Fine Art Watercolor Paintings,Drawings, Articles on Art, and My Favorite Artists
Monday, June 22, 2020
Squero di San Trovaso - Venice Watercolor Demo by Thomas W Schaller
Saturday, March 21, 2020
Naomi VanDoren Shows How She Films Her Art Videos
Naomi VanDoren has put together a great video on everything you need
to make your own art videos.
Well Worth Watching
Cheers
Terry
Thursday, January 30, 2020
Fishing Boats Graphite Drawing
Friday, September 7, 2018
Bugaboo Sky
https://bobkrysakwatercolors.blogspot.com/2018/09/bugaboo-sky-canadian-rockies.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+BobKrysakWatercolors+%28Bob+Krysak+Watercolors%29
Thursday, April 21, 2016
Urban Sketching Workshop with Artist Don Colley
Monday, April 18, 2016
Watercolor Sketch of Venice
Monday, April 11, 2016
Vancouver Urban Sketchers Meetup
Wednesday, May 21, 2014
Painting Vibrant Flowers in Watercolors
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Why Every Artist Should Have A Blog
In this post I will go into some detail on why to have a blog, and how to set one up for free using Google Blogger. Let me also say that it is easy, you don't have to be an expert computer user, all you have to do is to be able to follow simple instructions.
One thing I noticed after following blogging experts for over a year now is that most of the experts suggest that you register your own domain name, pay for web hosting services, and use Wordpress to start up your blog. I don't disagree with the experts, they have lots of reasons for their advice, but I also noticed that about 90% of the artist blogs that I visited were hosted by Google Blogger which is free.
So Why Should You Have A Blog If You Are An Artist?
- There are 1,596,270,108 people on the Internet in the world according to Internet World Stats, I did a quick search on Google to get that information. I have no idea how many of those Internet users are interested in art, but the basic idea is that with the Internet, you have a worldwide market that might be interested in your artwork.
- A Blog allows you to connect with people interested in art, and other artists that might be able to help you promote your art, and also help you with sharing information that might be useful, or even valuable to you all for free. Bloggers tend to be a friendly and helpful group of people.
- Blogging also gives you a platform to establish a community, or tribe (latest buzzword) that gathers people around your artistic expression, and allows them to contribute their views, feelings, and thoughts about your art in general, and the art world. This community can also help you find customers by word of mouth. If someone who visits your blog likes your work, but is not in a position to buy it, they might by word of mouth mention it to one of their friends which may lead to more business.
- Having a blog allows you to post a photograph of your artwork online for sale. You can easily set up a PayPal account, and allow buyers to purchase your artwork online directly. You can also offer your artwork on Ebay, and as well allow, buyers to buy your artwork directly online. Or you can set up the procedure to have the buyer fill out a sales agreement form, and forward a money order to you to complete the sale. Everything is possible with a blog depending upon which avenue you want to pursue.
- A Blog allows you to advertise your artwork across a wide audience that is only limited by the number of ways that you work at to drive traffic to your Blog, which I will go into in the next post.
- If you are a seasoned artist with knowledge to share, you can teach others through your blog, and even get paid for it as David Darrow does by offering classes on painting and drawing live over the Internet.
OK I am going to start my own blog, what do I do now?
I recommend that you start with Blogger which is free and easy to use.
After you click on the link above, you will go to a page that looks like the one below.
When you get to this page, the first thing to do is to go through the video tutorials which give you excellent information on how to get started in setting up your blog.Here is a link on YouTube on How To Start On Blogger, very basic and simple. Blogger has a small number of templates to choose from, but you should find something that suits you for a beginning, and you can change it later as there are lots of free blogger templates that you can download for free.
One CAUTION regarding free blogger templates is that many of them do now work as they should, and you should always visit the demonstration page for the free template which always has comments of people having problems with a free template. If there are lots of posts with problems with the template, it may not be a good idea to use it. I suggest in the beginning that you stick to one of the basic templates that Blogger offers at the time that you start up.
Well I hope this helps you make the plunge into starting up your own blog, if you have any questions, I will do my best to answer them. You can email questions to tkrysak@gmail.com
My next post will go into detail about getting people to visit your blog.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Copyright 101 For The Artist-The Basics

I was reading a question about Copyright today on the Everyday Matters group on Yahoo, that asked if using photographs to create artwork from the Internet was allowed under the US "Fair Use Law" with respect to Copyright.
Someone replied to the question by saying yes, it is OK to use photographs from the Internet because if falls under "Fair Use". This is FALSE.
Let me start off by saying that I am not a Lawyer, and anything that I say should not be considered Legal Advice. If you require Legal Advice, you should contact a competent Lawyer.
