The digital age has certainly changed the way we do almost everything.  In the 90’s, I was a bit saddened to learn that a designer friend rarely used her real paintbrush, revealing my old fashioned preferences.

Typewriters and carbon paper reigned when I was in college, and I spent a good deal of my teaching career transitioning to the digital world.

Recently, a friend planned a travel workshop to include architectural drawing using an iPad. I saw the advantages of a small tablet but was skeptical. However, a recent Apple store class, my eyes were opened!

Yes, I jumped in with the purchase of an iPad and stylus.  I have wanted one for a long time, and a travel opportunity, where I will retrace my friend’s itinerary, is providing motivation.  I dutifully down loaded a program called Procreate, (a bargain at $9.99 after purchasing the iPad!). I am somewhat familiar with Paint Shop Pro, but this is adding an entirely new drawing dimension.

The young Apple class instructor reminded me of my innovative and enthusiastic high school students.  She knows her material, and by luck, the free class had only two participants, both retired teachers.  We walked to a nearby quiet outdoor garden area, where she explained as much as she could about the basics of the program in 90 minutes.  She also shared some of the mistakes she has made during the past year using Procreate-and how to solve them!  I spent the rest of my errand-filled day sketching with the iPad—at the car dealership as I waited for service and at a restaurant.  I knew I had to practice individually or I would forget my new lessons. I will return for more classes - a 45 mile trip for me.

​So – my initial opinions.  I still think drawing, not tracing, is important.  I have a hard time calling a photograph which has been digitally manipulated to appear liked a brush-stroked work a painting. The Procreate program (and many others) gives you a variety of “sketching/painting“ tools in a variety of sizes.  I found it was easy to download a photo of one of my own paintings and create a color palette from it-voila!  My own palette.

My iPad is small.  It will never be the same as drawing on large paper or canvas- the flow is not the same.  However, for catching color, light, what you see…it’s great and my short experience is only a beginning.  For travel, it should prove useful.  I will still pack some pencils, a sketch pad, and watercolors.

I first entered the digital art world last year experimenting with photographs of my own paintings. These have proven popular. Color schemes, values, and backgrounds  can be modified with almost a click! 
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For centuries, artists have used innovative tools, and this is another. Drawing and painting are unique experiences to be savored. However, painting digitally certainly gives one’s brain a workout, and the results are impressive.  Have fun – and don’t worry about having to wash out those brushes!

Many aspiring artists ask how to learn to paint. I have always recommended a trip to the library for some good books on painting. Today, the Internet (you are already here!) offers wonderful resources as well although it is often difficult to know where to begin.

Best of all is watching a live artist demonstrate. The camaraderie and energy from a group that is passionate about a process cannot be reproduced in a book or online.

Although my mother was an accomplished artist, she knew the importance of experiencing workshops.  When I was 9, she enrolled me in the local art association’s watercolor class; I vividly remember learning the process of taping the paper to a board, wetting the paper, painting “wet into wet” and painting from the still life – bright watermelon!

​As a child we often take our parents for granted or reject their advice in the quest to learn about the outside world. I continued to draw, paint and even listen to my mom!
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After 35 years as a teacher, my retirement has given me an opportunity to explore and begin to nourish my own style.

Each year, I have been very fortunate to enroll in a multi-day workshop.  I find workshops offer a jumpstart to technique. You lay aside several days to devote to making art.  You remove distractions of household chores, family and other obligations. Generally, you assemble and buy new materials. You have paid tuition and want to get your money’s worth.

​On a more creative note, you select a teacher because you are attracted to their style, and you will be surrounded by other aspiring painters who admire this teacher.  I find there is an energy among these individuals pursuing a similar goal which will carry you for many months. A good teacher will show you techniques and materials you have not seen before, even if you are an experienced creative.
Learning to see something in a new way is a wonderful lesson. Recently, workshop instructor, Pauline Agnew, from Ireland, was enchanted by the vivid colors of the ice plant –a non-indigenous plant considered invasive today. Ice plant (Carpobrotus edulis -shown below) was brought from South Africa in the early 1900’s to stabilize land.  However, learning to see beauty in common objects is invaluable to an artist.

Below are two of my new works including the red ice plant encountered at Ponto Beach, Carlsbad, CA painting during the workshop with Pauline Agnew. (acrylic on watercolor paper)

​​Some of Monet’s glorious impressionist works depict the billowing, polluting smoke from the railways, such as The Gare Saint-Lazare: Arrival of a Train  (shown below) painted in 1877. But what color!

​I encourage you to look for painters with whom you would like to study, either by word-of-mouth, social media, galleries, online and in magazine listings…but really ask people who have studied with the individual for their reactions. Research artists your favorite artist follows on Instagram.

Artist I have studied with and recommend include the ever-effervescent Robert Burridge, Ray Roberts, Peggi Kroll Roberts, Melinda Cootsona and a Pauline Agnew. (My photos of the instructors during the workshops I attended below) Last photo: Yours Truly at Pauline's workshop.

