Sunny colors in spring landscape with barn

Spring landscape painting with barn

Why do I paint what I paint? Why this landscape? I have done commissions when somebody else orders the painting subject and colors. However, when I choose the subject, I look for something which feels like me, and I go for it. I pay no regard to all classic or whatever painting rules. Instead, I usually guide myself with what feels right and suitable to me. That includes deciding when the painting is done.

This particular painting was started last year, around this same time. I did the first layers and left it since other things came up and I had to deal with them. As I have mentioned before, I have quite a lot of paintings which are in their initial stages. I don’t push myself – if I don’t feel like completing some painting, I leave it alone.

Recently, I decided to add some layers and see what I could do with this landscape. It looks good and has lots of appeal in the final version. Each painting undergoes numerous transitions, from the first blocked in layers to final details. I regret that colors are both, more yellow and bluer, and the red tones are sort of missing on photo.

I paint what’s around me and what I know well. That is would be – forests, parks, backyards, creeks, trees, plants, flowers and garden. These subjects are applied in different combinations from still life to landscape and everything in the middle. I am not close to large water, and I absolutely do not have any mountains here. However, nature provides me with endless inspiration, especially trees and plants.

Just like always, I love checking out how the black and white version of this landscape looks. I think it is quite impressive, with all values in correct places, and certainly, it’s possible to see the landscape, barn and daffodils clearly. One can tell it’s spring even without colors.

The situation with art materials and paints is very tough here. I have run out of most good quality paints; there’s no white paint left. I just use what I have, but I will definitely need to get some new art supplies from somewhere soon. I dislike internet shopping a lot, and I always preferred to see in person what exactly I was buying. No such option here right now.

Enjoy my new spring barn landscape with white daffodils and weathered fence. It looks sunny on the wall, indeed. Also, this view takes us to a beautiful day when blooms are out and leaves are opening. Let’s hope we get into the nice spring weather sooner!

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Vibrant red color in my still life paintings

Red color in large still life paintings, watercolor

Just like other primary colors, red color can have numerous variations of cool and warm shades. Red color is eye catching and energizing. I won’t try to list all symbolic meanings, but among well-known attributes, red color has a protective aura.

Unfortunately, no camera with all automated settings, can ever much the sensitivity of experienced artist’s application of any color. Therefore, the red color in a painting might be more yellow, as it very often is, more orange, or bluer. The color distortion has a wide range, and it is also difficult to correct because any change affects the entire image.

Creating the still life with red jug from 2012 drawing

 It took a lot of guessing what goes where since I didn’t have the actual reference in front of me.

The new still life with red jug, has many red tones.  I tried to capture them on images, as well, and I must admit, not always successfully. I know, people say, it doesn’t really matter, but if you see the actual painting and image thereof, you would agree that it matters. I created the drawing on Arches cotton watercolor paper in 2012. When I started feeling better, I decided to finalize all paintings on good paper since it has become extra expensive. Painting on such paper, is a pleasure.

 The new painting is large: 24 x 18″ or 61 x 46 cm.

I noticed quite early that direction of light is very important for me. Whether you look at my drawings, pastel or acrylic paintings, or watercolor art, light always comes from the left. It’s just how I see everything. Once you have established your personal perception of light direction, you will notice how easy it is to apply shadows and use the composition effectively.

All still life paintings in this post have red color in them, some more, some less. Some have very warm red, some – rather cool. The same applies to different parts of one and the same image. When people start painting, they rarely think of these things – direction of light, cool and warm colors, volume and contrast and so forth. The subject is not that important, but the before mentioned things are since they are the main principles of painting.

I’ve always loved drawing and painting still life. It is easy to set up using whatever you already have at home. Certainly, some items suit still life settings better than the others. Yet, there is a way to implement anything. It could be your personal items, fruits, vegetables, flowers, books, souvenirs, attractive dishes, plants, bottles, jars and jug, I mean, the choice is endless. I love painting still life because I don’t need any photos for reference.

Any of my still life paintings always start with the pencil sketch or drawing. I draw sometimes straight on watercolor paper, sometimes – on whatever paper I have, and then transfer the drawing onto watercolor paper. Most of still life paintings are done on Arches cotton paper. I don’t use bright white paper, but rough and cold press for sure. I like the texture of paper even though it can make painting process more difficult.

I hope you enjoyed the attractive red color!

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New painting season and art classes

Fall landscape paintings

New painting season to match changes in nature

As the seasons change and the fall makes us feel its presence, a new painting season starts. I switch from summer projects to abundance of sparkling colors and more autumnal subjects. For students who take the brush in their hands for the first time and for experienced artists, it is a great moment to submerge oneself into this fantastic experience of creation. The nostalgic feel of something going away, the thoughtfulness of nature preparing for sleep, the dance of leaves in the backyard and harvest on the table: this is an never ending inspiration for poets and artists alike.

Wide choice of medium and subject options

The new painting season is going to be rich in colors and painting subjects. All media capture fall colors well. Watercolor does it with bright washes and brilliance of pure color, like the transparent fall sky and the gold and red of leaves. Acrylic allows for numerous layers, thus polishing the painting to a perfect fall art. We can use pastel and pencil also, why not? I hope I and my current students will create something impressive. We already welcomed the new painting season with the first set of acrylic painting classes.

New season of painting classes

Painting classes have always been popular. I used to have participants who attended my painting classes every week, month after month, and so for quite a few years. That was before the online classes and tutorials started to take over the internet space. The advantage of art class as opposed to tutorial or paint night is very significant: art classes teach you to use tools, explore surfaces, many techniques, as well as painting and drawing subjects. The goal of art classes is to teach you to become independent and to be able to paint or draw anything afterwards.

