target market is mainly elderly, upper class art investors you would approach both the exhibition and your art installation in a totally different way. Ask the venue what their customer demographics are in order to give yourself the best start.

Exhibition Venue

When creating your art installation it is very important to consider the venue in every aspect of the design. Visit the exhibition space and plan out the shape and size of the area available to you. Take lots of photographs, capturing every angle. Use a long retractable tape measure to take measurements of the room, noting the dimensions of the walls, including ceiling to floor height. Measure and record the size and locations of all doorways, windows, pillars, permanent light fixtures and electrical sockets. Take particular note of the main entrance way and how the audience will move around the installation.

Finally, ask the venue what resources they have on site, such as ladders, plinths, partitions and portable lighting. These will come in handy for your installation, and may cut down construction or display costs. Whether you are using props and equipment belong to the venue, supplying your own, or hiring them, ensure they are safe to use. This is particularly important if using electrical appliances such as portable lighting. Your audience safety and well-being is paramount.

An interactive art installation can become a value asset to your next art exhibition by making it stand out from the crowd. With just a few important design considerations you can maximise its promotional potential and make your exhibition a huge success.

Tips for maintaining good Oil Painting habits by Kevin Russel

Following are the tips for you to maintain good oil painting habits:

Tips for saving color:

• Clean away any mixtures near heaps of colors you are setting up to keep.

• Keep a habit to put colors in same place on palette - used up areas must be worn out & wiped for new oil paint for next painting session.

• For disposable palettes scoop off mounds of paint you desire to maintain with your knife and move them to a fresh sheet; if a skin shapes, stab and take away the skin and work with the new color under.

• If you are not regular on painting for a week - cover palette with plastic cover & place in freezer.

• When you desire to clean your palette clean off central mixing area of wooden/acrylic palette, when you are done with your oil painting,

• For caring for tube keep tubes clean, wipe necks & caps.

Caring for your brushes:

• Wipe to take away surplus paint on rags, newspaper, etc.

• Rinse in container of solvent not advisable to soak. • Clean your oil painting brush with rags, newspaper to immerse up solvent

• You can also use mild soap (shampoo or dawn), put dab in palm of your hand, foam brush in palm moving in circle to work foam into bristles.

• Lather & wash it in lukewarm water until soap suds are snow white, & rinse with clear water; bristles might discolor.

• Press bristles into tidy, solid shape while moist.

• Let it dry and store in jar bristle-end up.

Safety precautions:

• Read labels on oil paints and mediums - some are gently toxic (cadmium colors), so you need to careful with it.

• Avoid consumption of food or smoking while you paint

• Wash hands carefully after oil painting reproduction session; try using lotion to hands before hand, paints would wash off easier

• Some solvents don't create deadly fumes, any how, must be used in well air room - open a window

• Some solvents are combustible also and toxic (gasoline, kerosene) - stick to turpentine and petroleum stuff made for artist's use.

About the Author:

Kevin Russel is a Copywriter of Artist oil painting. He written many articles in various topics. For more information visit: Famous art painting contact him at admin.1artclub@gmail.com

 

How to use oil pastels - for the beginner by Regina Donaldson

Using oil pastels as a medium for canvas-based painting is no longer any different at all from using regular, petroleum-based oil paint. Oil pastels are easy and flexible to work with; offering artists of all skill levels an unlimited armory of creative potential. Most importantly, oil pastels are also considered a safe alternative to both oil pains and soft pastels.

For centuries, artists have had to give up oil paints, especially in their old age, as the dust associated with oil paint itself caused health concerns. In the 1950s, advances in the science of oil-like pastel paint made it possible to produce the first-ever dust-free alternative, but painters have never taken to it until recently, when they got the formulas just right… Over time, the blacks finally became dark enough; the hues finally became separate enough, and so on. The end result is that we now have a dust-free, ecology-friendly alternative to oil-based paints that can be made into tube or stick form, and perform just as well in every way. It's taken over 50 years for science to get the formula just right, but in the 1990s they finally succeeded in producing a non-petroleum-based paint that had no harmful effects to the environment, and best of all, no dust!