Another opportunity is community college. I have great respect for community colleges. During high school, I took classes at Los Angeles Harbor College. Instructor, John Cassone was incredible, as good or better than my university professors. I used many of his design exercises as a high school art teacher, and early lessons in life drawing were priceless. 30 years later, when I sought to revive my art experience, I enrolled in a life drawing class with Cathy Allen at Copper Mountain College.  Inspired, I founded and facilitated a local life drawing group which met for over eight years. 

I would encourage you to look through local community class catalogs, community college schedules and other art associations for teachers near you. If this is out of reach for you at this time, take yourself on an “artist date.” Brilliant author and teacher Julia Cameron encourages assigned play. She describes it as:

​“The Artist Date is a once-weekly, festive, solo expedition to explore something that interests you. The Artist Date need not be overtly “artistic” — think mischief more than mastery. Artist Dates fire up the
imagination. They spark whimsy. They encourage play. Since art is about the play of ideas, they feed our creative work by replenishing our inner well of images and inspiration. When choosing an Artist Date, it is good to ask yourself, “what sounds fun?” — and then allow yourself to try it.”
 
Develop your practice, yet remain free to play!

Ah, today we are having gusty winds up to 34 mph – rather common for the Hi Desert near Joshua Tree. However, I never enjoy them and wish for the quiet stillness.

Too windy to enjoy the outdoors, I see everything in motion through the windows as I write this.  Each bit of vegetation is waving in sunlit motion, the patio tablecloth flaps (we long ago devised a clamp system to keep it in place) and the loveseat swings (the frame attached permanently to the patio pillar after many topples). 
The wind’s ever-present whooshing surrounds the house.

In motion....

Although we often resist change, our lives and paths are ever in motion.  To be alive means to change, hopefully in a positive direction. The winds howl, blow up a little dust, and we see things in a new perspective.

How do we clear the object strewn path to creativity? 

Goal 1- Carefully choose activities in line with our mission in life (prioritize and eliminate!)

I am striving to set priorities and really examine what I like to do.  I enjoy painting and writing, but recently I have allowed many forces to distract me and take me on detours.  I am narrowing my goals and reviewing my personal mission. Ironically, the burgeoning “artists haven” in which I live has lost much of its privacy in a competition to distill and showcase the local vibe. You may be experiencing your own version of life and community clutter or the rich adventure of family and responsibilities.

I encourage you, at least for a part of your day (week, weekend, month) to dream of and focus on what you really love. It’s not that we do not wish to encourage other artists around us, and I personally see encouragement as a part of my mission.

However, seek a time and place to develop the interests, skills, fields of knowledge that are unique to you.  These interests began to grow like tiny new leaves when you were a child and perhaps have been smoldering under a dampened fire for years.

Fill in your blank: I wish to _______________________________________ (paint, sketch, sculpt, sing) every (day, week, month season…)

Study, develop your God given talent, paint what you want to paint, not what has been suggested, deemed sellable, required by an exhibit or other outside factor.  A mini-vacation of creating.

Goal 2 - Multi-task less. Attempt to do 1 or 2 things at once (not 14!). Focus. Meditate. Be present in the activity and purpose.

I have become a master at multitasking, but in my hurry to accomplish much, my own experience of enjoying what I am observing, sensing, painting, and appreciating is diminished. 

Life is a huge smorgasbord offering delicious ideas and treats along the way, and I want to partake and participate, often at the same time!   I want to be creative, care for my family, give time to important causes community and stay sane.

Yet, taking on too much dries up my creative juices.  If you are doing activities simply because you started, someone else thought I should do it or it was just the next step, STOP.

What do you want to do? Is there a time and place of your own (even the car on the way home or to work), a stop at a garden, café, library or and many young parents know—the (yes) bathroom.

• Turn off the computer and read.  Light a candle or incense
• Place a bowl of fruit on the table and sketch.
• Pack a basket of drawing materials (charcoal, pastel pencils and a tablet) in your car and stop when you see a beautiful sunset, shadowed landscape and sketch-record.
• Find a documentary on an artist, country or other passion and watch (without texting or, computer surfing). Doodle if you must!
• Place the ingredients for your next meal preparation on your counter (multitasking by listing to music is ok!) Focus on their color, texture and your end creation.  Sample along the way. Think of painting each ingredient.
• Attending a yoga class takes me out of my busy world and forces me to quiet my brain and senses and feel the movement. I create my best paintings and projects (in my mind) during these sessions.

 
If you feel a need to set goals and enjoy the process more, join me, on this journey to burst out-and clear a path to a meaningful and creative process. Stress, dust, fatigue, over stimulation can deprive us of our own ambitions. Take time to remember your sacred flame, your inner spark - that seed within you that yearns for direction and nurturing.   Look for future blogpost describing simple colorful ways to explore creatively – in a short amount of time and with limited fuss and preparation.
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Happy creating!

I began this blog in January to provide concrete painting tips, inspire beginning painters, and to post information to class members.

