Roses #4

Roses #4

8x6 oil on canvas $150. SOLD

unframed. 

This one has all the bells and whistles...

took longer, but

it was really a joy to paint.

Available  at 

M Phillips Fine Art Gallery 

for the 

 First Friday Ramble.

May 1st.

If interested call

 575.525.1367

Roses #3

Roses #3

8x6in oil on canvas panel  $135.SOLD

Artist Note.
After all the previous focus
 on line, I deliberately went for just shape
in this one and fractured to
my hearts content.

Dry Weed Nest and Line in Watercolor

 Dry Weed Nest

6x6in  watercolor on aquabord 

waxed. NFS

Artist Note

I was asked to explain about 

line in watercolor

and how it is used.

This one is for you, Edith!

Traditionally, water-colorists have used a pencil

to draw their subject. Often they will go over

the pencil line with a stronger paint line

where they want to describe the form

with more emphasis. Line can change from 

thin to thick, straight to round, 

over or under a mass of color.

In my nest above I used line

with opaque paint over a dark base.

It is called "form line" because it 

follows the direction of the form

A curve is a curve or  

straight is straight...etc.

I mixed different values

 to create the weaving of the grasses.

In the painting below,

Winslow Homer used the form 

line around parts of the boat
creating an outline, and 

even lightly around the sail 

at the back.
This was to create a separation
between boat and water.
So form line and outline are the same
thing, but used for different reasons.

If you look at the clouds

you will see the edges

are formed from the 

mass of the sky color.

No line. But the weeds

and lines on water are 

line. The way he painted

the dark shadow under the 

right end of the boat

could be a lyrical line...

it is expressive and 

yummy as it dissolves into an area of shadow

Andrew Wyeth, below, has obvious lines which

emphasizes the flow and direction of the water.

They merge into an area of color. No longer a line.

Sargent, below, has the lady on the right 

with lines to describe the folds of her

clothes, but on the lady on the left 

he used a softer line and

gently massed in with color.

Ask why one and not the other?

Most likely to direct the eye to her

first, but he did add a sharp line on the 

bonnet to bring some focus 

back to the other one..

 Line can be an important way to 

add some direction and emphasis.

Sargent used lyrical or expressive lines to 

describe the flounces in the one below.
And left it "as is". 

Many of the popular artists of today

like to use the line all the way through

their painting as a style -instead of using them for 

direction or emphasis. 

See Stefan Duncan below

My personal fav is

Shirley Trevena who is

 brilliant 

at mixing all types of line and mass.

Explore all the lines in this one.

It is fun to look through art

magazines trying to find the 

different types of LINE.

If you stuck all the way through this - I thank you!

Edith - hope you enjoyed it.

Roses #2 Plus Picasso and the Lyrical Line

Roses #2

6x8in oil on canvas panel  $135. SOLD

This is the second rose painting 

I have painted using the foundation 

of this month's focus at the Guild

 - using LINE in painting.

The base is underneath - trust me!

Artist Note.

The continuation of 

 the value of LINE

is for a few artists I mentor

who are interested in adding some 

power to their work. 
Hope you find it interesting.

Notice the lines Picasso used in

Woman In White

1923

(Metropolitan Museum NTC)

Unlike Cezanne, who mostly used his lines 

to turn the form,

(darker at edges as they turned from the light) 

Picasso used both the lyrical and form line.

I have stood in front of this painting

and marveled at the beautiful layering, 

but mostly at   

the fluidity of the lines for the hair

in comparison to the structure lines of the face.

So simple and they describe so much.

 (close-up below.)

In Picasso's Blue Period, 

The Old Guitarist

1903

below

You can see the lines are clear

and used beautifully. 

 He needed the eye to 

flow around the painting

so "value" was important 

along with line. Notice how the 

head and one hand are lighter -

 legs and other hand drop a value 

and the clothed torso disappears

 by keeping it in the same value 

and color family as the background.

The simple line around the guitar

plus the warm color 

moves it to center stage.

Two years earlier he painted

Le Gourmet

1901

When I saw this painting I was fascinated.

 Picasso had skipped around 

with form, lyrical, and 

crosshatching line work..