The man who wrote the book on how to use oil pastels, quite literally, has a lot to say on this subject. In 1983, an artist from New York by the name of John Elliot wrote the very first article on how to use oil pastels, even before the formula had been perfected, for the prestigious American Artist magazine. For many years before that he passionately worked towards pushing paint manufacturers into speeding along the progress of their work towards perfecting the paint. If there is any one many behind the phenomenon of oil pastels, it is John Elliot.

Often noted as the world's leading authority on oil pastel paints, his 2002 book, Oil Pastel for the Serious Beginner: Basic Lessons in Becoming a Good Painter (Watson-Guptill publications) demonstrates step by step how to become a master of oil pastels. He covers every aspect of oil pastels in this book, far more than I can even hint about here. He includes the history, the chemistry, and the techniques of oil pastels, or "dust free pastels" as he would like us to refer to them, as the name 'oil pastel' implies that they are a petroleum derivative, which they are not.

Unfortunately, many artists will still have issues with the high price tag associated with these perfected paints. Perhaps they aren't for everyone, at least not at the beginner's level. Still, finding the right medium to work in is a very crucial first phase for any artist, so you really should give oil pastels a try if for no other reason than to make sure that the cost should not be justified. The following is a way to inexpensively make your own oil pastels, although the sharpness and overall quality will naturally not be as good as the professional grade.

Start with manufacturing a Gum tragacanth solution. (1 part gum tragacanth powder, 30 parts distilled water, & a cap-full of alcohol)

Simply put the gum tragacanth, available at a fine arts store, into a clean bottle and stir in just enough alcohol to make a soft paste. Then add the water, shaking it all together. The hard part is that tragacanth can't be forced to bond within 2 whole days, only then will it absorb all the water and swell into a true gelatinous suspension.

Next, combine equal parts of dry pigment (of your favorite color) and zinc white, (also both available at that same fine arts store) with just enough distilled water to make a stiff paste. Once mixed, add just enough Gum solution (that you finished letting sit for two days) to allow you to grind it with a pallet knife until the paste is completely smooth.

Finally, deposit the soft color paste on a blotter or newsprint and let it absorb most of the moisture before shaping it into sticks. Use room temperature, or only slight heat, too much will cause cracking.

You can roll these oil pastels directly to pastel paper or cardboard and use in the traditional way you are used to. Again, I must stress that this method will produce a more basic, dusty version of oil pastels, not the expensive, but worthwhile grade that you can buy from your local art supply warehouse. Still, considering the low price of these materials, there is probably no better way to get started in oil pastels, and of course to reduce the risks when just trying them out.

If you haven't yet given oil pastels a try, or if you know you like them but still feel they are too expensive, I encourage you to attempt this recipe a try. There are few mediums as rewarding as oil pastels on canvas, in both performance and product. You owe it to yourself to at least learn more about this wonderfully evolved medium, and of course how to use oil pastels.

About the Author: Thriving artist Regina Donaldson is a professional painter with pieces in several galleries throughout the Southwest. Visit her oil paint informational website for free tips, techniques, and resources on all oil painting mediums, including more instruction on how to use oil pastels: http://www.oil-paint.info

 

Learn How to Draw Using the "Five-S" Method by Will Kalif

One of the difficult things about learning to draw is understanding the process an artist uses to go from a blank piece of paper to a completed drawing. The “Five-S” method is an easy way to understand how an artist does it and how you can do it too.

Drawing is not a process where an artist starts at one end of the paper and works his way to the other end and by the time he gets to the right side of the paper the drawing is done. Drawing is a process of creating an object, subject, or scene on paper in stages. With each successive stage the object comes closer to looking realistic.

Of course every artist is different and that means that every artist has his or her own process of drawing but they all come down to five simple steps that you can learn and follow. Here are the steps:

 

1. Silhouette 2. Shape 3. Shade 4. Smudge 5. Shadow

This method, called the Five-S method is really easy to follow and you just progress through the steps from beginning to end. Here is an explanation of what each step means.

1 Silhouette: This is the first step. What you do here is look carefully at the subject you are drawing and then in light lines you draw a silhouette of it on the blank piece of paper. In this step you don’t have to do just the outside lines of the subject you can do some of the inside lines too. But keep them very scant and very light.

