Archive for August, 2011
See It
As a plein air painter, you translate the 3-dimensional world onto a 2-dimensional canvas. We see the objects of a landscape as existing in space: A tree is in front of a mountain. In two dimensions, however, an edge is formed where the tree and the mountain touch.
The first thing a plein air painter should learn is the usefulness of squinting at the subject. Squinting helps to filter out nonessential details.
It is difficult to judge the exact color and value of any element of a landscape out of context. It is easier to see, understand and judge by comparing one element to another. Squint at the scene and ask yourself several questions: Is the mountain lighter or darker than the tree? Is the light on the tree lighter or darker than the sky? Which tree is greener, which bluer? Looking for relationships of color, value and edge instead of looking at objects is thinking like an artist. Not only will it energize your work, but your tree will look more like a tree!
Plein Air Painting
“Painting from life is the great teacher,” says Frank LaLumia in his book Plein Air Painting in Watercolor and Art”. Nature presents herself in an infinite variety of colors, values and textures. We paint from life in order to learn how to see, and learning to see is truly a life-long process. Visual perceptions mature and deepen over time, unfolding like petals of a flower. There is no greater thrill in painting than when you begin to clearly see what previously went unnoticed.
Your painting is like a document stating how well you see and understand the world around you. The result of plein air painting is a greater appreciation of the world around you, as well as better art.
Art is a Language
In his book, Plein Air Painting in Watercolor and Oil, Frank LaLuna states his philosophy that is the foundation of his art. First is the concept that art is a language albeit a nonverbal one. We, the artists, study the grammar of this language so that we may communicate more effectively. But like any language, the ultimate purpose lies in the content of the expression, not in the mastery of its usage.
Second is the concept that art is biographical. A body of work should reflect the life of the artist. When you draw upon your personal experiences, it naturally follows that you will have something meaningful to say in the language of art.
Third is the concept that working from life is the great teacher. Plein air painting teaches artists how to see, which is the foundation of an individual painting technique. Nature gives up her secrets reluctantly and only to those most determined to crack open the mystery. As the great artist-teacher Charles Hawthorne once said, “The artist must show people more – more than they already see, and he must show them with so much understanding that they will recognize it as if they themselves had seen the beauty and the glory.”
Linear Perspective
For the plein air painter, volume, scale and overlap (including having a foreground, middle ground, and background) all support the suggestion of depth, but the best way to show depth is through the use of linear perspective. Linear perspective is the suggestion of depth as lines converge toward a vanishing point.
Landscapes exert a strong horizontal energy because of the enormous amount of content spreading across the painter’s field of vision. Often this leads the painter to not pay enough attention to the forward energy – the movement that will take the eye into the picture. Linear perspective and diagonals, such as the classic railroad tracks vanishing in the distance, are very effective for this. The eye, following the linear cues, is drawn into and through the window that frames the composition.
The perspective does not have to be as obvious as railroad tracks. A road, winding stream, a furrow in the ground, a fence, or even a few unconnected objects that carry the eye back at an angle might be all that is necessary to show depth in the painting. In terms of composition, diagonals are less stable than verticals and horizontals, therefore, they suggest more movement.
Patterns of Light and Shade
Some of the most descriptive spatial cues for the plein air painter are patterns of light and shadow. When sunlight strikes forms from the side, it creates a light side and a shadow side. This value difference determines the form, creating an illusion of volume and solidity. Finding these patterns of light and shade is a matter of looking at the right time and in the right direction.
Avoid placing yourself so that the sun is directly in front or behind you because back lighting and front lighting provide few cues for volume. At midday, the light stays consistent for longer periods of time, but the shadows are at a minimum, and there are fewer value contrasts. Because the sun is lower in the sky in the early morning and late afternoon, the light side and shadow side of forms are more noticeable. In the spring and summer, the best times to paint are in the mornings from sunrise until 10:00 or 11:00 AM, or in the late afternoons from 3:00 or 4:00 PM until sunset. Keep in mind that the light changes quickly and a 2-hour period is probably all the time that will be available to paint.
Site Selection
The landscape painter considers many factors when choosing what to paint, the least of which is subject matter and the level of inspiration it evokes. He/She is searching for the scene which incorporates the visual cues necessary to create an illusion of space within a two-dimensional painting.