 You can see the different quality lines

almost everywhere, but none appear on

 the top edge of the tablecloth 

where he played around with 

a lost edge on her cuff by

making it the same value 

as the cloth, 

creating a beautiful flow

from tablecloth into her arm 

and up to her face.

Only 6-7 years after the 

stylized painting of the guitarist,

Picasso painted

Portrait of Ambroise Vollard

1910.

I have not seen this one in life,

(it is in Russia)

but it is the force of movement 

that line and value can achieve

together which knocks my socks off.

We see artists today losing edges

with deliberately smooshed strokes 

of the brush, breaking up edges

 - me included -

in an attempt to be 'loose"

and here is Picasso with pure

control and logic, 

fracturing the image. 

Not all of the cubist paintings 

Picasso painted

achieved this effect 

to the same degree.

If you are not bored silly by now

 look again at the 

Woman In White

painted 12 years after this one.

Examine his use of line 

and your personal response to it.

You may find it very contemporary.

Neat eh?

picasso

Roses and Cezanne's Outlines.

Roses

8x6in oil on canvas panel $135. SOLD

Artist Note
This was a demo I did today
at the Artists Guild.
A mix of fracturing, brush and knife
work using a
charcoal drawing base to step up from.
First, I did the drawing with charcoal
and used a
spray fixative (outside) to secure.
 Next, I applied a light transparent color
over the drawing then started to add color.

As you can see from the above step

 I eventually 

covered up the lines in my finished 

painting.

The advantage of this drawing base is that

you can use it for several 

different techniques.

Here is a famous one.

Leaving the outlines 

showing here and there was a

technique Cezanne loved to use.

He went back over his drawing and emphasized

 his lines with paint

As time went on he learned to 

 forgo the initial drawing and go 

straight into drawing with his paint brush...

 like in the drapery above.

No matter the method -

the use of line adds so much to the 

power of the painting.

I am still not able to "see and evaluate"
my paintings after I have finished them.
My brain apparently is in a different
place at the moment.
It still works for teaching, thank heavens.

Thank you for all the great comments
to my last post.
I will be round to check all your blogs.

Narcissus and Lilacs (painted in car)

Narcissus and Lilacs

5x7 on moleskin 

Artist Note

In my previous post I showed paintings done on the 

way TO our destination, and on the return I had freshly

picked lilacs and 

narcissus in the glove compartment.

The three hours flew by as I sketched in my moleskin.

Still making sure I do not aim for perfection!

I used a water soluble graphite pencil

to draw the basic shapes in. 

No pressure 

only fun!

Rooster With A Checkered Past

Rooster With A Checkered Past

7x5" gouache on paper  SOLD

Painting in a decorative style.

Artist Note

This was for an invitational show 

I had previously 

committed to be part of. 

 It had a rooster theme.

" Something to Crow About" 

This was painted at the last moment

and the mere fact I painted

something I could use 

 I credit to the solid advice and 

sharing I received from some 

wonderful, caring artists 

regarding my call for help in 

my last post.

The comments are quite

 remarkable in their candor and 

genuine desire to help

by sharing of their own 

experiences.

It allowed me to see that 

many others fight through it 

what ever it is -not a block

in the usual way because 

painting is still fun,

but equally insidious in the doubt

it creates about the future.

Following much of the advice, 

I changed my focus

and media and just painted with 

no wipe-offs.

The Rooster was number 3.

It was so different from my regular 

work I did not have to be

judgmental about  it.

Another tip was to get away from

my regular routine, sooo...

we went on a trip for Easter. 

I still had to 

paint in the car... can't not do that!

But instead of painting the landscape 

like I usually do

I took along a plant a friend had given 

me and painted large.

This was on the way there.

The glove compartment came in handy!

I painted different flowers of the way back.

I will show those in the next post.

Once again a HUGE thanks to all those 

who took the time to send helpful advice 

either by email as well as the blog. 

I do not know how 

long my weird state will last, but at least 

now I do know 

and trust that it will pass and I will 

still have my passion for my art.

I am so truly grateful for the 

amazing artists who blog.

I am blessed.