2. Shape: Fill in the internal lines of the subject. Use the strokes and directions of your pencil to represent the shape of the parts of the subject. If a part of the subject is curved you should use curved lines in that area of the drawing and in any flat sections you should use straight lines. But for now you are not filling anything you are just getting the shapes right.

3. Shade: This is where you fill in the shapes with either color or shades of grey. Look carefully at your subject and note how light falls on it. This is the most important aspect of this step because even if a surface is all one color it may have different shades of that color depending on how light affects it.

4. Smudge: You can use your finger for this step but it is preferable to use a tortillon (blending stump). Very few subjects or objects are composed of sharply defined lines. Everything is composed of subtle gradations of color that flow around and through the surfaces. You should blend the colors on your subject using strokes that follow the shape of the subject – rounded areas should be done with rounded strokes etc.

5. Shadow: This is the final step. Look to see how your object or objects cast shadows on themselves or on the things around them and add these shadows. If you are using color in your drawing the shadows should be composed of darker shades of the same color. This will ground your object in reality. You should also use an eraser to erase any graphite or color from areas that have bright light reflections on them.

Drawing is not magic but it does take practice, skill, and an understanding of the process that is taken in order to go from a blank piece of paper to a finished product. The Five-S method is a good way of helping you to understand and to remember this process.

For More creative ideas and Projects visit the author's website at: Storm The Castle - Creativity and Medieval Fantasy with an edge. Or visit his site devoted to learning Fantasy art at: The Free Fantasy Art School

 

Brilliant Ideas: How to Have Them by Andrew Broadhead

The way to be creative and have brilliant ideas is very simple, but it is a technique that many people do not feel comfortable using.

To have great ideas, you must come up with lots and lots of ideas. Your ideas will, of necessity, be good, bad AND ugly. Most of them will be so awful that you will almost certainly dismiss them before you even allow yourself to write them down.

This is a massive mistake. Brilliant people have just as many bad ideas as everyone else. The difference is that they do not let that fact stop them from writing the idea down and then coming up with loads more ideas. They simply set aside their judgement while they are in the brainstorming phase and then later on they discard the ideas that are not so brilliant.

The secret is to trust that if you come up with enough ideas and do not judge them at all, you will eventually come up with a few good or even brilliant ideas.

Sound too good to be true? How many people do you know that actually allow themselves to come up with lots of bad ideas? Not too many I would imagine. Most people are so conditioned by society to judge everything, that anything different or new gets automatically discarded as rubbish.

Try this technique with honesty and an open mind. It never fails - assuming you stick with it. Remember though, you may have to have a thousand ideas that do not work until you get one that does. If you do not believe this, look up one of the greatest inventors of all time, Thomas Edison, on the net to see how many attempts it took him to invent the light bulb...

Most aspiring artists are told to throw away their first 100 paintings because the chances are they will be cliched or simply not very good. In the same way, potential novelists are told that they will probably have to write around a million words before they are any good, or that they will more than likely not get a publishing contract until they have written three or four novels. I ask again, how many of us are that dedicated that we would stick it out? Success comes to those that persist and never quit.

Visit the author's self-improvement & spirituality blog

After a highly successful career in sales, Andrew gave up the 'rat race' almost four years ago and now writes and works from his home in rural Derbyshire, UK. Having been on a spiritual path for most of his adult life, Andrew now feels inwardly compelled to share some of the things he has found along the way.

You can read more from Andrew at http://solotow.blogspot.com where he discusses all manner of self-improvement and spiritual matters.

 

Placing your precious paintings in storage by Sandy Cosser

There are occasions when it is necessary to place valuable possessions in storage. In these instances, it’s important to see that the storage conditions are conducive to the safety and preservation of your valuables. Works of art, and paintings in particular, are vulnerable to changes in the environment and can be easily damaged owing to excessive handling. Many materials are used when creating an oil or acrylic painting, such as fibreboard support material, preparation layers, various layers of paint, and varnish. Each of these will react differently to handling and the environment, and will contribute to the condition of the painting.

