Reflections of an Artist

William Wray Demonstration

Zepplin Over Burbank by William Wray

One of the many things I love about local art clubs is the wonderful demonstrations that they have at the monthly meetings. This last Tuesday the San Fernando Valley Art Club had artist William Wray for the demonstrator. William is known for his urban landscapes that push composition, shapes and color into near abstraction. 

He was nice enough to hand out printed information that gave everyone an inside view into his thought process. When deciding on a scene to paint first he asks a lot of questions and these questions will also help you to make the right choices. Here are things to ask before you start to paint.

1) Why do you want to paint the scene?

2) What emotional response does the subject give you?

3) What are the dominant design elements and how can you strengthen them?

4) Is your view too complicated? If so, can you make it a simple, strong design?

5) Does your subject have too many problems to solve to reduce it to a simple design? If so, try a simpler subject.

Once you have answered these questions and evaluated your composition, do a thumb nail sketch to help you refine and define the subject. Using photo software, William will also push the colors to be more intense and look for two complements to use for the main areas of color. By cropping the subject, he will hone in on the center of interest, reduce details and organize the image into a simple, clear view. During this process he will also focus on the "target" with supporting shapes that frame the center of interest. 

Finally it is time to start painting! William uses inexpensive house painting brushes to block in the large shapes. He keeps it simple, colorful and uses lots of paint, even in the initial block in. On his second pass, I was fascinated to watch him use his palette knife to play with the edges, refining, mixing together and never keeping perfectly straight lines, even on the buildings. He told us that he likes to let the painting dry and then work over the dry paint with other colors and values. He often uses washes that allow some of the under color to influence the glazing color. He will usually go back in three times, each layer refining the image. A fourth and final pass is to add small details.

It was very interesting to see and have him discuss his process. Thank you to William Wray for his wonderful demonstration.

Teaching the Art of Plein Air

• You may be eligible for a discount. Please call (818) 708-9232.

Instructor -- Sharon Weaver

Learn the fundamentals necessary for successful landscape painting in the open air (plein air). The process will be broken down into achievable steps through demonstrations, on-location painting and personalized critiques. The techniques of plein air painting will be explored with a focus on composition, understanding values, establishing a focal point, and learning to edit from the wealth of material in nature. Every week we will meet at a different site where I will start with a demonstration focusing on the essentials of plein air painting. Students will then paint on location with individualized critiques. Every plein air experience is a unique challenge with the objective of capturing a moment in time. Whether you are a beginner or an established plein air painter, my goal is to give you the tools to become a better artist through observation, simplification, and the appreciation of painting from nature.

Painting Water Reflections

Arboretum Reflections 11x14 Oil

      Last night I demonstrated for the San Fernando Valley Art Club. I have a soft spot for the club since it was the first art club I joined five years ago. Thinking back, it is amazing how much I didn't know about the world of art. I was so green I didn't know what I didn't know. Five years later, I am forever grateful to the generosity of all the members, the support I have gotten and all the instruction from the many demonstrating artists. 

      You could say I have come full circle since I am now the one giving the demo, hoping to inspire and help other artists. Afterward, I was thrilled with all the questions, kind words and enthusiasm from the group.

      Following are the first two stages of the painting I used for the demonstration. The finished painting called Arboretum Reflections (shown above) is for sale at Fine Art and Antique on Lake in Pasadena.

  Blocking in the Shapes

      Working out the composition is the most important starting step. Without a good, strong composition the painting can never succeed. Decide what you are painting; the water, the trees? Make the commitment with the positioning of the horizon line.

Establishing the Relationship between the Sky and Water

      Water is almost always darker than the sky, so it is essential to establish the relationship between these two areas. Remember to first paint the depth of the water with vertical brushstrokes. This will give the water dimension. Wait to paint the water surface until after you have painted all the other shapes. Only then go back and paint the surface of the water.

       Later this month on April 17, I will be doing another demonstration for the Bellflower Art Association at Thompson Park, 14000 Bellflower Blvd., Bellflower, CA from 6 PM to 8:30PM. For more information Contact Sharon or call Charlene Mueller at 562-633-9011.

How to Paint Water

I hope you will join me for the demonstration at the San Fernando Art Club on April 3rd.

Join us on Tuesday, April 3rd when plein air artist and San Fernando Valley Art Club member, Sharon Weaver, shares her techniques on painting a professional landscape in oils.

