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Evolution of an Artist #6...Inspired CreativityOne day I started thinking different thoughts. And that changed everything for me. My realism watercolor paintings were consistently juried into shows, winning awards, and selling. Three years ago I sat alone, relaxed, and let my mind wander. A basic element of art surfaced...values...and I sat with that, without reason. Then color arrived, the three primaries, in particular. An idea then started percolating... of blending the primary colors according to values. And then it was gone, like ideas do. But I kept pulling the thoughts back to me, devising practical ways of doing that. I woke early and went into the studio and created this first painting:  Three primary colors: red, yellow, and blue. Four dark to light values (including white), and shapes. This is my husband, Bill. When I showed him, his first comment was, "Why didn't you fix the bags under my eyes?" Sheesh...I'm only an artist! Notice the temperature of these two paintings. I used warm red and yellow pigments on the boat which produced a warm painting. The ocean scene is cooler because I chose a cool blue, red, and yellow. Am working with color combinations...some are beautiful and I have a list of those that do not work well and produce muddy colors. The trees and stream on the left was a busy undertaking but I loved those bare trees and went for it. Helps to work large with a subject this complicated. The ocean rock and tree is smaller and simple. That was another huge lesson...no matter how expertly I sketched and painted...if I had a busy subject on a smaller paper it didn't read well.
What next? The addition of soft edges. Another element of art and one I desire to master with this technique to take my paintings up to the next level. Hope you have enjoyed my writings and art. Have a wonderful holiday season and watch for more paintings in 2020. Keep me in mind should you have an empty wall in your home or business. I appreciate your business and referrals. Patrice www.patricecameronart.com
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Evolving As an Artist #5...Art and Meaning... One nice day, and for no apparent reason, I parked outside the nearby Skyline hilltop cemetery and walked among the old tall trees and equally old and ornate monuments. They were fascinating and beautiful to me and I noticed many similarities among dozens of headstones and sculptures. Plants, flowers, angels, doves, and animals, were some of many. Symbology and art forms...also known as Stories in Stone. I was intrigued and began my inquiry into monuments, sculpture, and communication. Around this same time I had been exploring properties of pigments, especially how I could "lift" or remove paint off the paper and obtain a lighter value. This works well with non staining pigments. I sketched out my subject then poured paint onto the paper and let it dry. I then took a wet brush and began lifting paint off to get this result! Check out my paintings to see how I combined my dual interests:    Art and Meaning.
It's Subjective. Yet examining those monuments I knew the symbols portrayed love and loss. Symbols are powerful, as are paintings, music, theater, and sculpture. They are appreciated for beauty, memory, longing, happiness and other emotions. Both represent a concept or underlying meaning, or quality. I enjoyed this facet of my progress and exhibited my paintings focusing on art and symbolism. One day my son asked me, "When are you going to be done with this phase?" Not for everyone, I guess. Next week I'll be discussing my present work. Many of you have followed me for years and some are new to how I created and achieve this technique, and where I am taking it. Thank you for your continued interest, Patrice www.patricecameronart.com Evolution of an Artist... #4...Experimentation...Art makers play, work hard, and experiment. It's our recipe for success. I'm in the studio alot, alone, and love this time to think and try out all the ideas I have while lying in bed, awake at 4am. I don't mind failure and frustration as it's a common entree on my artistic menu. But, I expect and accept the challenges. Some of them are laughable like...seriously...they say I have talent? And some are colossal inspirations! Artists gravitate to novel experiences and testing what others have beautifully accomplished. One's intrinsic style combined with another's technique creates inspiring outcomes. Perhaps workshops are popular for this very reason, the birthing of new art and ideas. I experienced a fun period where I would mix several different ounces of pure pigment. I would cover areas of paper I wanted to leave white with a masking fluid then pour small amounts of pigments and let it flow and dry...then repeated the process several times. Check out my results below!  I worked light to dark. It's a nice soft color mingling, don't you think? Of course the spotlight stealer are those dark railing shadows! My close friend has a saying painted on her studio walls: " Color gets all the credit but Value does all the work." I think that's true here.  Here is another example of pouring pigments. I found using the masking fluid beneficial to save my lightest values. Note to self: pouring pigments is like flowing watercolor washes on steroids!...there is NO control! At least for this control freak artist! My above paintings turned out well. The staircase painting juried into the Northwest Watercolor Society and the boat scene hangs in a Collectors home.
But if you are interested in the process and want to view the originator and master at watercolor pouring, check out Linda Daly Baker's website. www.lindadalybaker.com. Vibrant, fresh, and masterful! Next week I have some really unique pieces to show and tell you about! Working with non-staining pigments and lifting out light values. Thank you for your continued interest! Patrice www.patricecameronart.com |
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