 

Each time a painting is handled there is an increased chance that it can be damaged. Changes in environment can also have an adverse effect on its preservation. In dry environments, such as an attic or household that’s dependent on heating, the paint is particularly vulnerable to cracking. If it’s necessary to transport a painting in cold weather, ensure that the transportation vehicle is heated. The optimum condition for the transport of paintings is moderate temperature and a neither too high nor too low humidity level.

 

Packaging of the painting for transport is extremely important. Wrapping should include moisture and water resistance, and puncture and dent resistance at the front as well as the back. The wrapping should also include insulation against extreme heat, coldness and sudden changes in temperature, and should be cushioned for shock absorption and protection against bumps and accidental drops. After the successful transportation of your painting, you must take the appropriate measures for its safe storage. Try to match the climate conditions of the storage facility as closely as possible to those in which the painting will ultimately be displayed. Airflow is an important factor in the storage of paintings. They should be raised off the floor for maximum airflow and to prevent possible water damage. Cotton sheets should be used as covers, as this will prevent mould.

 

If you are storing many paintings it’s advisable to insert carton dividers between them to avoid undue pressure. Interior walls are best for stacking your paintings, as they are drier than exterior walls. If the storage is long-term, examine the paintings from time to time to check for degradation. On these occasions they should be dusted, and the covers and other means of protection should be changed. Sachets of silica gel, which absorb moisture from the air, can be used to protect the paintings from humidity.

 

Leonardo Da Vinci’s famous painting, the Mona Lisa, is an example of a brilliant work of art showing visible signs of wear and tear. The Louvre, in Paris, has made a relatively controversial decision to not restore old paintings simply because they look old. They believe that works of art should look their age. This is why the sky in the Mona Lisa remains a coppery colour instead of a vivid blue, as it was originally painted. Curators at the museum say that the coppery look has been acquired through the repeated application of varnish over several centuries.

 

The National Gallery in London, on the other hand, follows a different approach. It removes built up, yellow varnish from its paintings and applies a fresh, clear coat. Restorers know that the process will have to be repeated, perhaps in a 25-year cycle, but they believe that paintings should be viewed as the artists intended them.

 

Paintings are often bought, not only for their beauty and aesthetic value, but also as investments. Well maintained works of art can double or triple in value, making them an excellent return on investment. To keep them in good condition, however, it’s necessary to pamper them and treat them as delicate, but temperamental, loved ones. Taking the proper care when displaying, and especially when storing them, could result in a monetary sum that makes the effort worthwhile. Recommended Sites: http://www.preservation.gc.ca/howto/articles/painting_e.asp#top, http://www.sternart.com/article_item.asp?ID=1, http://www.oberlin.edu/alummag/oamcurrent/oam_fall2002/main_conservation_1.htm.

Paint Brushes are an Investment by Emma Snow

Brushes are the most important painter's tools. Buying brushes is not just a random decision, but one that should be made carefully. Selection of brushes is personal and is based upon needs and level of investment desired. Because a brush will only last as well as it is cared for, proper cleaning and storage of brushes is probably even more important than the decision of what brush to buy. Because no matter how wonderful a brush is, if it is abused it will quickly be discarded.

Types of Brushes

The hair of the brush is what primarily denotes what type of brush it is and it's purpose. Although natural hair brushes usually cost more, they do not all create the same results. Sable hair brushes are probably the most popular brushes. They are soft haired brushes that move the paint easily and keep their point. Sable brushes are great for watercolor. Hog hair is also used to make brushes, but has a very different effect with media. Hog hair brushes are stiff brushes for heavy paint and will leave brush strokes behind. They have spilt ends and hold more paint and are used in oil painting. Synthetic brushes are also common for artists to use. These are generally less expensive, but still produce quality work. Paint brushes are an artist tools and several different types are needed depending on the project and desired result sought. More expensive brushes keep their shape after a stroke and do not fishtail or bend when paint is applied to paper or canvas and therefore have a more professional result. Less expensive brushes may be suited for some jobs, especially when used in crafts and with products like glue. The other factor identifying a brush is the handle. Traditionally long handled brushes are used for oil painting because the artist is standing at an easel. Shorter handled brushes are for watercolor and acrylics because the artist is sitting and painting in greater detail.

