Colour, Obsession, Joy and Torment-The Daily Painters Art Gallery 2008

Image Source-Amazon.com

Here is a new book from the Daily Painters website, a wonderful collection of the artworks and stories of artists around the world who have taken up the challenge of creating a painting a day.

I have been following a number of daily painters for about two years now, and I am frequently amazed at their talent and creativity to be able to paint a new painting every day (mostly 5 days per week). In virtual numbers, this can add up to as many as 365 paintings per year. Truly amazing!!!

Some believe the "Painting A Day" art movement began when Duane Keiser was featured in a news article in USA Today in 2006. Most of the artists in this niche produce smaller works from 4" x 6" to usually no larger than about 9" x 11" and many of the works are priced at $100.00/us or less, which makes original artwork more affordable for the cost conscious collector.

Since 2006, hundreds of artists around the world have joined this art movement, and have succeeded in expanding their portfolios, increasing their sales, and gaining more attention and critical acclaim within the arts community.

Below is a list of some of the Daily Painters I follow

Duane Keiser
Jeff Hayes
Carol Marine
Jan Blencowe
Karin Jurick
Darren Maurer
Michael Naples
Priscilla Treacy
Stephen Magsig
Dustin Boutwell
Belinda Del Pesco
Shanti Marie

If you are a Daily Painter, and want a Permanent Link in this post, just leave a comment, with a link to your Website or Blog, and I will expand this list.

Consider adding The Daily Painters Gallery 2008 book to your collection

What's In Your Wallet?-Your Business Card I Hope

On Christmas Eve I got invited to visit some friends on Boxing day, and I wanted to share my new blog with them and ask them to drop by for a visit sometime. The trouble was that I did not have any new business cards, and of course it was too late in the day to get a shop to print them.

No panic, I make my own. I am a bit of a Do It Yourself-er, and years ago I bought the PrintShop software, and blank business cards so that I could make Greeting Cards, Business Cards, Postcards and more.

The benefit of making your own are;

1. You can make your own designs from scratch or use the many pre-designed templates that come with the software.
2. You don't have to pay for artwork which can be expensive by getting a company to make the cards. Even if you supply them with your artwork, they have to scan it at a cost.
   
3. You have complete control over design, layout, colors, information and style.
4. If you want a different painting for example on each card, just print out one sheet of 10 and arrange them in your stack of cards so that each one you give out is unique. It would cost you a small fortune for a company to do that for you.
5. You only print as many as you need.

The only cost to you is for the software (not expensive), blank business cards, (not expensive), and the cost of the ink for your ink jet printer.

In the example above I was in a rush, so I used a template design (the artwork is not my own), and just input my information in a flash. Total time to produce 30 cards from start to finish was one hour. Not bad!!!!! I liked the design of the drawing so much, that I will do my own, scan it, and put it into my new business card next time.

I hope you found this post helpful, feel free to leave a comment.

Watercolor Tip-Make Your Own Color Chart

My Cotman Color Mixing Chart
copyright Terry Krysak

Have you ever wondered how to mix a particular color, and found yourself at a loss as to which colors to use? Sometimes you end up with mud, or you just can't get it right.

Why not make your own color chart? It takes a fair amount of time and work, but it is something that you will always have as an excellent reference to use when you are painting.

I majored in pottery at art school, and this was the method we used to test out various glazes to see what they looked like after they were fired. It saves you from ruining your pots, if the glaze does not turn out right.

As you can see, it gives you every possible color combination possible, and you can use as many colors in the top row as you wish. However, the more colors you use in the top row, the bigger the chart will be.

Winsor and Newton Color Mixing Guides

Winsor Newton Color Chart

You may download My Cotman Color Chart for your own personal use. If you use it on your website or blog, or for any other commerical purpose all I ask is that you provide a link directly back to this blog and give me credit.

Here is a link to my latest post How To Mix Colors For Oils And Acrylic Paints

Great Book On Color Mixing 1500 Color Mixing Recipes for oil, acrylic & watercolor

 

Terry Krysak is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com

Winsor and Newton Field Box-The Perfect Companion for the Watercolor Artist

The best advice I ever received was to buy the best artist materials that you can afford. In my mind, Winsor & Newton provides the best products that money can buy and if you buy the best, you will never be disappointed.