Sharon won “Best of Show” at the last two SFVAC Exhibits. She enjoys participating in the challenge of plein air competitions. Her work appears in galleries and museums as well as private collections. She is represented by Gallery Elite in Carmel, CA, Segil Gallery in Monrovia, CA, and La Galeria Gitana in San Fernando, CA.

Tuesday, April 3, 2012
6:30pm - Social time
7:00pm - Art Demonstration
Encino Community Center
4935 Balboa Blvd.
Encino

The First Time Demo Artist

Afternoon Clearing

Sharon Weaver after Demo at SCA

      I realized a while ago that teaching is a very important part of an artists resume so I knew I would have to dive into doing demos soon. The perfect opportunity presented itself when I received an email from Patty O'Hearn with the Santa Clarita Artists' Association asking if I would do a demonstration for the club.

      I accepted, hoping that I was up for the challenge. The demo seemed far off in the future but before I knew it, the day was here. Luckily, I had already decided to approach the demonstration with "composition" as a central theme. I had some wonderful examples of bad compositions which I borrowed from Stapleton Kearns' Blog of bad ideas. It is always fun to start with what you shouldn't do and the row of potato shaped clouds really broke the ice.

      I also took my two favorite books, Alla Prima by Richard Schmid and Composition of Outdoor Painting by Edgar Payne and passed them around. I believe that with only these two books everyone can learn the principles of creating great art.

      Of course, at some point I had to actually start painting. The challenge was to paint and talk about something else at the same time. Not an easy task when you think about all the decision involved in creating a painting. Without the necessary concentration, I fear my demo painting may have suffered.  I was OK if I could just paint but then someone would ask a question and suddenly my mind was yanked from the painting to retrieve a response. Pretty tough.

      My fears were dispelled when several members of the group came over to tell me how much they enjoyed the demonstration before having to leave. It was a gratifying moment.  I think I now get why teachers teach. Sharing your knowledge, enthusiasm and experiences is fun.  Having a group who responds with so much warmth and appreciation makes it memorable. Thank you to the wonderful members of the Santa Clarita Artists' Association.

Painting Unusual Shapes

Photos pose different problems. With a plein air study, I have already edited out unnecessary objects that can confuse the composition but a photograph still contains every single detail so when picking a photo I try to forget about the details. Without the luxury of an edited image, I focus on composition and especially look for unusual shapes.

I remembered a photo I had taken at Dana Point during the San Clemente Plein Air Competition 2009. When I found the photo, it was better than I remembered with a cross armature (see my sketch outlining the structure of the composition).

I loved all the quirky details of the image, the bird, the garbage can, the barrel, the peeling paint but it was ultimately the interesting shapes that convinced me this would make a wonderful larger painting. A cross armature is a very dramatic structure and after doing the sketch, I decided the horizontal arm would be even more dramatic using an elongated canvas.

Remember when picking a photo to use for a larger painting, first consider the composition, look for interesting shapes, emphasize the structure and edit the details.

Street Scene Demo by Junn Roca

New York Street Scene in the Rain by Junn Roca

      One of the many perks of being a member of an art club is seeing demonstrations by artists you admire. The Valley Artist Guild recently had a luncheon with artists Junn Roca giving the demo. He is a wonderful colorist with a knack for street scenes. He paints people effortlessly with the pose taking over when details are minimal.

#1 Demo

      Junn started by using a Sharpie marker to sketch in the scene. He explained that he liked the fact that some of the lines will show through on the finished painting.  He did two smaller sketches (see bottom area of #1 Demo), one warm, one cool, experimenting with color ideas before tackling the larger version.

#2 Demo

      Junn talked about how, as an artist, he must see color where others do not. He mentioned that objects, like the buildings, are warmer near the ground and become cooler as they go up toward the sky. Shadows are not just one color but are warmer in the center and cooler along the edges.

#3 Demo

      The shapes are simple until the final details reveal the complexity of the scene. Here, Junn is adding highlights to the sun soaked pavement. The casual stance of the couple looking at the merchandise on the cart, demonstrates how to use simple shapes to define the people. So little says so much.

Final Demo

      I hope you enjoyed this small summary of the demo. I had a great time. Thank you to Junn Roca and VAG for a wonderful event.