Cleaning and Care for Brushes

Because how well a brush is cared for effects how long the brush will last, extra effort put in to properly care for these important tools will be well worth the time. All brushes will eventually wear out and will then need to be replaced, but lengthening the span of time before that is necessary will help the budget. Cleaning is crucial to extending the life of a brush. Each brush should be cleaned immediately after use. Use a mild soap and clean in the palm of the hand. Rinse thoroughly and when water runs clear, lay the brush flat to dry. It should not be left vertical to dry as this will cause water to be pulled into the handle and will ultimately cause the handle to loosen and the brush will no longer be usable. Paint brushes should never be left sitting in a glass of water. Other than the effect it will have on the handle, it will crush the bristles. If the brushes are soaked, use a brush container that will suspend them and only fill the water to soak the bristles and not the ferrule or handle. After the paint brush is cleaned and dried it may be stored upright, or in a flat brush holder. Cleaning brushes is not only done at the end of a painting session, but should be done as needed. As a person is painting, effort should be made to keep paint away from the ferrule of the brush, but inevitably will naturally be drawn up the brush. As the paint gets close to the ferrule, it should then be cleaned. This is to prevent the paint from getting under the ferrule and drying there. Natural hair brushes also need to be conditioned on a regular basis. There are paint brush soaps that come with conditioners in them, or conditioner can be bought separately.

Make the investment of brushes one that will be used wisely. The results that a good paint brush produces are worth the initial cost, but only if the effort is made to care for them and extend the value of the investment.

 

About The Author

Emma Snow is a creator at Craft Kits http://www.craft-kits.net leading portals for crafts and creative individuals.

Banksy Is The World's Most Wanted Graffiti Artist by James Smith

You can see graffiti in every country in the world. It often defaces walls, poles, trains and the fronts and sides of buildings. Graffiti is considered undesirable vandalism to its victims who spend time and money to paint over or wash it off their property. Indeed, graffiti painting is an ongoing problem in many subway stations and on public walkways, signs, cement walls, and other locations.

However, on the streets of the United Kingdom near London, an artist called Banksy continues to gain international recognition and fame for his graffiti. The fact is that Banksy's "street art" has become immensely popular with both pedestrians and private art collectors alike. In the last several years, there have been a number of exhibitions and auctions of Banksy's art work as his popularity has soared.

 

The growing popularity of his art is in evidence in the secondary market where a painting titled “Space Girl and Bird” sold for $575,000 in an auction event last year (2007). In fact, Banksy's art can now be found in many private art collections worldwide. Banksy has also produced leaflets and books on art and has his own website. He self-published his first three books, “Existencilism,” “Banging Your Head Against a Brick Wall,” and “Cut It Out.”

 

His latest book called, “Wall and Piece,” was published by Random House and has already sold more than two hundred and fifty thousand copies. Nevertheless, Banksy continues to keep his real identity secret to avoid arrest and prosecution. His anonymity is said to be born of a desire to be a “quality vandal” and to elude the police. He once said, “Imagine a city where graffiti wasn’t illegal, a city where everybody could draw wherever they liked, where the street was awash with a million colors and little phrases. . . . A city that felt like a party where everyone was invited, not just the estate agents and barons of big business.” He has a unique view of the art world as well. He has said, “The art world is the biggest joke going. It’s a rest home for the over-privileged, the pretentious, and the weak.”

 

Banksy's graffiti began appearing on trains and walls around Bristol, England in 1993. By 2001, his street art could be seen all over the United Kingdom. His art has a distinctive style which makes it easy to recognize. It features attention to detail and uses layered stenciling and spray paint. Banksy uses familiar images and his pictures contain dark humor and are often controversial. His art is often focused around anti-war, anti-establishment, and anti-capitalism themes. Sometimes Banksy's works have a pro-freedom message.

 

Banksy uses rats as images in many of his pictures. His most famous street paintings are a series of black-and-white stenciled rats. Many of these rats are created to be larger than life. The rats have become immensely popular with London pedestrians. A “gangster rat,” painted on a wall near the Smithfield market, wears a peace-sign medallion and carries a sign that says “Welcome to Hell.” Another rat holds a sign that reads, “Please love me.”

