David Davis was an art supply dealer in New York. He closed before the turn of the century–well before, so I have no idea how old this Venice turpentine I found this morning is. At least 20 years old. At one time, Peal Paint and David Davis were art supplier royalty in NYC. I spent…
I used to think speed is important in art making. Speed relates to spontaneity–some say–and spontaneity guarantees authenticity, if not creativity. While spontaneity is important in art making, it’s not fundamental. Even if you insist that spontaneity is essential, you can’t make the same claim for speed. Speed is simply irrelevant. Another important idea for…
Good day after a bad day. I was so excited to get into the studio yesterday, I was mixing my medium at 5:30 AM. I make my medium fresh every day. It’s very drying and if I prepare it beforehand, it’s too firm. But I do prepare one of the ingredients in advance–the varnish. I…
These two recent pastel drawings are on canvas. Primed canvas is an unusual support for pastels or charcoal because it’s not absorbent enough. Pastel chalk falls off too easily. I originally intended to use these canvases for paintings. I had actually started painting on the larger of the two (the gray area in the lower left),…
Playhouse Square Trip is, as the name implies, part of the Playhouse Square series. The design is based on several photos I took during one of my photo sessions at the Square. As readers know, I’ve been working on the series for a year or thereabout. The Square is heavily frequented by office workers, visitors, and theatergoers…
Living in NE Ohio, I had to the visit the RNC. I spent two hours yesterday in downtown Cleveland. I took a lot of photos but I was still surprised when I got home and discovered that I’d taken 1300 photos! I’m always taking photos for use in my paintings, of course, and I was…
Problems solved in dreams.
I have prophetic dreams, only they NEVER pan out–they’re just memorable dreams. My wife, on the other hand, has insights and flashes that DO pan out. It’s eerie.
Problems are sometimes solved in my dreams. Does that happen to you? Waking up in an eureka! moment when the solution is crystal clear? I attribute this to my penchant for letting things percolate. Some problems, in life and art, take time to work out. As I fall asleep, I reflect on a problem in the hope that its solution will come to me while I sleep. Sometimes this technique works; sometimes it doesn’t. Sometimes the solution comes to me even when I don’t prime the pump. That happened last night.
I dream of paintings–new paintings–too. When that happens, I rush to the studio to get as much down as I can before I forget about it. I’ve finished paintings while under the impulse of a dream.
Ah, the Internets!
I don’t prowl youTube often; I’m a reader, not a watcher. But sometimes I do watch vids, of course. Two weeks ago I watched some videos about repairing stone steps and fixing my lawn tractor’s carburetor. They were good; I learned things.
Recently I tired watching videos by so called art experts. Holy mackerel–what a waste of time! Aren’t ‘experts’ supposed to, you know, know something? I’m pretty jaded but I’m still amazed by how easily some people are impressed by themselves. Some people actually believe that all they have to do is assume an air of authority and–voila!–they’re expert enough to instruct others.
I’m not going to post links because I’m a live and let live type, but seriously, what are they thinking?