I bought the field box in 1982, as I was building up my supply of watercolors for the future, and I still have the field box and use it today. It was my first experience with using watercolor pans which completely eliminates the hassle of watercolor tubes. The problems with tubes includes the paint drying inside the cap, and freezing to the tube making it difficult to get off, and eventually the paint in the tubes dries up solid.

A tip for getting frozen caps off the tube is to heat the cap up with a match or lighter. Be careful though because the caps are made of plastic, and will easily melt. If the paint dries up, you can still use it if you cut the tube open and peel off the metal. Re-wet the solid paint the same as if you were using a pan of watercolor.

The Winsor and Newton Field Box is made of plastic, is durable, and closes up into a small compact package that you can take with you anywhere. It also has a small water bottle, and small watercolor brush as well.

Terry Krysak is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com

Dave Edwards-BlythArt

185-Bamburgh Castle-02 (Gouache)
Copyright Dave Edwards

This is another in my series of My Favorite Artists. Today's post is about Dave Edwards who lives in Blyth, United Kingdom. In this case it was hard to choose a favorite when looking at his work, as there are so many.

I first met Dave online, as we were both subscribing to the Art Newsletter Painters Keys, and Dave had asked for information about totem poles. I had a number of photos and resources on the subject, and emailed him. Over a short period of time as email buddies, we became friends, and we communicate via email a few times each week.

Dave is a self taught artist who works in watercolor, gouache, pencil crayon, pen and ink, an on occasion oil paints. He uses vibrant colors in his work often depicting scenes and places around the UK, in a mystical whimsical style that I like very much.

Dave's subject matter is diverse, and covers a broad range from still life, landscape, to birds and cats and more. If you visit his blog or website, you will find Dave to be very friendly, energetic, and engaging as he shares his artwork and thoughts with an audience on the edge of their seats waiting for more.

Image Bamburgh Castle used with permission of the artist.

Visit Dave's Blog
Visit Dave's Website on RedBubble

An Illustrated Life: Drawing Inspiration from the Private Sketchbooks of Artists, Illustrators and Designers

Image Source: Amazon.com

Terry Krysak is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com

Danny Gregory's An Illustrated Life is a visual delight of color and texture--a funky and frenetic"book about books people have made," perfect for chronic doodlers, journalers, and art lovers.

Wow, what a great book for the artist in your family or of course yourself. One of the fundamental tools of any artist is the sketchbook, and successful artists around the world teach that carrying one with you at all times is a must.

Sketching when you are having your morning coffee at your favorite coffee shop, or while you are having lunch is the best way to hone your drawing and sketching skills.

If you want some insight how an artist approaches the challenges of the blank white page, this is an excellent resource that will help you get over that anxiety, and "get on with it"

The book shares excerpts from the notebooks of 50 artists, illustrators and designers with an introduction from each artist.

This book just made it to the Amazon "Best Books of December 2008" congratulations Danny.

Buy The Book Now

Eye Of The Totem-Watercolor Painting After The Photograph By Flickr Photographer Tim Ennis

7" x 7"
Watercolor on Watercolor Board
Buy A Print

I have always been fascinated with Totem Poles, particularly the work of the Haida Aboriginals, located on the West Coast of Canada in British Columbia.

I often wished however that they painted their Totem Poles in colors that were more pleasing to me than the standard colors of Black, Green, Red, and White. This was my attempt to produce a design that contained colors that reflect more of a West Coast feel to them, reflecting the mood of blue water, with a teal accent.

I also imagined that each Totem was a living work of art, and in my imagination what you see in the painting is the reflection of what the Totem is seeing in the reflection in it's eye. The reflection is a lonely Arbutus tree hanging on to the rock above a seascape.

This is a derivative work, and permission to use the original photograph Wuikinuxv Eye was kindly granted by brilliant Flickr Photographer Tim Ennis.

I use Winsor & Newton Watercolors exclusively

Sunset Over Howe Sound-Watercolor Painting

Sunset Over Howe Sound
9" x 6"
Watercolor on Watercolor Board
Buy a Print

If you ever visit the West Coast of Canada, be sure to take a ferry trip with BC Ferries from Horseshoe Bay. I visited the Sunshine Coast a few times over the years, and this view is one of the many sites you will see. I love the shape of Anvil Island in the center of the painting.