 

Other Banksy art features the image of two policemen kissing painted on a public wall. In another picture a military helicopter is adorned with a pink bow. Winston Churchill has a Mohawk haircut in another. He has even produced revisionist oil paintings such as Mona Lisa with a yellow smiley face, and a pastoral landscape surrounded by crime-scene tape. Banksy, dressed in a disguise, installed them in the Louvre and the Tate.

 

Banksy often uses public walls as a background to display his art. Although recently he has been creating art on canvas as well. In addition, Banksy sometimes enters museums and galleries to add his own art to the museum collections. In the last several years, Banksy's street art has been seen internationally. It has been found in the Middle East on Israel's West Bank barrier, and in various countries worldwide including Spain, Palestine, Germany, and the United States. He painted the security fence at Bethlehem with a scene of a hole in the concrete barrier. The hole revealed a glittering beach on the other side.

 

Banksy is viewed by people in many different ways. To some he is an anti-hero who touches the public conscience. Others think of him as an anti-social rogue who vandalizes public property. Some people who have done business with him consider him to be both a genius and a madman. Many view him as unique and irreverent.

 

On his website Banksy states that he has bought a taller ladder to use in his work. So there can be no doubt that his graffiti (“street art”) will continue. For their part, the authorities in the United Kingdom will continue to try to identify and subsequently arrest Banksy, the world's most wanted graffiti artist.

 

 

About the Author:

James William Smith has worked in senior management positions for some of the largest financial services firms in the United States for the last twenty five years. He has also provided business consulting support for insurance organizations and start up businesses. Mr. Smith has a Bachelor of Science Degree from Boston College. He enjoys writing articles on political, national, and world events.Visit his website at http://www.eworldvu.com

Throwing Pottery is Great Fun By Andrew Be Edwards

The act of throwing pottery, which is essentially to create pottery through the use of a device known as a potter's wheel is one that many people go into their first pottery class expecting to enjoy immediately. While it is an essential pottery skill for some of the many pottery techniques, it is not something that is generally taught in the first class of an introduction to pottery sort of environment. Unless you are taking a class that is particular focused on learning to throw pottery it is typically a skill that you will get around to eventually rather than jumping into feet first.

If you are not a dip your toe in the water sort of person you can always find classes and courses (many of these are taught by art shops and museums in your local area or the nearest metro area). If you cannot find an acceptable course in your area you can always search your local library for information as well as purchase various videos and books that will teach you the essentials from book stores or online. The one thing to keep in mind when it comes to throwing ceramics or pottery is that it is often best to have some sort of fundamental understanding of working with clay before you begin. It just makes the process go a little more smoothly.

If you are going to be throwing pottery or dealing with any sort of pottery on a regular basis you should familiarize yourself with the proper safety procedures for doing so. This is information that most people will receive when taking classes offered by qualified instructors and is vitally important as there are some dangerous materials that are often handled when working with ceramics. If not you can find a great list of safety measures for working with pottery by doing a simple search online. I do recommend you study them well as I am sure you do not wish to risk your health for the sake of a hobby, even one as enjoyable as making pottery.

Even after you've managed to take a course or two on throwing pottery you may be interested in taking a course that deals with a specific design style of throwing pottery. One popular style is Raku pottery. You can often purchase videos for various styles that will be rather simple to follow once you have general throwing basics down and you can move on to more stylized methods of throwing pottery that are a bit more challenging and more fun in the long run. Increasing skills and expanding them is always a great pursuit and there are simply so many things that can be accomplished with pottery.

http://pottery.09cn.com/ is a website that you can lean more about Pottery.

http://pottery.09cn.com/Throwing-Pottery-is-Great-Fun.html

Creativity Or A Slow Death? By Nick Rice

I read somewhere that the best test for creativity in business was simply to ask “are you creative?” So I tried it. And for the majority of people it seemingly proved true. The people that we all see as creative (designers, PowerPoint gurus, out of the box thinkers) said yes; and the planners, project managers, sales people said no. So I naively believed it to be true.

