Sharon September 2nd, 2010

From time to time, like most artists, I run into a rough patch in the road. Perhaps not so much rough as just muddy. The ideas are less motivating and the resulting work doesn’t seem to go in the direction I want. Recently I took a break from painting to help with home improvement projects. When starting back in the studio, the creative spark seems to have become a faint glow.

Every creative person goes through such times. I’ve been here before and I will no doubt be here again. I have found some strategies to help me through the discouraging days:

1. Set aside the pressure: Forget about the desire to create and the worry about not accomplishing much. Those negative thoughts just get in the way of finding the road back. Realize that it happens to everyone and the creative energies sometimes need a rest.

2. Reset the creative environment: In my case this means clean and straighten up the studio which is usually at least mildly cluttered. I’ve tossed old files, cleaned out a closet and organized a drawer or two.

3. Start from scratch: It’s time to clean the pile of ceramic palettes with dirty dried watercolor, and get rid of ‘petrified’ watercolor blobs. Cleaning the brushes and palettes mean I will have bright inspiring color to start with next time. Muddy palettes and muddy water make for muddy paintings.

4. Browse the art supply catalogs: Ordering a new brush or a couple new tubes of color to try is always helpful. While I depend on a set of familiar pigments, I sometimes like to try a different color or two. A different kind of watercolor paper brings new possibilities.

5. Play! When the painting area is peacefully neat, the materials are freshly scrubbed or new and there are no distractions, take time to play! I use small paper samples or the back of an old painting and simply play with color. Wetting the paper, I can drip, dab and mix different colors to see what happens. It is very helpful sometimes to paint, without the intent to make a painting! You don’t have to please anyone but yourself. Just watching one color interact with another on wet paper, or dripping one color into an area of another, can be fun, relaxing and very rewarding.

Soon the ideas will start to pop up like mushrooms after a rain. In my case a walk in the woods or drive in the country alone also stirs up the idea pool. In no time I will be back again with enthusiasm and energy for painting projects.

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Sharon July 30th, 2010

Like many artists I promote my work online through my own web sites but that isn’t the only way to get the art to the public.   There are hundreds of opportunities for artists to exhibit and sell their work on the Internet.   I know some artists who sell on Ebay but that can be daunting and not necessarily profitable.  Personally I do sell art from my web sites as well as reproductions through Imagekind.com and greeting cards through Greeting Card Universe.  Small originals are available through ArtFire.com.   Many of these sites offer limited use without a fee but others cost a monthly membership.

No matter how you choose to show and sell your art on the Internet, you will need to be consistent and keep adding new work as well as promoting what you have.  It is not always easy to find the time to put in the necessary effort to make a profit.   If you know how to resize images and can upload them from your computer, you can do it though, and for little or no expense, it is worth giving it a try.

For an extensive list of marketing opportunities for artists online, visit this List of 120+ websites for artists to build online presence.

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Sharon May 31st, 2010

Recently I completed this painting with fluid acrylics on ampersand watermedia board.  For me, the process of using fluid acrylics is much the same as for watercolor.  Because this was such a complex drawing, with lots of almost hidden treasures (snail, toad, butterflies etc) I had to draw the individual elements and add them to the painting as I went.

I found that my watercolor method of painting individual subjects and then masking them before doing a background works as well with the fluid acrylics as it does in watercolor.  I painted the mouse on the white ampersand board and then (after the acrylic dried) covered the painted details with pebeo masking gum.   When that was good and dry, and I had done the same to many other details in the same area of the painting, I could go back and paint the leaves and mosses behind the subjects more freely.  I didn’t have to worry about messing up the details I had already done.

When the background was dry (only minutes with the acrylic) I was able to easily remove the masking but rubbing on it.  None of the color or details came off and the results required very little touch up.    While I still prefer watercolor on paper for the soft focus backgrounds, the acrylic is just what I needed to put together this complex painting with many of the forest flora and fauna I found in the early spring.

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Sharon April 9th, 2010

Recently I met a friend at the National Gallery in Washington DC and spent a peaceful day wandering the exhibits and talking art and more.  It is always inspiring, and often intimidating, to peruse the works of master artists from past centuries.

I am intrigued by miniature painting and was very interested to view the exhibit Hendrick Avercamp and the Little Ice Age’ which runs through early July 2010.  The paintings are from an unusually cold period in Europe of the 1600s when Dutch canals regularly froze over during long winters.  Avercamp  (1585–1634) painted the active life of the city’s residents as they used the frozen waterways as roads, meeting places and entertainment.

Each of the small paintings is full of tiny figures, painted with loving detail pursuing a wide variety of activities.  Ice skating was depicted of course, but also dogs and carts, sleighs and horses, even men seriously pursuing a golf game!   Each panel has a rich depth of field and becomes a view into another time and place.

Technically the paintings are gems of realistic accuracy with an affection of detail and a delight of color.  The soft golden skies glow and rich colors of ultramarine and crimson decorate the ornate clothing of wealthy Dutch families.   More than just realism, however, the paintings celebrate an artist’s pride in his city and the simple pleasures of it’s citizens through a cold winter.

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