Also this post is not intended to be a comprehensive tutorial on Copyright Law, but a useful guide for you the artist to educate yourself to the pitfalls of copyright law, and to give you some resources to read that will ensure that you have at least a minimum amount of information.
In 2008, a Canadian artist won the gold award from the American Watercolor Society for her ultra realistic watercolor. She used two photos from Shutterstock to produce the watercolor. The two photographers found out about this and screamed copyright infringement, and there was a comprehensive discussion about this that ensued on the Internet about the issue.
Subsequently she was stripped of her award by AWS, and asked to return her prize money to AWS, and the work was removed from the competition, and the traveling show of the winning works. AWS disqualified the work because it was derived from photographs that were copyrighted (against the AWS rules for entering the competition) on Shutterstock. The artist purchased the photographs royalty free, but this purchase does not include the copyright.
A comprehensive post on this issue can be read on the Making A Mark Blog.
So what is Fair Use anyway? (US Copyright Law Definitions)
Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or phonorecords or by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright. In determining whether the use made of a work in any particular case is a fair use the factors to be considered shall include —
(1) the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes;
(2) the nature of the copyrighted work;
(3) the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole; and
(4) the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.
The fact that a work is unpublished shall not itself bar a finding of fair use if such finding is made upon consideration of all the above factors.
As you can see, the term "Fair Use" is quite restrictive, and as an artist you must be very careful in relying on this as a defense for using a copyrighted photograph to create a derivative work.
Other than using your own photographs which is the best option, there are resources for using photographs under the Creative Commons License (CC) on the Internet. In many cases in these resources you may be allowed to use the photograph to create a derivative work if you reference the name of the photographer in your name for your derivative work. An example would be "Eye Of The Totem, after a photograph by Time Ennis". Usually you are requested to provide a link to the original photograph as well.
In general in the US and Canada, an artist's work is considered in the Public Domain 50 years after his or her death, and the work may be freely used. However be careful, the estate of the artist might still retain the copyright.
It is also very important to remember that copyright laws may be different from country to country. What may be acceptable in the US or Canada, may not be acceptable in the UK and other parts of the world. (Thanks to Katherine for reminding me about that in the comments below)
Here are some resources on Copyright and Creative Commons Images.
Find Creative Commons Images In Google Images Search.
Wet Canvas Reference Image Library (Membership required Free)
I sincerely hope that you find this information useful, it is not comprehensive, but everything you need to know about Copyright in your country and the world can be found by a simple search on the Internet.
All comments are welcomed.
Happy Copyrighting!!
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Ukiyo-e-The Art of Japanese Woodcut Printmaking
Hokusai Irises1760-1849
Source Wikimedia-Public Domain
Ukiyo-e means "Floating World" and I have been fascinated with this form of artistic expression since about 1969 when I saw a reproduction of a Japanese Print that my art teacher in high school showed me.
During this period a number of Japanese artists started print making using blocks of cherry wood which are turned into engraving plates by removing excess wood with small knives, and utilizing one single woodblock for each color to be printed.
Step 1 is to create a detailed line drawing, carve that out into a block of cherry wood, and then print that line drawing as many as 100-150 times. W.J. Phillips in his book mentioned that he was able to get a maximum of 150 prints before the block would degrade from the process.
The watercolor paper is kept wet with water during the printing process. The wet paper is laid on top of the block, after the colored pigment (watercolor) is painted on the block. The back of the paper is then rubbed with a block of wood wrapped in leaves. Each impression is then stacked in a pile wet, with newspaper in between each layer.
There can be as many as 10 colors in each print, meaning that there have to be 10 blocks, so the printing process is a long and arduous one.
However the Japanese discovered a beautiful way to expand their markets by providing limited editions of watercolor paintings. In essence they are not necessarily exactly the same because each wash that is applied can have it's own subtle difference from print to print.
Here are some Ukiyo-e resources that you may find interesting.
A guide to Ukiyo-e websites
Ukiyo-e Wikipedia
Empty Easel-A Brief History of Japanese Artprints
The Woodblock Prints Of Ando Hiroshige
Monday, December 29, 2008
Colour, Obsession, Joy and Torment-The Daily Painters Art Gallery 2008

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
Monday, December 22, 2008
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.
Image Bamburgh Castle used with permission of the artist.
Visit Dave's Blog
Visit Dave's Website on RedBubble
Sunday, December 21, 2008
An Illustrated Life: Drawing Inspiration from the Private Sketchbooks of Artists, Illustrators and Designers
Image Source: Amazon.comWow, 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
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Sunset Over Howe Sound-Watercolor Painting
Sunset Over Howe Sound9" 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
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Plant On Ceramic Tile-Original Watercolor Painting
Original Watercolor
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