Today, we have quite a bit of rain in the Mojave Desert! However, last Saturday, St. Patrick's Day, was beautiful. I taught a painting class in gorgeous Joshua Tree National Park, and although it was a bit windy and chilly, we had a good turnout and day. So today is a great day to share some new thoughts on old ideas!
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COMPOSITION

Besides selecting materials and mixing colors, a painter must plan composition. It is your foundation! I believe considering composition becomes an intuitive habit the longer you look at paintings and create your own.  Whether you are drawn to objective or abstract painting, talking lessons from the old masters and known composition elements is always a good idea.
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My most recent class was plein air (fancy name for outdoors) landscape painting.    I urge my students to make a series of quick “thumbnail” (small-yes larger than a thumbnail, but typically no larger than 3” x 4”) sketches which catch the essence of the subject and lay out composition, planning darks and lights.  Each drawing should take no longer than 5 minutes, and it’s important to do 3 to 5 sketches. You redefine your view, your subject and create a better plan.

Above: August Agave, acrylic on canvas, 12" x 12"

Tools
I often use inexpensive mechanical pencils (no need to find your sharpener) or lovely soft art pencils.
Use the eraser as a reverse tool; shade an area and “draw” into it with your eraser.
Begin to see your scene as a pattern of darks and lights, shadow and drama.

A great tool is a piece of red plexiglass. When you look through, you see only the values, the lights and darks. An inexpensive version can be found at Cheap Joes. A more durable version with a grid and mirror can be purchased from Peggi Kroll, Instructor

Avove: Peggi Kroll's Red Plexi
Take a photo with your camera and turn it to mono or black and white.  But do not spend too much time with this-  look for the general pattern of lights and darks. 

Horizon Line
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A first concern for painting a to landscape or any painting, is where will your horizon line fall?  Even abstract paintings often have a definite horizontal line. Throughout history, certain measurements have been considered pleasing to the eye. The ratio of 1 : 1.618—not quite 2/3 (extremely rounded off) was named the golden ratio by the Greeks. The ratio proves pleasing both vertically and horizontally.

​Simply put, you do not want your horizon line in the middle.  It will be more pleasing a little less than 2/3 up the page or 2/3s down from the top.

​Composition Examples
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Several basic composition templates prove helpful. Note most place the horizon line off center – about a 1/3, 2/3 or with the 1: 1.62 ratio.

Another helpful hint, as in Japanese flower arranging, Ikebana, an uneven number of objects is more pleasing than an even number.  This avoids symmetry and equal balance, which are actually seldom found in nature.
 
I find a good technique to improve composition skills is to look at works by old masters or painters whom you admire and create a quick thumbnail sketch.
Here some samples of my very quick sketches; you will find they often follow basic composition models above.

Van Ruisdael

WM Turner

Paul Cezanne

David Hockney

Grant Wood

Julian Onderdonk

​Each of the Design Elements (color, line, shape, texture, space, form, harmony/unity, and balance) will be considered in time. For early planning purposes, we consider line, shape, space, balance and placement of darks and light.
 
Once you have created a thumbnail sketch that you wish to use, transfer you sketch to your canvas, gessoed watercolor or other surface. I like to use pastel pencils, sometimes in various colors as scene here.  I then cover the sketchmarks with acrylic medium. See photos below.
 
You are  ready to begin painting!  Watch for a future blogpost. 

You have a sketch, a photo or a subject in front of you and you want to paint! Today's post will not tell you how to paint-but what you will need to get started.

A writer may grab a pen and paper or her laptop.
A photographer his camera.
A musician may poise herself in front of her instrument. She may need to prepare the instrument; a clarinet player must dampen the reed. 
A ready desk area, work room, or shop encourages one to act upon inspiration. 

​Both plein air and studio painting require having one tools ready to go.
Here is my basic process for setting up to paint.
 
It can take a painter a bit of time to set up, and although I can get ready quickly---
some things cannot be left out. If I’m in the mood and I must move from room to room, gathering brushes, a carrier, water container—the mood may leave! Certainly inspiration will not flourish.
A  daily routine is ideal, but I often work in spurts—several days in a row and then rest.

I love both oil and acrylic paint, but have been painting with acrylics for the past several years.
 
Acrylic Paint Advantages:
Water based
Non-toxic
Cover many surfaces
Dries quickly -especially in a desert climate.
Disadvantages:
When on your clothes, it’s there for good.
Because it dries quickly, your brushes can dry full of paint and be ruined. (solution-even though you have been told not to leave brushes tip down in water- put them in water!!!) 
 One cannot just leave your paint to run an errand without taking precautions.
 
Palette:
One of my most habit-changing discoveries is the stay-wet palette, similar to a Tupperware box with a special sponge and “paper” palette.  The thin sponge keeps the palette wet and requires a 5 minute soak in cold water before using.  The polyacrylic paper must be soaked in hot water for 15  minutes.  Then, voila, you have a palette that will keep paint wet up to 2 weeks-in the tightly sealed box-even in dry climates! I didn’t believe it would work until I tried it. This beats a paper plate and wasted paint!

