Madison Avenue - pastel, 9X12 (study for oil painting that is in progress) I've timed the launch of this blog to coincide with the beginning of my fall classes. This is new for me and something I've given a lot of consideration to. There are many artists' blogs already out there, do we really need another one? I hope to offer an extended, virtual classroom: a place where my students (or anyone who has an interest in art) can ask questions, view demos, and discuss concepts related to drawing, painting and exhibiting their work. My focus, just as in my classes, will be on style development and building confidence in your skills. My goal is to maximize the learning experience by offering supportive materials outside of the classroom. For example, one of the challenges I have as an instructor has always been the balance of doing live demonstrations while not interfering with students' time to paint in the classroom. (Don't worry I don't plan to stop doing demos in class!) But, instead of taking up an hour of class time doing a lengthy demo, I can do an abbreviated demo in class (much like what I currently do), as well as post a more detailed video demo here that you can watch at your convenience.
I hope you gain something from the content posted here, and welcome your ideas, suggestions and feedback. To start, how about letting me know what YOU would like to see in terms of content and format?
Please comment and ask questions as often as you like, I want this to be a source of useful information and the best way I can do that is by having you tell me what is important to you.
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9 comments:
Anne, this is going to be great. 1. it's a great looking site and I really love the painting you have chosen to open the blog with. Saw it in class it looks even more amazing on the screen.
2. I have been reading a blog for over a year with a great waterolorist offering wonderful, inventive instuction/demo/and other great stuff www.myrnawack@prodigy.net. I never make the time to work on her projects. Though I really always want to. Just seem to busy with my stuff. That is something you might think about doing (in your spare time HA HA) I mean giving your bloggers a challenge that they can work on during the week with a quick review and show on the weekend. It's really a wonderful interactive thing to do. Take a look at her site, I think she fabulous. I have corresponded with her she is very generous.
3. I adore live demos or taped demos. Another site that shows the work of a fabulous artist is
keiser@duanekeiser.com. Take a look and it might stimulate even more great ideas for your blog. I've been reading his off and on for two or more years. I believe you learn a ton by seeing it done. And so I will look forward to yours.
4. Perhaps offer a little guidance as to how to open a blogger account or gooble account. I think I have one, I'm not really sure. I would love to see a "works in progress" section where students can send their jpegs to you for professional guidance and criticism that all can view and learn from.
5. Thanks for considering me one of your respected artist students. That means a lot to me.
Thank you for your comments and the links to those sites, I will definitely check them out.
I like your suggestion about a works in progress feature for users to upload work for critique, there are a few things though that I need to think through on that. Because this is a public forum, we all have to remember that ANYONE can see what is posted here as well as any comments. Even though critiques given here would be constructive in nature, it is still much more public than a critique in a classroom. Something to think about...
Hi Anne! I'm such a dope I have never even heard the term "blogger" before. I love the concept though. I think the demos would be a great idea because it is very helpful to have a visual reminder of what was done in class. I definitely want to check out the web sites mentioned by dacdoll too. I think it should be a little clearer how to get onto the comments section at the bottom - maybe highlighted or something. Then again, maybe I'm not using it correctly. I wasn't sure what to do when I went into "comments" at the top and it showed me the google, etc. options. I did sign up for the loosen up bookmark.
Hi Anne! I'm such a dope I have never even heard the term "blogger" before. I love the concept though. I think the demos would be a great idea because it is very helpful to have a visual reminder of what was done in class. I definitely want to check out the web sites mentioned by dacdoll too. I think it should be a little clearer how to get onto the comments section at the bottom - maybe highlighted or something. Then again, maybe I'm not using it correctly. I wasn't sure what to do when I went into "comments" at the top and it showed me the google, etc. options. I did sign up for the loosen up bookmark.
Hi Anne! I'm such a dope I have never even heard the term "blogger" before. I love the concept though. I think the demos would be a great idea because it is very helpful to have a visual reminder of what was done in class. I definitely want to check out the web sites mentioned by dacdoll too. I think it should be a little clearer how to get onto the comments section at the bottom - maybe highlighted or something. Then again, maybe I'm not using it correctly. I wasn't sure what to do when I went into "comments" at the top and it showed me the google, etc. options. I did sign up for the loosen up bookmark.
Great idea and looking forward to demos that I can reference after class! Never heard of Bloggers before............I know, I'm still in the dark ages! Anyway, great concept and delighted to be on the list. I signed up for bookmarks. Does that mean that when you have something new posted that I'll get an email to go in and check the blog? I'm sure I 'll have more questions/comments as I have more experience with this.
thank you Janis! yes, if you or anyone else clicks the "Subscribe" buttons at the top, you will get an email notification that a new post is on the blog. You can choose to either be notified of all comments (click "Subscribe Comments") or just of new topics (click "Subscribe Posts").
Also, please be aware that I need to review comments before they are posted (it is the only way to prevent spam from being posted here), so you won't immediately see your comment. It will post as soon as I've published it which may be later in the day if your comment was posted at a time when I'm not online.
Anne, this will be a great reference tool for your students and those of us who need to 'touch base' to get our 'painting' skills back on track.
As a pastelist my choice of color is visual and not name-associated; as a consequence of this I have a vague understanding for the colors you describe in your Limited Palette description. Is it possible to add a color swatches to the colors you describe in that frame? I think that will make more sense to the possibilities for color mixing evident in the next frame comparing two paintings.
Regarding dacdoll's comment about a 'works in progress' section: That sounds like an online school situation, in which you wouldn't be paid appropriately for your time to review an critique. Don't give away your expertise! Doing so only fulfills the 'Starving Artist' concept. The skills and knowledge artists develop are as much a part of their 'art' as the final visual output, and as such, has value that should be paid for. You are paid to teach, and what you teach should remunerate you in any venue.
Thanks for including me, I'm looking forward to being in your fall class.
I plan to put together a separate deck specifically for my pastel students, so don't worry for now about the content of this particular workshop handout. However, as a pastelist, I can fully appreciate your method of visually selecting colors rather than by name. Remember, I first started painting with pastel, not oil, so I too have a tendency to select color based on what I see rather than a specific color name. In fact, in one of my oil classes last year a student commented on my "disorganized" palette and asked what "method" I used to choose colors. I had to think about that and it made me realize that it comes from being a pastelist. As a result (so I could explain my color choices better in class), I started to take notice of what I chose and why--I knew I always used complements for shadows, etc. but the specific color choices varied--but, I also noticed that I would keep my colors limited to about 5 or 6 and I would mix within these to form all the colors I need. I think in pastel you need to have more variety because you are mixing on the surface rather than on the palette. However, if you choose your main colors up front and then use the additional ones as accents as needed, your piece will be more cohesive rather than if you add in too many colors all at once and in large amounts.
As for works in progress--I'm thinking more along the lines of posting samples of my own works in progress so that they can be seen along the way, almost like static demos. Critiquing work other than my own publicly on the web scares me, too much liability, but I'm glad it was raised as a suggestion because it prompted discussion. I want this to be about sharing ideas and exploring them from all angles.
thanks so much for your comments!
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