Some of the cues are: 1) Volume. Volume, as in a tree, gives solidity and dimension to forms through patterns of light and shadow. 2) Scale. A second tree is added, smaller than the first, implying depth. 3) Overlap. One tree might overlap the other implying depth. A background, such as a mountain, as added, further heightening the sense of depth. 4) Perspective. Perhaps a fence row is added with shadows in the foreground leads the eye even deeper into the space.
Not all these spatial cues will be present in every subject, but even a few can work together to build the illusion of depth. As you learn what to look for, you’ll discover that a few scenes present themselves in an ideal fashion. As you cultivate an eye for site selection, you’ll know which sites to avoid and which will lead to success.
Making Your Mark
Throughout history artists have made their marks, some simply by the force of their creative genius or the tunnel vision of their obsession. Pablo Picasso made his presence known amidst the foment of the 20th century scene. His fellow artists took notice immediately, followed by the general public. “Picasso” practically became synonymous with the term artist.
It is not necessary for a viewer to be familiar with the political situation in early 19th century Spain in order to understand Goya’s The Third of May, 1808. Knowing the troops are French and the unarmed civilians are citizens of Madrid does not matter. Goya’s painting was timely and served a political purpose, but it transcends any specific event. It addresses the horrors of war on a more universal level.
Some artists leave their marks with all the subtlety of a train wreck, while others do so with quiet introspection. Some capture the universal imagination while others poke more specific nerves. Perhaps the essence of an artist’s mark is that it must have meaning, that it belongs only to that individual, and that it communicates something of importance, whether it does so with a whisper that resonates through history, or a bright flash that creates only a momentary jolt.
Pricing Your Artwork
In the September 2011 issue of Professional Artist is an article by Jodi Walsh with the above title. First of all, she says there is no single formula. The article I read last year suggested pricing oil paintings by the square inch and gave suggestions regarding that method. However, the following are her suggestions.
1) Have your work critiqued by a professional (instructor, curator, etc). 2) Take a long look at not only the quality, but also your presentation. The back should look as professional as the front. Presentation is key. 3) Consider the topic or subject matter. In what type of home/office environment does it belong? Is the room modern, contemporary, antique, country, etc? 4) Is your medium or process unique and expensive to use (e.g. a sculptor who has high casting costs)? If so, allow for this up front. 5) Is your work framed or unframed? Plain or non-reflecting glass?
Go to galleries and art expos. Examine what other artists are doing. Seek out your medium and size and take a look at their presentation and pricing. Don’t look at famous artists with an established history. Be honest with yourself. This may not be the simple answer, but it is the most useful.
Jumpstarting Creativity Part 2
In his book, “Creative Landscape Painting,” Edward Betts lists 50 styles of landscape painting. Here are a few more: Framing with foreground elements heightens the sense of depth within the painting by contrasting the natural or structural forms, such as a fence, with the forms of the landscape in the background. A long horizontal landscape might be in the ratio 1:3 or 1:4, perhaps even 1:5. A long, narrow vertical composition might be in the ratio of 2:1 or 3:1, even 4:1. If you have never tried a vertical composition, it might be a challenge.
Being in the middle of a subject, such as the middle of a forest, can offer many exciting possibilities for a heightened experience of the subject. Finally, an extreme close up of the subject, either realistically or abstractly, such as water lilies on a pond, weathered shingles with rusty nails or barnacles on a rock lend themselves to broad, painterly handling or semi-abstract treatment.
Jumpstarting Creativity
In his book “Creative Landscape Painting,” Edward Betts mentions many ways to jumpstart an artist’s landscape painting creativity. Here are a few: Using a low horizon gives an unexpected, unequal relationship of ground to sky and it creates a feeling of great height and expanse of open space, upward into the sky and deep into the far distance. A high horizon is for the artist who wants to express the feeling of looking down on his subject – as if seen from a hilltop, mountain, tree or high window.
The upward view, as though looking up into the branches of a tree, might be a fresh viewpoint and have dramatic design possibilities. Another variation is to purposely introduce foreground details and keep the principal subject in the middle ground or background – as though looking at boats in a bay through two trees. This is an art of understatement in which the painter refuses to paint the subject in full view for all to see immediately. Instead, he partially hides it behind the foreground details and draws the viewer into the picture at a slower rate.