This is the second time that I have used Watercolor Board, which is a piece of Watercolor Paper glued to a hard cardboard substrate. No stretching is required. The painting surface is a bit different from watercolor paper in that it seems to absorb the pigment quicker. However once you get used to it, you may want to switch over and never have to stretch watercolor paper again.

Portrait Of Allan Nott-Original Drawing Artwork

22" x 16"
Black Prismacolor Pencil Crayon on Illustration Board

In 1984 I was taking a break from working at jobs that I did not like, and decided to try and produce some art until my funds ran out. One night I was having drinks with my friend Allan, and he kept asking me when he was going to see some of my work. I didn't have much to show at the time, and he kept egging me on and pestering me, so I decided to try and do his portrait.

Little did I know what I was getting into. I came across an artist who was doing clown images in a art magazine using pencil crayons, and the images were very soft, and I was amazed at the visual impact of pencil crayons and had never used them before.

The drawing took me about 200 hours to complete over 3 months, and was the hardest thing I had done in my life. I used illustration board, which has a very smooth hard surface. I managed to use about 10 black pencil crayons to compete the piece. I don't think that I will spend that many hours on a work of art in the future, it was quite a marathon.

Cheers
Terry

I use Prismalcolor colored pencils.



Would you like to learn how to draw? Check out the best book I know of below.

Mayne Island Arbutus-Original Watercolor Painting

26" x 18"
Watercolor on Arches 140 LB Cold Press Watercolor Paper
$449

Contact the Artist

I started this painting in 1984 after a weekend camping trip to Gabriola Island and Mayne Island. I was on the trip with friends, in October, and it was pouring rain. Everyone except me got soaking wet overnight the first night, and the group decided to ferry over to Mayne Island and stay in a motel to dry out.

I stopped work on it because at one point I was stuck on how I was going to finish the Arbutus tree. This often happens to me when painting a watercolor, and I set them aside until I get inspiration on how to go forward. I also started a new job, and was too tired out from that every day to paint.

In the summer of 2007 my dear brother prodded me to finish the painting, so I searched the Internet for photos of Arbutus trees because I no longer had my photograph to reference from, and decided to get it finished at all costs.

The other thing I discovered was that I no longer had a desire to finish it off in the manner that I had first envisioned, and decided to leave it as is for the most part after painting in the parts that were white spaces on the painting.

So the minimalist style was not planned in any way, I found I just liked it as is.

If you would like to purchase the painting please contact me at tkrysak@gmail.com
Buy a Print

Andrew Wyeth-An American Icon

I first discovered Andrew Wyeth at age 15 in my first year of High school, and his work has enthralled me ever since. He was one of the individuals that inspired me to become an artist, and to explore the medium of Watercolor. This is the first of my posts of My Favorite Artists.

Andrew Wyeth was born July 12, 1917 and is an American realist painter, and without doubt the best known American artist. Although he has won numerous awards and critical acclaim amongst critics, some have labelled his work more Illustration than Artistic. I can't agree with that opinion, as many famous artists were Illustrators or Commercial artists while advancing their artistic careers. As far as I am concerned, illustration is still art. Andrews father N.C. Wyeth was an Illustrator and artist, and how could anyone not be influenced by that?

Much of his work features the landscape around his home town of Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, and the people that live in the area.

I just love the organic Burnt Umber feeling of his work, and every time I view it, I find myself lingering and exploring every detail in absolute wonder of how he did it.

He often uses a "dry brush" technique in his paintings. Most of the pigment is squeezed out of the brush, and then he caresses the paper with the lightest touch, building up successive layers of paint over time. I must admit I have failed miserably trying this technique, and have had no success with it.

Wyeth also uses the Egg Tempera medium for many of his paintings. Pigment is mixed with egg yolk and distilled water, and artists throughout the centuries used this medium with great success. One of Wyeth's most famous egg tempera paintings is Christina's World, done in 1948.

