Thursday, July 26, 2012

5 DEGREES OF A STILL LIFE ...

So finally I decided to take photos of creative stages while painting still life. First I set up a very cute still life  with two pieces of Talavera ceramic and sunflowers .
Then I prepared my canvas according to the recipe of one of the greatest colorists in this country. I wont mention his name in this post as he is an extremely private person - That mix is very smelly and toxic so be careful if you'll decide to use it. It does create a very great base for  thick brush strokes applications. 1part Damar & 2.5 - 3 parts Turpentine with a few drops of linseed oil. Tone the canvas with very light wash of  phtalo  blue and black. After the mix is dried , draw your composition.
Mine is here:

The second stage is very important as it's actually require  a special treatment of whole canvas before starting to paint  and apply a very thick  applications of paint. You start with rubbing in very transparent washes of pure pigment almost like watercolor with paint running off your canvas .Please note, the colors of washes  can be absolutely randome. See my stage 2 photo.Of course I, kinda, created  color of washes close to the basic hue of the whole setting .
Looks pretty wild , isn't it? Don't panic :-) it's an initial wash which will be completely covered . But the tone will still obscure through further layers of paint .
This is number 3 stage , and believe you or not , it's always my favorite stage in any painting process - I just love that raw, unfinished look. Spontaneity of it, and usually the right tonality from the start . But lot's of work on the details ahead , so let go straight to stage 4 to see how we progressing  with building layers of thick paint up.

As you can see both of Talavera pieces are acquired believable shapes and color, but we starting to mix lot's of grays . Yes , hard to believe? Take my word for it. That;s how powerful grays tones are : you can't really see them , surrounding colors starting to sing.

And here is final result . I titled it "Girasol" just to give the hint of Mexican flavor. Because Talavera is a beautiful Mexican pottery. This piece is for sale by the way:-)
HAPPY PAINTING EVERYONE!


Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Change is in the air....

I think this one is big, really - I just realized something very important! I decided completely change the format of this blog and instead of simply uploading my daily paintings, I will share and give some insights on  all the "bolts and nuts" of Art creating and  creating successful Art business.
I'll share  my own knowledge and what I learned from greatest Masters around about technicality of oil painting. I'll share here all creative subjects and  my students questions  about  how to start and finish harmonies painting.  How to find own "voice" and most importantly how to find your own audience, art lovers, followers who will buy your art.
I'll start by giving you a good food for the mind and soul.
Look into this  17 habits of people who changed the world. Try to adopt at least some of those habits and see what happend to your creative impulse.