​Laying out paints:
I recommend you develop a pattern to use consistently. This will allow you to reach for your colors automatically.   Some painters limit colors.  Some place cool colors on one side, warm colors on the other.
I find it natural to arrange colors from yellow around the color wheel, and ending in browns, unbleached titanium and ochre.  I can introduce more colors within the change of hue.  Reds and even a violet end on the upper right.  Blues descend from a blue-violet to blue-green along the right. Green at the bottom and if I’m using black it would be in the lower left and traveling up the left are umbers, ochres and unbleached titanium.
Colors below are: Hansa yellow light, cadmium orange, cadmium red light, cadmium red medium, pyrrole red, magenta, deep violet,   violet,  cobalt blue, ultramarine blue (red shade),  ultramarine blue (green shade), Prussian blue, phthalo blue, cerulean blue, phthalo green, viridian, yellow ochre, unbleached titanium.

Medium:
Your paint will flow and cover the surface batter with the use of an acrylic medium. There are a variety available: mediums to aid drying, to keep your paint wet,  glossy, dull with a matte finish.  I most often use Golden Acrylic Matte Medium. 
Surface:
What you going to paint on? When acrylics first became popular in the 1960s, my mother, and avid oil painter and ceramicist, was delighted that acrylics would glide onto almost any surface: metal wood, old shoes, papier-mâché, craft dough (the old salt-flour-water variety) and so much more.  Of course she began to experiment with it as a painting medium as well.
As a young artist, I began painting on pieces of masonite which my father cut, and my mother taught me to cover with white paint.  Although we often used white latex paint, I have learned that gesso is preferable. Historically, gesso was made for oil painting and used to prepare or prime a surface so oil paint would adhere to it. It is made from a combination of paint pigment, chalk and binder. Traditional oil gesso contained an animal binder (usually rabbit skin glue), chalk and white pigment and was more of a glue gesso. Gesso creates an absorbent surface which and allows the paint to grab the canvas; it has a texture or tooth. Modern acrylic gesso does not contain glue and is a combination of acrylic polymer medium (binder), calcium carbonate (chalk), pigment often Titanium white, and chemicals for flexibility and long archival life.
Gessoed masonite, canvas and even watercolor paper all work well. Remember my mom attempted to paint almost everything!
 
Other supplies:
brushes-my preference is a shape called “flat” in sizes from 4-12.
paper towels
drop cloth
easel or table top 
perhaps a palette knife
large water container
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You are ready!

A few weeks ago, I was collecting quotes about yielding to changes in our lives – in a positive way. Presently, the whole world is pondering the increase in school shootings…and the pall is palpable.
Like the small wildflowers that erupt in tiny crevices between desolate, dry rocks, those who must create endure.

Although our art may not be political per se, we often feel a strong urge to create beauty to combat the ugliness of evil –or to reveal truth amidst evil. When I taught high school literature, students often asked why I included so much history.  I explained that literature (or any art is a reaction world events; it does not occur in a vacuum).

Many artists draw attention to a specific cause. Others gain a sense of comfort in the act of creating.
With that in mind, I urge you to follow your creative urges.

Many painters insist on warming up by painting each morning.  Action creates energy. I have been advised to choose a random word from a thesaurus as a daily motivation. Julia Cameron, author of the notable The Artist’s Way, instructs us to write three “morning” pages.  Gail McMeekin suggests taking 15 minutes a day – in solitude - to open to creative thoughts or practices.

According to one of my favorite authors,  Madeleine L’Engle (best known for A Wrinkle in Time), “All of life is story, story unraveling and revealing meaning. Despite our inability to control circumstances, we are given the gift of being free to respond to them in our own way, creatively or destructively.”
                                                           -from Walking on Water: Reflections on Faith and Art

“The creative process is a process of surrender, not control.” 
                                                           - Julia Cameron

“If a branch is too rigid, it will break. Resist, and you will perish. Know how to yield, and you will survive.” 
                                                            - Liezi, Lieh-tzu: A Taoist Guide to Practical Living
 
As creative beings—we continue painting, writing, designing, composing.  This habit will keep your mind at peace as you ponder beauty. 

It may give you purpose as you create art designed to persuade. History is replete with artists and writers whose purpose has been to persuade.

In The Third of May 1808 Francisco Goya sought to commemorate Spanish resistance to Napoleon's armies. (below left)

Jonathan Swift urged the aristocratic landlords to lower taxes of starving people in his satirical “A Modest Proposal.”
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In photographs such as her iconic “ Migrant Mother,” Dorothea Lange's photograph humanized the plight of those suffering during the Great Depression. (below right)

​I am delighted to announce that all three of my submissions to the 49th Multi Media Mini Show were juried in. Even more exciting, I won 2nd place!
The exhibit will continue through March 15th at the Redlands Art Association, 215 E. State St. in Redlands. Open Mon-Sat 11 - 4:30.The Opening Reception is 5-7 pm. Friday, Feb. 23, and an Award Reception is Sunday, February 25th at 1 pm

Below: Sunlit Mariana oil on wood panel, 10 x 10; Sun Alley, acrylic on canvas, 12 x 12; Hillside Oaks, acrylic on linen, 8 x 10.

 
https://www.redlandsdailyfacts.com/2018/02/21/want-to-see-mini-art-in-many-media-check-out-redlands-art-associations-multi-media-mini-show/
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I can't resist sharing nature's Valentine-which I only noticed in the photo later.  This is in Joshua Tree National Park where I will be teaching a class in March for the Desert Institute. I confess, I put on my rose colored glasses!