The story told by trees

During this new painting season, we will allow trees to tell their story, allow the brush to dance on canvas. We will use sponge and fan brush because that’s a very fantastic way to capture fall nature. One just needs to know how to go about that and what colors and in what sequence to use. I love watercolor, I love acrylic painting, and there’s nothing wrong with color sketch or simple ink or pencil drawing. However, the new painting season will be devoted to new type of art which will shine not only through composition, color choices, but also new approaches and techniques.

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Acrylic flower paintings in new settings – art never expires

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Flower paintings in acrylic

As an artist, we always have some favorite paintings. Some of them we don’t sell at all, and some we give as gifts to dear people. Since many of my previous posts were about watercolor, I’d love to post this time a few acrylic flower paintings. This post has quite a few images of painted pink and white flowers. Unfortunately, as we get older, there seems to be less time for anything. That refers to painting, posting, sharing and so on. Somebody told me that we feel this way since we spend more time on any task.

Quality over quantity

I suppose with experience, both life and art, we value quality over quantity. Anybody who’s spent decades creating art, can reflect of the process of discovery. Discovering subject, discovering new color palette, discovering adorable things we didn’t like before, discovering new dimensions of the same old story. I love pure and clean colors, and pink color offers so many shades.

My paintings with past

As the time goes by so swiftly, I sort of regret not painting exactly what I prefer. That’s as opposed to subjects I teach in art classes. I’ve mentioned before that an artwork for juried show, artwork for quick sale, commissioned artwork and paintings which I create as demonstrations – they are all very different by nature. Time has been always a factor, but also my health problems. So, you have to be ok when you cannot do anything at all also. I didn’t paint these flower paintings yesterday, but hopefully got better images of them.

Art is more than copy of reality

My taste doesn’t comply with generally preferred art which we see online. That is sunsets, waves, backlit shapes, too sweet nature scenes, as well as very close copies of photos. I always believed art is more than copy of reality. The latter anybody can manage with enough patience, tools and devices. Not everybody can paint spontaneously or draw without any printouts or edited images.

Relation to reality

On the other hand, I love that my paintings display things which are recognizable. People frequently tell me; they know that or this place in my painting. Well, such place doesn’t exist, but apparently the painting relates to somebody’s experience. Sometimes, the viewer can feel fragrance of flower. That’s why I avoid painting completely abstract art, but I still have a lot of abstracted paintings, especially, the extra textured ones. Also, my backgrounds are not definite.

Everything is art, but I disagree

While all artistic genres – music, singing, acting, writing, poetry – have moved on and aimed for higher goals and more mastery, internet has facilitated degradation of classic art. If you want to see what’s for sale and what’s taught on some skill-sharing sites, just google any term. It can be quite awful and total beginners art. I remember how my students 10 and more years ago were so self-critical. Nowadays, that’s a ready-for-sale art. I agree, it’s easier to hang an abstract on the wall, but it becomes a simple decoration, not always art. How long are you going to look at 2 lines or some big blob of one color?

Enjoy!

I always struggled with photos of my paintings because to my sharp artistic eye, the photos have never the exact colors and I usually have to crop off some crucial parts to make the image straight. Nevertheless, let me know if you like some flower or other painting. I don’t think original paintings have ever been so affordable. It’s been a while, and I wish everything was better, but enjoy! With better, I mean mostly the financial side. The creative side is fine, I never have any problem with that.

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Creating art collections

Backyard, watercolor art collections

Choosing artworks for collections

If you have been painting for a decade or longer as I am, it’s possible to see how all artworks fit into art collections. What are the criteria for creating art collections? There are many, and any large body of artworks can be sorted out by medium, style, certain color or particular subject. The best example is my Fine Art America art collections. I have put together art by medium, by subject, like floral art, still life, landscape and also by color. There will be black and white art collection available soon, as well. See link below or on Menu.

Painting from imagination

The spring as always is arriving slowly in Ontario. We see long periods of grey and earthy colors around us. The more grasses and trees wake up, the more patches of bright green are visible. Therefore, my grey and abstract watercolors were a good match for my surroundings. As I have mentioned many times, I prefer not to use any photos for my art. The spontaneous watercolors are simply watercolor washes at first, and I sort them out as I go and add definition. It is extremely easy to create art collections of abstracted art.

Getting composition right

Classic painting consists of background, middle ground and foreground. Plus, we need something to capture viewer’s attention with. It’s called a focal point in art. Everything including lines and colors of different values is organized in accordance with our composition. I believe that composition is difficult to implement when the artist doesn’t feel visual balance and natural flow of their image. I personally do not use any view finders or similar tools; I just adjust my composition as I feel it. Some of my art collections include highlights of compositional elements.

Simplicity versus complexity

Fragmented art can look better sometimes than very accomplished and compositionally perfect painting. Art collections can include simplicity or complexity of a particular subject, use of color and compositional elements. The blue period art collection displays exactly that – simplicity and strategically placed watercolor washes.

Art reflecting the season

Most of my art also goes by season, therefore, I have seasonal art collections, as well. Spring and summer landscapes, fall colors and snow paintings, they are all interesting on their own and placed in art collection. Floral art is a very big part of everything I have ever painted, I think it deserves a separate post. I know people who have painted a few artworks, some five or six paintings, and they try to immediately sell them and even teach painting. Well, it’s better to allow our skills to mature so that we are represented by what we do well, not by our first attempts at painting.

Buy original painting?

Original paintings have never been more affordable than they are now. I looked at my price charts from 2013, and my paintings sold for double the price I have listed now. That’s a horrible thing because everything has become at least 5 times more expensive. That includes watercolor paper, paints and I won’t even mention framing. There are inexpensive options, but I simply have too many paintings to frame each one. Therefore, I’m offering some framed art and some – unframed.

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