Thoughts on evaluating the many art “rules” and traditions that continue to thrive in the studio and classroom. “Art ‘rules’ are often personal opinions shouted loudly with a big stick.” -Kara Castro McGee. American Author Hilary Hinton “Zig” Ziglar is often credited with the popularizing of a clever story about blindly following tradition and dogma…. Continue reading
Not long ago I was asked to join an online discussion group that was formed around the book Traditional Oil Painting, Advanced Techniques and Concepts from the Renaissance to the Present by artist and author Virgil Elliot. Upon joining, I purchased the book that inspired the group so that my contributions to the forum’s discussions… Continue reading
A recent study from Jiao Tong University in China has been making some waves (pun intended) with a careful investigation into an often-encountered, but relatively under-examined bit of ornamentation—decorative wallpaper (Fu, Zhang, & Lin 2019.) Using a test that is designed to assess the strength of cognitive associations by examining latencies in classification tasks (Implicit… Continue reading
A few of my students organized a Holiday-themed Alla Prima afternoon this past week. For some of our newer artists that seemed a tad more apprehensive about jumping into the challenge—I offered a short acronym for them to keep in mind when trying to capture a likeness their observed subject. I told them ya gotta… Continue reading
I came across a very good article last night exploring the benefits of working with a limited palette. The article was written by Courtney Jordan and is available on the artist daily blog here: http://www.artistdaily.com/blogs/artist-daily/sharpen-your-ability-to-judge-color-tone-and-value/ Within this article, one very knowledgeable artist shared his strategies for extending his palette’s color gamut as far as possible… Continue reading
While my last paper focused on considerations of proximity in regards to perceived shape, size, curvature, etc., my aim here is to examine the impact of proximity on perceived values and value relationships. I have often heard art teachers tell students to step away from their drawings/paintings during their process so that they may better… Continue reading
One of the more insidious pitfalls that can plague both the novice as well as the seasoned observational representationalist is a failure to adequately consider the role of observational proximity. This issue is especially insidious in that it can pounce even when an artist has successfully communicated every measurement and observed proportion with great accuracy,… Continue reading
“This isn’t my first rodeo.” —Guy at his second rodeo A pioneering Italian polymath once wrote, “I think that tastes, odors, colors, and so on are no more than mere names so far as the object in which we locate them are concerned, and that they reside in consciousness. Hence if the living creature were… Continue reading
Anya Dribas, general administrator of the Ani Art Academies, and artist Anthony J. Waichulis talk about “Capturing Realism 2017,” on display July 8 through August 26 at the Pauly Friedman Art Gallery at Misericordia University in Dallas. There will be a “Meet the Artists” reception from 5 to 7 p.m. July 8. Complete information can… Continue reading
One common argument against the potential contributions of deliberate practice is: “I have been doing such and such (insert any activity) for many, many years and I am nowhere near close to anything I would consider expert-level performance.” The short rebuttal to this is that engaging in an activity (no matter how often or for… Continue reading