More views from Lost Horse Campground (available by permission only)

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​                                                    Wednesday is Valentine’s Day! 
What a great time to speak about passion-
                 -passion for art.
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Which arts attract you, and how are feeding this passion??
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I believe the arts contribute to our mind, spirit, soul and physical health.
Each day, you can add a bit of stress reducing, peace promoting beauty.  Log onto Pandora channels which fill your soul!  Add beauty to you walls with locally purchased art or poster reproductions of works by favorite masters. Dance when no one is looking! Take lessons - or attend a recital.  Attend community theater or listen to a good drama via audio recordings.  Stargaze. Read poetry aloud. You get the idea!

Many favor the beauty of verse of the King James Bible; read 1 Corinthians 13, the well-known love chapter. Or seek the verses of Kahlil Gibran, popular when I was young.

Pictured above is Robert Indiana's iconic design for a MoMA card, actually Christmas in 1966.

Instead of my usual tips and instructions about painting, this week I am focusing on passion for the arts. I had a very fortunate childhood- influenced by those who loved and practiced their art!

I speak often of my mother who, from the age of 12 when she was befriended by the poet Esther Baldwin York, belonged to a women’s association which supported the MacDowell Colony in Peterborough, NH, and she had the privilege of knowing the colony founder’s wife, Marian MacDowell. 
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The most wonderful part of this “art club” was the strong friendship and respect among these women:  pianists, poets, painters, prose writers, actors, dancers.  They met monthly for decades.  At each meeting, one presented a short concert, demonstration, lecture, reading and so forth. They encouraged one another and learned from each other.  I occasionally attended meetings and was present when they met at our house (recruited to help clean and hostess!)

In Greek mythology, the nine muses were the Greek goddesses of inspiration in literature, science and the arts. According to Hesiod, the Greek poet and contemporary of Homer, each muse protected a different art and were symbolized by a unique item.  

Calliope (epic poetry - writing tablet)
Clio (history - scroll)
Euterpe (lyric poetry - aulos, a Greek flute)
Thalia (comedy and pastoral poetry - comic mask)
Melpomene (tragedy - tragic mask)
Terpsichore (dance - lyre)
Erato (love poetry - cithara, a Greek type of lyre)
Polyhymnia (sacred poetry – veil)
Urania (astronomy - globe and compass)
https://www.greekmythology.com/

You may prefer the traditional subdivisions of the Seven Arts: Architecture, Sculpture, Painting, Music, Poetry, Dance, Performing.
 
The arts contribute to health, confidence, well-being, relaxation and appreciation of beauty.  It is widely agreed that knowledge of music complements mathematics skill. I believe all subjects can be taught through the arts; it is a crime against society when the arts are cut from public schools.

The women in my mom’s “art club” left lasting impressions.  Poet-composer, Ruth, wrote witty poetry, songs that were performed by Delores Hope, and tutored students at Fairfax High School.  She was always “Ruth in the Blue Dress” to us.  Jacqueline was a writer-journalist who traveled the world, returning with treasures for my dollhouse, such as the tiny copper pitcher and real silverware, and telling exotic stories.    During the 60’s actress, Margaret, landed a part in an adult rated film and was a bit of a scandal among the more conservative women. Elizabeth was a concert pianist.  Esther and was an award-winning poet (and my mother’s best friend).

These determined women raised funds to send to the colony through concerts and even an art themed cookbook. Each of these women became very real to me. Esther and family camped with us in Sequoia.   I played with their daughters and have stayed in touch with some.  I often wore their “hand-me-downs.” 
When we married, Esther to read, composed a sonnet for my new groom and me! At the end of my mother’s life, three of these women made several trips (a long distance across LA for these older women) to visit her and yes, when she died, another sonnet was written.

Our senses hunger for beauty! On this Valentine’s Day, remember passion for expression. 
So which art(s) are you passionate about? Which muse moves you?

Do you help young people to have opportunities for expression and exposure to the arts?
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Take an extra moment this week to celebrate your favorite muse - or host a gathering to share.
                Or let cupid’s arrow land, and send your love a personally created Valentine!

One of my original aims for this blog was to write about mixing a believable greens for landscapes, but alas, I have had my attention diverted to many other absorbing topics!

Most colors in nature are much more subtle than one first imagines.  When painting skin tones, blues and greens are important undertones.  When painting one of nature’s most prominent colors, green, the variety becomes infinite.
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Interestingly, few colors have inspired so many similes, metaphors, verses and theories. Green has come to represent envy, money, nature, ecology, fertility, rebirth and much more. We speak of the village green, eating your greens, a greenhorn, The Greening of America 1970.

Here are four of my works where a variety of greens were required: Judi at Point Lobos (acrylic), Looking South from Big Sur (acrylic), Ellie Among the Poppies (acrylic), and Moonstone Beach (watercolor).  Each required carefully looking to to convey the "greens" I saw. There are numerous shades, tints and tones for every color.  Ask anyone who has sought the right lipstick! 