Book Image-Courtesy Amazon.com

Here are some links to view some of Andrew Wyeth's artwork.
Museum Syndicate
Official Andrew Wyeth Website

Books about Andrew Wyeth Book

Spring Daffodil-Original Watercolor Painting

9" x 6"
Original Watercolor Painting

I was in a panic to get this painting completed as a gift to my cousin Jordan for his wedding.

I came across a technique in a watercolor magazine that I was itching to try out. The method is to do a monochromatic under painting first, using a mixture of purples with Alizarin Crimson or Cadmium Red, and Ultramarine Blue for cool shadows, and Cobalt Blue for warm shadows.

You can view the original Watercolor Tutorial online by Liz Fluehr here.

Buy A Print

Plant On Ceramic Tile-Original Watercolor Painting

21" x 15"
Original Watercolor

This watercolor painting requires some explanation. Sometimes as an artist I get a "vision" and this was my attempt at transforming that vision into reality.

While I was walking into an old building at Granville and Broadway in Vancouver, I looked down and saw this beautiful old tile, and thought it would look neat if it had a landscape painted in the tile.

After that I thought it would look even more surreal if there was a plant that I had, sitting on the tile and you were looking down at it. Don't ask me where this comes from, except my imagination.

Most people discribe it as "interesting", I guess because it is not obvious what it represents. I was quite happy with the way the plant turned out though.

Buy the original painting $90.00/us-contact me at tkrysak@gmail for details.
Buy a Print

Sensational Flowers-Fine Art Calendar 2009

Back in 2006 I bought a Canon Powershot SD450 digital camera, and have been taking tons of photographs ever since. Digital is the only way to go, and the SD450 is small enough to fit in your pocket.

I love flowers, and throughout the year at every opportunity, when I see flowers blooming I shoot them. They are very much "eye candy" for me.

The 2009 Sensational Flowers Calendar is a collection of my absolute best photgraphs taken over the past few years. If you love flowers, you will love this calendar.

Buy My Sensational Flowers Calendar

Check Out the Canon Powershot SD450 from Amazon

Seasons Greetings-Digital Fractal Art

Last year I came across some Fractal Art on RedBubble, and decided to do a bit of research, and see if I could make some myself. Without going into a detailed description, fractal art is created by a software program, which you can manipulate. You can change the designs and colors by changing the paramaters of the software.

So for those of you out there that are not artists, and have some ability on the computer, you can download the software for free, go through a few tutorials, and you will be creating your own fractal art in no time. It is quite addicting once you get started.

Download Tierazon-v29 Fractal Software for free.
Free Tierazon Online Tutorials

Try it out and have some fun.

Buy This Christmas Card

Dave The Painting Guy-On Line Oil Painting Videos

Streaming live video by Ustream
I just discovered David Darrow last week when I was following Susan Carlin, another online oil painter.

David is an oil painter, painting portraits and other works online live on Ustream TV almost every day. He provides delightful conversation and banter, painting tips, and at times describes in detail the process of what he is doing at the time he is painting, providing information on the colors he is using, what colors he is mixing, and just about anything else that you would like to ask.

I am fascinated how he is able to paint, and talk to the folks who are all online viewing the painting process at the same time. He encourages viewers to ask questions, and provide comment on the screen sidebar as you can see in the screenshot below.
And of course the best thing is that you can view the live painting sessions, and his archive of previous videos all for free. When you visit via the Ustream TV link, you can be anonymous or sign up with Ustream for free, and choose your own user name so that members of the community can see who you are. There are a number of wonderful artists who tune in and enjoy the fun.

Although I have not painted in oils yet, watching David and Susan paint has made me want to give it a go, and I have learned an amazing amount about painting in the short period of time that I have been watching them.

Watch David paint online
Visit David's Website
Sign Up for email notification of when he is painting
Follow David on Twitter

I hope you will drop by and join the painting sessions, and connect with a great group of artists.

White Iris-My First Watercolor Painting

This is my adaptation of a painting by Leah Schwartz in 1984 that I discovered when I bought one of her note cards in Vancouver. Her work inspired me a great deal, I love Irises, and since then have been fascinated by this wonderful flower.

Original 18" x 13"
Watercolor on Arches 140 LB Cold Press Watercolor Paper
Buy A Print