Posts Tagged ‘plein air painting’
How to Critique Yourself – for the Plein Air Painter (2)
My first essay about critique for the plein air painter was last week. Robert Genn continued, saying he felt that a checklist is valuable and that you need to write and follow your own list. His list includes a series of varying questions: Meaningful subject? Strong patterns? Middle tones? Interlocking gradations? Echoing shapes? Flowing design? Alluring counterpoint? Lost and found? Focal point? Big and small? Overall simplicity? Complex shapes? Visual depth? Interesting shapes? Aerial perspective? Sophisticated color? Natural believability? What could be?
His readers questioned him about a few of the above and he continued. “Alluring counterpoint” is where there is a small amount of jumpy detail or “grace notes” that give a secondary area of interest without destroying the power of the whole. I often try for at least one area of AC. “Interlocking gradations” are smaller gradations or blends laid side by side or juxtaposed. They give added, often abstract, interest and mystery to otherwise ordinary subjects. General gradations are gradations or blends in a large area such as sky, water or the general base of an abstract, etc. Interposed with “flats” these general gradations go a long way toward strengthening compositions (also helping areas to “sit up” or “lie down”) and holding the eye. “Interesting surfaces” means texture, shine (final varnish) and evidence of the human hand at work. In my case I like an even, “handmade” look, not too artificially rough, not too slickly smooth. Inconsequential though these concerns might seem, they all contribute to a work’s visual “stickyness.” In the pursuit of making your own work unique, I should emphasize that while your list may have parts of other artists’ lists, your list needs to be your own list.
If you want to see what other readers mentioned as their lists, go to http://clicks.robertgenn.com/critique-self.php
Nature in the Abstract
Mitchell Albala, in his book Landscape Painting, discusses creating abstract landscape paintings from nature. He says that a landscape painting moves toward abstraction when its focus is less on descriptive content – identifiable things, such as a house or waterfall – and more on the aesthetics that are the building blocks of image-making.
His painting, Plunge, never entirely departs from its originating subject matter – it is still a waterfall – but by limiting the focus to a small segment of the cascading water, the aesthetics of pattern and movement become the primary visual event. The “subject” dances between the recognizable and the abstract, existing in both realms simultaneously.
Placing the Plein Air Painting on Canvas
A composition involves not only how groups of elements relate to each other, but also how those elements relate to the edge of the canvas. The space between the elements and the edges can exert a force of connection or resistance that have a profound effect on the overall composition.
If an object is placed too close to the edge of the canvas, it becomes “magnetized” to the edge. When trees are placed too near the edges, too much attention is given to them. When they are moved away from the edges, there is more balance between the foreground and the open space between the trees.
Centering creates symmetry and balance, but it can also lack the variations needed to make a plein air painting alive and interesting. Instead of the horizon in the middle vertically and a sailboat in the middle horizontally, a more interesting set up would be with a higher horizon line and the boat off center to the left and another small one off to the right.
Discussing Plein Air Painting
Tomorrow I have been asked to speak with art students at a local high school about my adventures and experiences doing plein air painting. The classes are Art I and II and a crafts class.
I will have to confess that I’m an experienced math teacher and came by art on a second chance to get it right! Fortunately, the regular teacher has additional plans for each class because my talk will take only a few minutes of each class. I will also bring some paintings to show. This will be both a fun experience and a challenge, but I look forward to it.
Movement and Rhythm in a Plein Air Painting
Among the most important considerations in a plein air painting are movement and rhythm – the journey of the eye as it makes connections among the elements of a composition. These connections, or eye paths, are sometimes obvious, as along a telephone pole or across the top of a mountain. At other times, the eye paths are more subtle as the mind and eye try to connect things along a common path, such as the implied diagonal along the tops of the tallest trees.
A fundamental rule of compositions is that every painting should have a focal point – one spot that is the center of attention. However, all areas of a painting should be interesting. It is much more important to keep the eye moving, never stopping or resting on one spot for too long. Rather than think in terms of a single focal point, think about areas of primary and secondary emphasis in the painting.
Drawing
Drawing is an essential foundation skill because it trains your eye to render things accurately. It gives you the ability to place shapes and lines where you want. Don’t forget the keys to drawing: gesture, line, measuring, proportion and negative space. All are essential for the landscape painter.
If you find that your drawing skills are holding you back, take time to get the necessary training. Classes are a great way to improve drawing skills with the one-on-one guidance of an instructor. There are also two excellent books I recommend: Betty Edwards’ classic Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain and Brian Curtis’ Drawing from Observation. If you practice drawing 15 minutes each day, in about 6 months you will see a dramatic improvement!
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.”
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.