Watch Me Paint: World-Class Art, World-Class Instruction
There’s a world of difference between copying a photo and creating a painting using photos for reference. Skylarking 2, 18×24, $1855 unframed. It’s difficult to paint boats under sail en plein air, so mostly we use photographs for that. It is not true that I never paint from photos; I just prefer painting from life. …
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The color of white is the color of light. Mastering that will make all your paintings more exciting. Girl Arranging Her Hair, 1886, Mary Cassatt, courtesy National Gallery of Art Do you remember learning that “white is not a color; it’s the combination of all the colors”? That’s malarkey, although it’s based on a truth. …
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Being technically accurate frees up your subconscious mind to analyze and interpret what you see. Main Street, Owls Head, 16X20, oil on gessoboard, $1623 unframed. Observation I once took an artist on a long loop to see all my favorite painting sites here in midcoast Maine. “But there’s nothing to paint,” she wailed. She was …
A good painting requires a good plan. What does that mean? View this post on Instagram This last weekend I was painting in the 14thannual Paint for Preservation for the Cape Elizabeth Land Trust. This always involves a big canvas, and this year was no exception: I painted 30×40. I always start with a drawing …
Fog has color, movement, and attitude, and is a great tool to understand atmospheric perspective. Fog Bank, 14X18, oil on canvasboard, by Carol L. Douglas, $1275 unframed. I appreciate the care with which the National Weather Service makes hour-by-hour graphical forecasts. They’re the plein air painter’s best friend, since they predict not only the chance of …
Why do teachers harp on value? Because it drives everything else in the painting. Belfast harbor, 11X14, oil on canvas, Carol L. Douglas. Available framed $1087. You cannot overstate the importance of value in visual art. It drives our perception and guides us through the painting. There are various ways to focus on value: notans, value sketches, …
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Yes, painting (like music) is about personal expression—but it’s also a finely-honed craft. Owl’s Head fishing shacks, oil on canvasboard, Carol L. Douglas, 11X14, $1087 framed or $869 unframed. My little granddaughter, age five, recently got her first guitar. Being a smart little nipper, she’s going to shortly become bored with strumming the open, untuned …
It’s funny how often we psych ourselves into or out of failure. Spring Break, 10X10, oil on canvasboard, $645 unframed, 25% off this week. Memorial Day marks the start of the summer season here in Maine, when we throttle up into high gear for a short but productive summer season. For me that means getting …
The people you paint with will influence your work and your attitudes toward success. Channel Marker, 9X12, Carol L. Douglas, available. If you’ve ever felt the powerful need to adjust your thinking to fit in, it’s not just moral weakness. We’re designed as herd animals, and that need to conform is built into us on …
Color harmony is not just a question of placing or finding objects that look good together; it means using those colors within your painting to build a great composition. Rachel Carson Wildlife Refuge, by Carol L. Douglas Nearly all beginning painters focus primarily on matching local color. That’s an important skill, but it is just …