1. Try new things. Constantly experiment with new people, jobs, projects and experiences. See what sticks. Without experiments we’ll never learn anything. Without learning, we’ll get nowhere. Consider your life a series of experiments - big and small. Always be testing. Live outside your comfort zone and don’t underestimate the importance of being a beginner.
2. Measure against your own standards, not others. All of us have different definitions of success and goals that likely have nothing to do with those around us. So stop comparing to others. It’s almost surely apples to oranges and you’ll either feel overly confident or overly disappointed. Either way it’s less than useful. You are your own comparison. Define your success and own it.
3. Know who you are. The better you know yourself the more likely you are to do work that matters. Simple as that. Study your strengths, know your weaknesses, identify your values, define your success, learn the things that excite and those that terrify you. Take all the tests and evaluations you can find. Begin to live a life congruent with your values, strengths and purpose and you’ll never look back. But do things for the wrong reasons and there will be nothing but disappointment. Kind of like how business school killed the entrepreneur. No sleepwalking allowed!
4. Learn from those around you. Every interaction is a chance to either learn what fires you up or what makes you want to put a wet finger in a light socket. Knowing one is just as crucial as knowing the other. Embrace your surroundings. Observe closely.
5. Realize you’re already free. Freedom doesn’t come from huge financial achievement or the ability to live in some little hut over a Tahitian lagoon. Go out and survey the average guy rolling in cash and I bet you’ll find them to feel a lot less free than you think. Freedom in it’s purest form is the ability to choose the way we interpret what happens to us. We can either see life’s occurrences, good or bad, as reasons to pursue what matters or excuses to sit on our ass. The choice is yours. All the freedom you’ll ever need is already here. Start acting like it.
6. Assume there’s another way. Don’t take things for granted just because everyone else does. That’s usually the best reason to stop listening. None of you are here for average. If you do what everyone else does, that’s all you’ll get. Constantly ask how else could things be done. Ask why.
7. Believe in what you do. If you don’t have a deep emotional reason for doing the work you do, you’ll likely never do what matters. Know your beliefs. Why do you care so much about the things you do? Nothing big happens without the right reasons. Does what you’re doing actually matter? If you can’t put your heart into it, then get yourself out of it.
8. Constantly seek adventure and explore. Nothing adds more clarity to most of life’s confusions than seeing new things. Get out and explore foreign worlds. Spending too much time in one environment makes us feel like that’s the only way. I assure you it’s not. Notice how different cultures do things differently.
Whether it’s seeing a town across the world or across your state, adventure has to be a priority. Your mind will never be the same.
9. Be authentic. The world is run off personal connections. No one wants to connect with someone who’s fake. Know who you are and aren’t and be open with those around you. People’s B.S. meters are much too high for anything else. Make genuine connections. Be vulnerable and begin creating rapport with anyone.
10. Be a constant learner. Commit to going to bed each day at least slightly wiser than when you woke up. The results will add up. Learn like crazy. Read books, take courses, work with experts, do it all. Do nothing but this and I guarantee you’ll do work that lights you on fire.
11. Pick your surroundings wisely. This is the holy grail. The people around you create who you are. If they inspire you, you’ll be inspired. If they depress you, you’ll be depressed. Those around you absolutely must dream as big or bigger and have as much passion or more than you do. There’s no time for those who don’t support doing the things that matter to you and the world. Get rid of the doubters and don’t let the empowering ones leave your sight. Rule #1: Surround yourself with passionate people. Nothing is more powerful. 
“You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.”– Jim Rohn
12. Focus on the process, not the outcome. Stop worrying about getting there. You never will anyway. All the fun is along the trail next to you. It’s impossible to enjoy it if you’re dazed by the blurry horizon that never actually gets any closer. Embrace persistence. Learn to love the process and everything becomes epic.
13. Welcome change. How else are you going to get to where you want to be? Change is going to happen no matter what, so you might as well get used to it. Adopt these beliefs and you can be sure the change to come is for the better.
14. Model excellence. For just about every goal someone has, there is likely at least a handful of people who’ve already done it. Don’t reinvent the wheel if you don’t have to. Find the people who live the life you want to live. The one’s who’ve experienced the dreams you’ve always had. Find models for everything. Take note of the good and the bad. Adopt the former and drop the latter. With the right model’s you can do anything.
15. Test what’s possible. We are capable of so much more than we give ourselves credit for. Most things are not as impossible as we think. The only way to find out is to try. This is as important physically as it is with business. When we start to do things we didn’t used to think were possible, the new found confidence transfers to all kind of other parts of life. If you just pushed yourself over the finish line of your first marathon (or 5k for that matter) then why couldn’t you also find a way to double your business’s sales next year? If something seems impossible to you, find those who have done it, learn from them and try it. You’ll start to impress yourself. Then watch out. Go on and do something impossible.
16. Take notes. Life is not meant to be passive. Keep a file, notebook, journal or blog of all you learn and experience along the way. The things that fire you up, the things that scare you, the lessons, the people, the huge dreams you have, all of it. The more we can get things out of our head the more likely we can make them reality. Have a weekly or daily routine. Record all you can. 
17. Act on what you learn. None of the above matters if you don’t get out and actually do something with it. It’s not just about finishing a book, reading a blog post or having a chat with a wild new person. The magic doesn’t happen in the learning. It happens in the action you take as a result. Learning is an important step, but it’s still just the first one. Everything we do at Live Your Legend comes back to this. When in doubt, do something. Anything. You have to start. 
Habits define outcomes. These are the habits that separate the legends from the rest of the world. Practice these daily. Make them routine. They are the foundation of what’s to come.
Get them right and the outcomes will start to blow your mind.



More opportunities to sell and buy Art !!!