I am not the first to blog about mixing the best colors for painting green, but as I am planning a workshop on March 17th, St. Patrick’s Day, it seems appropriate.
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One of the first signs of an inexperienced painter can be using colors right out of the tubes, especially primary or Kelly green.  Unless you reside on the Emerald Isle or a golf course (where the green of the grass is really shades away from Kelly), this fresh bright green is hard to find.

As you can see below, I began this week mixing and labeling color.  I usually intuitively mix paint without a lot of thinking, but to explain where color comes from, this may prove helpful. Naturally, one would first mix a variety of blues with yellows to achieve green.  Adding oranges and ocres to blues creates more muted tones.  One of the most surprising blends is yellow plus black which will yield a green shade.  There is controversy among painters as to whether one should use black, but I feel it has its place.  I often avoid it and use a dark ultramarine blue, alizarin crimson and viridian to create a lively "black."

I would encourage you to mix many colors to create a variety of natural greens. Musicians know practice is crucial. Paint. Paint. Paint.  Cooler yellows such as Hansa will create cooler greens.  Warm cadmiums may yield the greens for a sunny vista.  Colors opposite on the color wheel will create  an earthy mud shade.

​Must it be costly to be creative?  It does not have to be!  First of all, you can be creative coloring with your kids, dancing, journaling or drawing a chalk village on a sidewalk.

However, I was recently given a reason to pause as someone asked about the materials cost for my upcoming workshop.

If you purchase every item, it could impact your pocketbook. There are alternatives!

As I grew up, I was fortunate. My mother and uncle always had a houseful of supplies, and I could experiment.  Over the years I have certainly replaced and added to my collection.  I always look online through at least 3 major sellers: Dick Blick, Jerry’s Artarama and Cheap Joe’s.  Today online prices are standardized, and companies compete for business.
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I always accept offered gifts of art materials and often donate mine to other artists.  Some art associations run a shop featuring donated supplies.

If you want to experiment with a new medium, explore the options.  I bought Golden acrylics at a friend’s art/garage sale. She was giving up acrylics for oils. I also borrowed a “Sta-wet palette” before buying it because I didn’t believe it would really keep acrylics wet for several weeks in the desert.  It does!  Seeing is believing.

I very often look for sales.  It’s a game, but it saves money.

When I was young, we shopped at Standard Brands Paint Store (a Torrance based chain which eventually went bankrupt).  Those days are gone.

Today, I shop Big Lots and other discount stores. At certain times of the year, they carry stretched canvas and cheap brushes-some of which are not too bad.  I love buying inexpensive Unison mechanical pencils for on the spot sketching – no sharpening required, and you do not lose your eraser!
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Home Depot sells “Oops” or “Oopsies”-  mixed paints that are not the shade the buyer wanted.  Often these pint-sized containers are 50 cents!    It takes a while to accumulate a collection of suitable colors, but I find they are great for classes and are often in subtle shades ideal for beginners.  

​All this being said, don’t skimp on materials if you are serious.  When I first began taking workshops, an instructor was horrified that I was using my mother’s old brushes, and she said I could not paint well with them.  Stubbornly, I continued to use some.  I actually like some stubby old brushes to “scumble” or sketch with (some people use sticks or branches).  However, I also find there is nothing like gifting yourself a lovely new brush!
Using good paint will make a difference.  I found that my acrylic paintings were more vibrant when I used better brands such as Golden or even Liquitex. I had always loved the juicy rich color of oil paint. Rich reds, blues, and yellows cannot be substituted!  A good medium is important, also.
I just type in “acrylic sets” on Amazon – and my reaction is buyer beware!  Liquitex student grade “Basics” is inferior to the same brand’s heave body acrylics.  Like many generic products, you must experiment to see what works for you.
If you are painting for fun- a variety of surfaces can be used: old wood, furniture, or sale canvases.  Masonite or watercolor paper covered with white gesso makes a wonderful surface.
Learn about your materials!  With the ease of Google, knowledge is readily available, but there are some tried and true references such as the many times revised The Artist’s Handbook of Materials & Techniques by Ralph Mayer.

​If you have kids, surround them with the art supplies you can afford.  The biggest expense is your time and the mess! 😉,
Your creative investment rewards your soul!   Not all hobbies require money, but they do require time.  Drawing and painting can be an exercise in meditation, like yoga or prayer for the creative spirit.  Most artists feel they must create.  They are happiest when surrounded by a variety of colors and textures. Sports require equipment.  Attending theater or film has a price.  Although the best things in life are, indeed, free, many go more smoothly with a collection of the right and lovingly cared for tools.

​For some of us, it stands out as a key element to life.
     We remember the color of a loved one’s clothing! 
          Perhaps the color of food! 
                A sunset! 
I remember being enchanted by the first full length film I saw, “Sleeping Beauty.”  The film ends with a magical color contest; the three fairy God mothers are changing the color of Princess Aurora’s gown as she dances with Prince Charming. I was three!
What draws you to certain colors in a painting?  

Above you see a portion of my painting in full color, black and white and the negative image.

