I continue to update the survey of oil paint brands. I have been using a lot of paint from the small producer Blue Ridge Colors. I am constantly on the lookout for reliable day-to-day paints, that is, paints that are good quality and reasonably priced. In this pursuit, I’ve recently used Rembrandt, Winsor Newton, and…
Bio, Studio Corner, Uncategorized
In the Studio 9/16/2013
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Here is a photo of paintings I’ve worked over the last several days. None are finished, although the bottom-most is nearest to being done. I’ve spent a lot of time on the drawings for 4 large paintings (for me–40″ x 50″), but I won’t show them until the drawings are done to my satisfaction.
Paintings, Shop Talk, Studio Corner, Tips and Studies, Uncategorized
Study: Making ‘The Call’ Part 4
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OK, so where are we now? The under-painting is done and the finishing work is started. To recap, my process is divided into several stages: Design/Drawing: I draw the deign with pencil then fix it with ink. The drawing is a plan: I work through every area and identify any issues. I can change the…
Shop Talk, Studio Corner
Tip: Closer, Farther
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Have you ever struggled with a passage even though you know the colors and tones are right? One corrective, especially when the tones are extremely close, is to ensure that closer forms are painted over those farther back. I don’t know how many times I’ve seen works spoiled when things farther away are painted over…
Bio, Studio Corner
In the Studio 8/25/2013
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My wife hates this unfinished self-portrait. She says it doesn’t look anything like me–I look a bit crazed. Ha! In the recent batch of self-portraits, I want to be relentless. My fellow artists will understand my meaning.
Bio, Fiction
Poem: Full-Blood Moon
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Through the narrow window, the full-blood moon floated in the black water of the bathtub, next to where you laid with your face against the wall sobbing. Pressing my cheek to yours, I glimpsed, the unfurled flags of defeat and something I didn’t understand. Aug., 2013
Bio, Paintings, Studio Corner, Uncategorized, Vermilion, OH
In the Studio 8/18/2013
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A favorite chair. I have used a white lawn chair in my paintings several times. I like its sensuous shape and the matte color provides an interesting contrast to the objects around it. The two paintings on the lower-right show my children with the chair, Jane on the far-right, Keith in the middle. The other…
Shop Talk, Tips and Studies, Uncategorized
Painting Mediums Revisited
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Someone asked why I fudged the proportion of varnish in my medium recipe. Varnishes differ widely from one another. Some are made with oil and some are made with thinner. Some start concentrated with the expectation that they will be thinned later, while others are already thinned to some desired consistency. Damar, which along with…