Now you can buy my work among hundreds of other beautiful pieces of Art and Craft on this tastefully created site.
http://frankanddunya.com/


Saturday, July 21, 2012

"Sunset Aromas" 8x10 oil on linen board

I'm starting to pack for my paint out trip to Lopes Island, so much to do and to consider, but without dipping my brushes into fresh juicy oils I would really feel out of sort .
As I've been sad today I decided to paint something soothing, beautiful and uplifting .Here it is - "Sunset Aromas" . It's for sale too
you can buy it here:

http://frankanddunya.com/products/sunset-aromas/

Friday, July 20, 2012

"Evening Sunflowers" 12x16 oil on linen

Overhall I'm pleased with this work, but I'd like to ad some details, unfortunately I didn't take a photo and the flowers are gone . Oh well.. I might paint another version.
This piece is for sale
$ 250.00 and a free shipping

Please buy on :
http://frankanddunya.com/products/evening-sunflowers/

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Whisper 10x10, oil on linen

This little painting I created yesterday for the class " Gray Color Fileds" to illustrate how to variation in saturation is very important - how to make a vivid saturated color stand out even more when placed against a field of low saturation, grayed color.
To purchase go to :
http://frankanddunya.com/products/whisper/

Thank you for viewing my paintings

Monday, July 16, 2012

"Port Gamble Blackberries" 9x12 oil on linen

One of my oil sketches finished at PAWA plain air paint out in Port Gamble. The weather have been changing constantly - but we still managed to have a great session even under the storm and lightning.

It's for sale at
 http://frankanddunya.com/products/port-gamble-blackberries/

Friday, July 13, 2012

"Urban Sketching - Marina"

I sketched at the Bainbridge Island marina  today after the class I'm teaching. It was such a beautiful evening. I wish I could paint that scene. I probably will ...On Monday :-) 

Thursday, July 12, 2012

NEW CLASSES for SUMMER 2012

I'm  now offering classes in my private studio - It's limited to  4 students , so sign up soon.
Call 206 419 0424 if you are interested .

"Urban Sketching"

A fellow artist introduced me to an "Urban Sketchers" movement - How in a world  did  I miss it. Apparently it's a huge and widely spread  all over the world  subculture . Anyway  long story short , I've been sketching now everywhere and even started to incorporate watercolor into the sketch - but I don't like it as much as using all different shades of gray markers   

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Work in progress - 11x14 oil on linen

Feeling out of sort all day.. But after finishing all daily chores and my fabulous Zumba class I set up this still life and decided to paint. It's was 1:00 a.m (yes, pretty late - or rather very early :-) I know it's going to be successful painting.
I prepared my canvas with Ovanes Berberian technique -
applied a medium of his choice ( not mine, as it's incredibly stinky) which is 1part Damar & 2.5 - 3 parts Turpentine with a few drops of linseed oil. Then I toned the canvas with his usual color combination - phtalo blue and black,  a very thin transparent wash, and after quick composition lay out , I did the initial washes of pure pigments (no whites or black added) 
Let me tell you, despite that I really dreading to use that medium, the quality of strokes and oil application is AMAZING. I decided to prepare all the canvases I'm going to use in the near future with Ovanes's "tincture"
Will finish this piece today - stay tune. 

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

"Nisqually " 10x10 oil on linen SOLD!

This painting was a demo for my color mixing class. The subject of  lesson 5 was color harmonies - So here is one of the methods - limited palette - just 3 colors plus flake white - alizarin, yellow med, phtalo blue.
Now it's for sale - $ 250.00

Monday, July 9, 2012

"Lasts of the Season" oil on linen 9x12

It was the last Peonies of the season. I think...I really wanted to capture of "stealing beauty" - fragility of the exquisite  flower. It's for sale - $ 250.00




Wednesday, July 4, 2012

"Talavera" 6x8, oil on canvas

This little piece I painted yesterday. I spent more time then I planned , just because the canvas panel - I always warning my students about cheap and crappy canvas surfaces, this time I made same mistake . Guys, prime all inexpensive  canvas boards, and put at least 3 coats . It's crucial.

This piece is for sale on the auction . Happy bidding and Happy 4th of July!!!

http://www.dailypaintworks.com/Artists/emiliya-lane-2169