Plein air painters know that colors in a landscape can change in a moment! Clouds pass overhead, altering shadows.  The sun slowly traverses the sky changing the  mood of the landscape throughout the day.  This week,  I experienced a fairly consistent sky in Pioneertown as I painted.   Then,  the unusual early morning snowflakes and stormy clouds rewarded me as I (determined) painted in the Morongo Valley Preserve. Indoor painters know that good light (natural or artificial) is crucial to painting accurate color.

What is your earliest memory of color?  Perhaps you received a box box of Crayolas or a set of Prang watercolors—and you experienced the thrill of mixing color! Or you blending colored chalk. I lived on a cul-de-sac and we neighborhood kids drew elaborate cities to trace with our bikes.

​Light must be present for us to see color, and Sir Isaac Newton’s original color circle illustrated spectral hues, blending colors as light: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet (often remembered as Roy G Biv:  red-orange-yellow-green-blue-indigo-violet). The typical artists' color wheel includes the primary colors of blue, red, and yellow and the secondary colors of green, orange, and violet or purple.

Sewing, knitting, fiber arts and crafts projects introduce delicious color!

Today, colored paints are readily available, and we are accustomed to paint in tubes.  However, when paint tubes were originally invented in 1841 (by American portrait painter, John Goffe Rand, of Bedford, New Hampshire), they were a novel improvement over the traditional pig’s bladder tied with string! Painting was revolutionized  as artists moved outdoors, and the Impressionist movement was born.

Of course, as in any field, a specific and almost mysterious vocabulary is used.  Vermillion, cadmium, alizarin, ultramarine are words of poetry to the painter. The names generally are inspired by the color’s source.

Here’s handy description of the origin of many colors:
http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/artist-paints/colour-pigments.htm
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Do you want more color in your life?  Mixing colors can create shades, tones, tints from the original hues!  If these become confusing, the CA State Board of Education’s Visual Arts Content Standards provide a useful glossary of art terms:   https://www.cde.ca.gov/be/st/ss/vaglossary.asp 
For example:
hue. Refers to the name of a color (e.g., red, blue, yellow, orange).
intensity. Also called chroma or saturation. It refers to the brightness of a color (a color is full in intensity only when pure and unmixed). Color intensity can be changed by adding black, white, gray, or an opposite color on the color wheel.
tint. Color lightened with white added to it.
tone. Color shaded or darkened with gray (black plus white).
value. Lightness or darkness of a hue or neutral color. A value scale shows the range of values from black to white.

If you hunger for more explanation, the extensive Munsell Color System (first introduced in 1898)  will catch your attention!  https://www.britannica.com/science/Munsell-color-system  
http://munsell.com/color-blog/vintage-book-of-color-pocket-edition/   
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Graphic artists are familiar with the name Pantone. During the 1950s, the New York based Pantone commercial printing company began to use chemistry to systematize and simplify the company's stock of pigments  and eventually developed the Pantone Color Matching System. Since 2000, the Pantone Color Institute declares a color "Color of the Year" which sets trends in color for the fashion and design world.
This clever site matches people’s skin tones to Pantone colors!
https://www.featureshoot.com/2014/03/angelica-dass/
Here’s a color thesaurus which matches color to substances and names such as coffee: https://graf1x.com/list-of-colors-with-color-names/

​Knowledge of color enlivens many forms of art.  Once, I challenged my class to come up with a list of names for red; we discovered 47 different names and colors for red!

Do you want too mix believable colors? Watch my future blogposts!

Until then, here’s a fun tool to evaluate any photograph you upload in terms of color: http://snapyourcolors.com/    
Do not select "Snap It for Chrome"—just scroll down to upload an image, and you will get a color match such as these for my paintings, "Azure Agave" and "Reflection."  Accurate? Maybe--but fun!

                                        Whose world does not need a little more color?

As I watch the long rays of sunlight create a brilliant stripe across the floor, I am reminded of the variety the four seasons provide.  If you have ever lived in a home with large southern facing windows, you know well the power of winter light.

It affects our mood and certainly the painter’s palette.

I admit, I thrive in summer and warm weather.  However, this winter I am making a conscious effort to embrace the season!  We know the short days often lead to depression, and all cultures have sought ways to create winter light and festivity - be it a bon fire or Christmas Tree!

Determined to get back into the studio, this week I to paint from pastel plein air sketches I made in December at JTNP’s Black Rock Campground, near my home. Photography is a wonderful aid, but it does not record color as the human eye sees it.

How does our perception of color and attitude change with the seasons?

I know winter affects my art!  Winter light is distinctly different! Images appear brighter in a clear, cold light – and shadows loom northward.   Colors are also crisper.  Animals and humans react differently during the winter.  Seventh grade science and new studies tell us how winter light and colors are different:

1) I reviewed elementary science to verify that shadows are indeed longer in the winter. The summer sun is high in the sky striking the ground almost at a right angle, and shadows are short.  However, during the winter the sun is low in the southern sky, striking the earth at an angle producing long shadows. http://www.classzone.com/vpg_ebooks/ml_sci_gr8/accessibility/ml_sci_gr8/page_386.pd               

​ Last winter I visited Zion and had fun painting the tall peaks of upper Kolob Canyons in the snow!

