Art Blog

Cast yourself back to the young inquisitive college sophomore (or equivalent) you, sitting around with your friends after a few and asking the most fundamental question of our relationship to life. “What is reality?”

“Is there and ultimate pure and true reality, or is it what we call real subject to interpretation as filtered through our senses and prejudices?

The answer is a clear and resounding, Yes!

Now apply this to the problem of painting the world.  One may be compelled to look for the ultimate reality of things but we we immediately run up against the above question. I submit that while there are many parts of true and unquestionable realities (buses, trees, love, puppies, etc.) there is also negotiable reality (effects of light, observation over time, our mood, clouds).

As realist painters this is a great opportunity,  and can be argued the only opportunity for us to express ourselves. We must grasp the ephemeral and fleeting as a compelling fact of reality and do our best to bring it into art. In painting this is often called. Capturing a moment. Happy Hunting!

 

 

This series of essays begins with the post “What’s Next for Your Art?”

Our experience of the world is the culmination of our senses. We go through life with our eyes open, our lungs pulling smells past our nose, our skin touching the atmosphere, hands grasping and ears hearing. When we smell our favorite foods we are reminded of how they taste, look and a possible myriad of other sensations. It is almost impossible to experience the world with one sense at a time. As painters we rely on our sense of sight to create our work and that same sense on the part of our audience to appreciate it. It is good for us to remember that stimulation of one of our senses can often influence the others.

Still lives are a popular subject for many reasons, one of those reasons is that they are a very familiar part of everyday life, and we experience them on several levels. Of course, we see them, which is the main focus of our painting, but we also have held many of those objects in our hand, a pot or vase is a very familiar object and so holding it is a common sensation and when we see one in life or in a painting there is a subtle stimulation of the tactile experience of it as well. Other objects, like fruit or flowers can stimulate our sense of taste or smell as well. So, beyond the experience of sight there is also the other senses for the artist to consider as possible points of interest or stimulation.

This experience is across all subject matter. The human figure, landscapes, and street scenes. Scenes of violence and serenity. Even abstract paintings evoke strong sensations. These reactions can be very real. I remember seeing a painting of a stormy sky and was struck by the unique experience of smelling the rain.

These ideas are not difficult to grasp. I am sure we have all noticed the multitude of stimulations while standing on a windy beach or eating a piece of fruit. What I want to communicate here is the roll this phenomenon plays in fine art painting. To make us aware of the complex nature of our sensory experience and so that when we are painting, we can notice these and use them, because anything that adds a unique quality to our art creates another level of interest and contributes to the overall success of our work.

To be continued

What’s Next for Your Art?

When most people begin drawing or painting, they naturally gravitate to capturing the world as we see it. So, drawing in proportion, rendering light and shadow, line perspective and all the other tools and techniques that help us to show the world as we see it are very important. To be sure one can achieve some amazing effects with these.

Many artists dedicate their entire career to capturing on paper or canvas the sensation of the actual physiological stimulation of the experience of seeing. Using art materials, it is possible to very closely imitate the effects of light on objects. What is more difficult (impossible) to do with paint is recreate the way we experience the world through our eyes. The scanning motion, the ever-changing center of focus and the discreet movements around us are impossible to capture with paint, video, or any other way.

These things are unique to the way people see the world using our miraculous eyes and no amount of genius will ever duplicate that. I think most artists at some time realize the futility of trying to capture reality with pigment and come to terms with the limitation of the medium. This can be a turning point for the direction one takes with their art.

To be continued

 

When I paint something, I want to capture an essence. I am a representational painter. I paint how things represent themselves to me. Some of that is how they look but another part of it is what they are, how they use space, evolve with time or change with light. Our sense of sight is how we experience the visual world. How to interpret that is a question all artists must come to terms with. Even though I must rely on those processes and effects I try to show past that to the other things. I struggle to show the unshowable which is transformed by my imagination.  That is what keeps me interested.

“Every painting answers a question and asks a question”

” The purpose of art is to create interest”

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The Oregon summer is a great time to get outside and paint or draw. Sometimes I will bring the whole kit and other times I will just grab a sketchbook. No matter the materials you bring a lot of the pleasure comes from taking the time to sit and look at the scene in front of you. Of course I enjoy the day but I also have a mission. To see the scene as an artist. That means to find a composition, values and color harmonies. In other words all the things we need a make picture. Recently I have added a new component to my observation list. I call it “the hook”. This is what attracts me to the scene in the first place. The shadows of trees on the grass, the color of the sunset, the composition of buildings on a street. The goal is to positively identify what attracts me to paint in the first place. Once I conclude the main motivation of a scene I need to remember it as I work and not let less important parts overshadow this. Sometimes this choice is obvious, other times it is not so much. Either way I get more satisfaction from my painting if I keep a strong theme in mind and the first step in to identify it.
Cheers, Steve
Here is a neat article on plein aire painting
http://www.artistdaily.com/topics/plein-air-art

This summer I plan to update my website and begin a concerted program to expand my influence. I will reach out to art clubs through out the country to promote workshops and have a viable product page.