Calvin Liang Painting the Ocean

Third Demo by Calvin Liang

      The third and last day, Calvin Liang met the group at Heisler Park in Laguna. It was conveniently located right around the corner from the hotel, just a short walk. This day the cloud cover was very thick and it threatened to rain. Luckily for everyone it never did.

      Calvin decided to paint a large rock at the waters edge which looked like a broken table. The colors he uses for his plein air paintings are quite basic. You can see his palette above.

Calvin Blocks in the Shapes

      It surprised me that he didn't tint the canvas but he explained that on cloudy days he just uses a very light wash of color. He tints the ground with a burnt sienna for sunny days. Calvin applied sharp angular shapes for the rock. I thought the ocean color would be too dark but later you will see how it works. 

Using a Palette Knife for the Wave

      Using a palette knife, Calvin really loaded on the white for the crashing wave. He instructed us to keep movement in the water to depict the oceans natural movement.

      It was fascinating to watch him play. The back and forth was very interesting as he applied the paint, blending some together while keeping other areas separate for contrast. The finished painting was rich with color, texture and movement. Here is another blog called Jose's Art Journal: Calvin Liang's Workshop Day Three regarding edge work. Thank you Calvin for putting on a wonderful show.

Calvin Liang: Second Demo

Calvin Paints the Shadows

Calvin Works on the Details

Calvin Liang's Completed Second Demo

      Throughout the day, Calvin again emphasized the need to paint the shape, not the thing.  He repeated his mantra of the first day; instead of the thing (the building, the ocean, etc) think of 1) Shape 2) Value 3) Color 4) Edges

Calvin Liang Landscape Demo

Calvin Liang Talks about Shapes

Calvin Applies the Darks

      Immediately, I noticed that Calvin's brushwork is very deliberate. Every stroke is applied with care and he leaves nothing to chance. He uses different size brushes even in the application of the shadows. The intent was apparent in every brush stroke. Calvin also told the group not to be afraid to apply paint, even in the beginning when first painting the dark areas he put down a lot of paint.

Colors are Blocked in with Varied Brush Work

      On this day it was hazy and the lighting subdued, so #3 Color temperature is most important. Value takes a back seat. Calvin kept explaining that the colors were very dirty but I thought his gray colors were full of life. He told us to paint the shapes without detail but note the interest in the varied brushwork throughout this stage of the painting.

                                                   Finished Painting by Calvin Liang

      Now it was time to put in the details and refine the shapes. Here is where Calvin is a master. A few added details brought everything together. Watching him play with the paint was wonderful. He would smear it in some places and make a sharp line in others. He added the flags and the boat fittings with the smallest of brushes. Note that even in these details the line is broken, the color lighter at the bottom and darker at the top. His name is a wonderful addition to the painting.

      You can see the painting I did near the same spot called "Rest Stop."

Mian Situ Demo: Finished Portrait

      In my prvious blog post I wrote about the Mian Situ demonstration. This is the final chapter and Mian completes the portrait.

      Mian Situ is one of only a few artists who achieve master status when they are alive. I have admired his work at the Masters of the American West Exhibition at the Autry Museum and at the Gold Medal Show for the California Art Club so I was very fortunate to be able to attend a portrait demo by Mian last weekend through the CAC.

Portraits True Colors

      The portrait above is after the first twenty minute pose and shows the true colors of the painting. Mian has begun to block in the flesh tones and applied the bright highlight. On the shadows of the face and neck he used a mixture of sap green and burnt umber.

Mian Situ Continues After the Break

       Mian continued to apply the colors to the face and then began to work in the details of the eyes and mouth. Above he is creating the shadows around the eyes. Even with only forty minutes to paint he managed to achieve a remarkable level of detail.

Portrait after Second Break

      After the second break the portrait is a wonderful likeness with interesting shapes, varied brushstrokes and lovely colors. There was only another 20 minutes to paint and Mian would work furiously to complete the portrait.

The Final Twenty Minutes

      Mian applied more paint to the hair and used his fingers to smear the paint forming wisps that extended onto the background.

Using a Palette Knife

       With a palette knife, Mian applied the background forming interesting shapes that hinted at the wallpaper. He carved into the hair color with the neutral colors while allowing the background to be the positive space.

      With fine brushes Mian worked on the details of the face. He captured the subtle nuances of the mouth and eyes. The portrait was nearly complete.

Final Portrait by Mian Situ

      Thank you to Mian Situ and the California Art Club for making this event a once in a lifetime experience.