​2)  Recent studies have also found that we perceive color differently in the winter. Researchers from the University of York (UK) recently discovered that our vision automatically adjusts to the seasons, especially regarding a color known as unique yellow. Humans identify four unique hues – blue, green, yellow and red. However, across cultures, everyone agrees on a similar wavelength to define pure yellow.
 
67 volunteers were recruited to test unique yellow in winter and summer.  Each participant entered a darkened room and recorded when they saw “pure” yellow on a colorimeter. York winters are distinctly gray while summers are flooded with green. Researchers discovered that participants’ perception of pure yellow shifted with the seasons. In summer, their definition of yellow shifted toward shorter wavelengths, or a more greenish yellow. In winter, yellow perception shifted toward longer wavelengths, or a reddish yellow. https://www.livescience.com/51863-seasons-change-color-perception.html
 
I found this color perception experiment particularly interesting – it explains why we enjoy different colors during different seasons. It’s not just following trends or fashion-we physically and psychologically crave different colors!
 

​3) Some animals which are brownish gray during the rest of the year turn white in winter: several species of hares—including the Arctic hare; three species of weasels; subspecies of caribou; lemmings; all three species of ptarmigans—a genus of birds related to grouse, chickens, and pheasants; artic foxes and Siberian hamsters all drop their drab brown for a winter white! https://www.britannica.com/list/7-animals-that-turn-white-in-winter  
 
This week, I am also devising lessons on color mixing. Much of what I do is instinctive: blending a cool violet with orange to achieve a grayer tone for the distance, greens with ochres and even cool violet blues to achieve natural hues.  In fact, once my palette is loaded with shades that I have toiled over all afternoon in the studio – I have fun just painting small experimental works - often in a few minutes.
So – as we watch those long rays of light at 3 in the afternoon disappear into winter darkness, how do we elevate our mood during the cold months of winter? 

• Allow yourself the freedom to play whether you enjoy painting indoors, outdoors – or even from the inside of your car!  Many artists have warm up activities: looking up words randomly to illustrate, pouring a blob of paint or drawing a random “squiggle“ on the surface to begin, imagining a color or feeling to paint. The most important step is to act; jump in and start!
• I sincerely hope that your life allows you a bit of time each week to call your own. If you are reading this, you are most likely interested in painting or creative projects.  Reach for whatever is available - a box of watercolors, poster paint, sharpie pens - create a small playspace. Enjoy what color, line and the act of moving them can do for you!

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Below:  Black Rock Campground Dec-2017- pastel, two oil paintings displaying winter light- Jasmin, 11x14 and Sunlit Kitty, 11 x 14 (both sold).

My heart is with those enduring the brutal cold this week, as we are enjoying bright, sunny days and temperatures in the 60’s and 70’s.
Wherever you are, I wish you a Happy New Year and time to pursue your creative dreams. You may be setting new goals or just grateful for a clean calendar to begin anew.
As an artist, I find nothing better than to have my indoor workspace ready to go.  I am a collector, and it’s hard to toss things I’ve inherited or have been gifted and are overflowing from boxes and shelves.  Yet, spent time this fall, sifting and organizing so I would have little excuse.
Are you an artist, a writer, a creative novice?  Nurture your aspirations!
Even if your space is a tiny desk or card table, set it up as you’d like.  Hang or place inspiring works of art or treasured items nearby. Create an arrangement of flowers, dry weeds, or sea shells.  Collect quotes or books by those artists, writers, musicians, dancers, actors who inspire you.
Add a candle and or burn incense!  I do all the above and the scene and scents tell me it’s time to make art!
Lighting is important.  A window is ideal; north light is even more ideal. However, I have a collection of lamps (a desk lamp, long armed drafting light, and standing floor lamps) – all from thrift stores. I seek full spectrum light bulbs.
Music lifts my mood.  Occasionally, I will listen to an audible book, or heaven forbid, the news—but watch where it might lead your work!
Lay out your supplies: water or medium containers, pens, pencils, brushes, prepared palette (for acrylic  paint, I use a Sta-Wet Palette which keep paint fresh for a couple of weeks – even in the desert!), paper towels, apron, paints and medium.
You are ready! Would you go to the gym without your shoes and appropriate clothing?  Would you go to yoga without your mat?  Would you bake a cake without assembling the ingredients?
Even when my mood is not ready - if I set myself in motion, I soon become lost in the process of applying color to surface!  Another important item- a timer- or set your phone timer.  I have often burned my lunch while painting!
I love painting people, but I also enjoy landscape and still life. While others in my family are attracted to fauna, I love flora!  So far this month I’ve focused on plants, painting succulents and even sketching the Christmas wreath I assembled from eucalyptus, heavenly bamboo (Nandina), juniper, rosemary, sage-savoring the joy it brought. I sketch and /or paint from live plants or photos (preferably that I have taken) on my laptop.  I choose music from creative periods of my life: James Taylor, instrumental guitar, celtic tunes and, yesterday, by Israel IZ Kamakawiwo’ole.
 
What are the colors of your new year??  The past may be in black and white, but the future can be in color!             Use YOUR palette with care!
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Next UP: Get ready to move your gear outdoors!