Watching my two year old daughter run around and play reminds me that we’re all creative. We all have boundless imaginations. We always have. Unfortunately our educational system has progressively worked that aspect our being out of our nature. No educational system on the planet puts as much emphasis on creativity as they do logic. Think about the number of math and science classes you took versus the arts and humanities. Not that logic is bad. In fact, it’s a critical element of life. I just believe that we are over-balanced on logic compared to creativity.

I believe the lack of creativity is slowly killing business. That lack is driving everything to a commodity price-driven market. It’s creating an environment that puts cost cutting before customer satisfaction. Without creative thinking how will the engineering team discover the next breakthrough product? How will the marketing team develop messaging that stands above a crowded market place.

Creativity isn’t solely the realm of designers and ad agencies. It shouldn’t be associated with art. It does not equal wild and crazy. It doesn’t equal foolishness. And being “creative” not a job title.

When you hear “out of the box thinking”; that’s the call to creativity. It’s your management team asking you to come up with a new approach. It’s daring to think differently. It’s not copying the competition. And after all, when you boil it down isn’t creative thinking what we’re paid to do? If everyone has the same view, the same ideas, the same approach, and the same results why are we all still here?

To succeed in business is to be creative in your role. Growth demands creativity. It will separate you from the competition. As humans we’re trained to only notice what’s different in our environment. Therefore, standing out is the best way to raise awareness. The lack of creativity across the board is not only hurting your brand, it’s ultimately hurting your profitability. And it’s hurting your employees.

Creativity isn’t a special gift - we’re all born with it. It never leaves, it’s just hiding behind years of logic. I challenge you to find time to let the two year old inside of you come out and play. Your employees, customers, and shareholders will thank you.

Nick Rice is an accomplished visionary marketing mentor with both client and agency experience in marketing, sales, strategic planning, communications and branding. For 13 years, Nick has given marketing and advertising advice to large companies like IBM, Sabre, Adobe, Lexmark International, Farmers Insurance, Salvation Army and Dell as well as dozens of small professional service businesses. www.nick-rice.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nick_Rice

 

Increase Your Creativity: Work in Other Mediums by Susan Fuller

Are you looking for ways to increase your creativity?

Many years ago a group of music students at the Boston Conservatory of Music taught me this lesson. Every one of them was working in some medium other than their music. Some of them were acting, others painting and still others dancing, but all agreed their music was improved as a result.

This is true for all "creatives." Improve your creative process and output by singing if you're a painter, by dancing If you're a sculptor, or by painting If you're a writer.

By working in a secondary medium you have a chance to be a beginner, to loosen your creative muscles, and to bypass performance anxiety. Since it's "just for fun," you get to play and experiment in ways you may not allow yourself in your primary medium, or at least you haven't for a very long time.

Think of it as a warm up exercise. The fun you have playing in a new medium is contagious and will energize your creative work.

The cross pollination that happens between mediums also inspires new creative possibilities. Looking at art, listening to music or watching a performance can inspire, but actively engaging, in a hands-on sort of way, will catapult you into a whole new realm of creative inspiration.

I recommend working in another medium for all "creatives," but it is an especially helpful technique when you're feeling uninspired or just plain blocked. We all go through dry spells. So rather than beating yourself up about being blocked, take a class in something you've never tried or go to the art store and buy some materials to play with.

Whatever you choose need not be extravagant or expensive. Knitting and gardening are favorites among my clients. Other possibilities are drawing, painting, photography, dance, acting, pottery, cooking, sewing, quilting, singing, writing poetry, or playing a musical instrument. You get the picture. Any and all creative mediums work.

If you're not already working in another medium, the best place to start is to look for something you always thought might be fun but never gave yourself permission to try. Follow your heart and your dreams, be willing to experiment and, most importantly, take some action to get your creative juices moving in new and exciting ways.

What new medium are you going to try today?

Copyright 2007 All rights reserved Susan Fuller and susanfuller.com

About the Author

Susan Fuller is a creativity coach who helps artists, writers and performers, achieve creative and financial success. She is a visual artist. writer, and entrepreneur, who has taught The Artist's Way for over a decade, and recently introduced the Creatives Cafe Coaching Group and the Creatives Café Online Membership, where "creatives" come together to take creative action.

For more ways to increase your creativity, you can download "