Dancing Backwards in High Heels More Lessons from Fred and Ginger Part ll Yesterday's opening reception was lovely. The entire staff was in attendance, Joe, Krissy, Lynette, and Marilyn too! The guests enjoyed locally made salted chocolate truffles and lemonade throughout the afternoon. So now, as promised, posted are all ten finished paintings … [Read more...] about The Final Reveal
Chiaroscuro and Other Oil Painting Techniques
Chiaroscuro is from the Italian language and the root meaning is chiaro, light, and scuro (obscure), dark. It is a perfect technique to use in oil painting to achieve drama of contrasts such as that used by the 17th Century Dutch. Another technique that helps attain this look is impasto oil painting, which is used freely in the main focus of the composition and then to a lesser degree in the shadow areas. It is very effective in all sizes and subject matter such as oil paintings of flowers, still life, and even landscape. Fumed Silica gel is a great medium to use for getting texture in oil painting. It is a combination of linseed oil and silica mixed together which forms a fluffy clear medium. When mixed with paint, the consistency retains its shape and stays put with no slumping.
Dancing Backwards in High Heels to the Balalaika with Marianne Von Werefkin
I chose the artist, Marianne Von Werefkin, as my final series post for the simple fact of her country of origin, Russia. It is a place very mysterious to us here but nonetheless has immense historical intrigue. Dave and I had the great fortune to travel there in 1985 when Glasnost was just beginning, and though we subsequently traveled to many … [Read more...] about Dancing Backwards in High Heels to the Balalaika with Marianne Von Werefkin
More Lessons from Fred and Ginger Part ll with Sophie Fremiet Rude
Looking back over the months of research for both Dancing Backwards in High Heels Parts One and Two, a distinct vocabulary ideology repeatedly pops up. Words and phrases like artistic family, parental encouragement, financial hardship, financial independence, prevail, obstacles, and perseverance among others. There is a common thread running … [Read more...] about More Lessons from Fred and Ginger Part ll with Sophie Fremiet Rude
Dancing Backwards Part ll with the Iconic Artemisia Gentileschi
Baroque artist, Artemisia Gentileschi, born in Rome in 1593, was graced with the good fortune of having a famous painter as her father, Orazio Gentileschi. She received her training from one of the best early in her life and made a name for herself by the age of 15. Her popularity and fame took her from Rome to Florence, Venice, Naples, and then … [Read more...] about Dancing Backwards Part ll with the Iconic Artemisia Gentileschi
Dancing Backwards in High Heels Part ll, More Lessons with Fred and Ginger and Judith Leyster in Haarlem
It's an endless saga, just a different woman in another country. It’s a wonder this artist made a name for herself having to combat such serious obstacles. Judith Leyster is yet another woman artist surrounded by setbacks and intrigue which involved fraudulent actions against her work, deliberate deception and misattribution of her work, and work … [Read more...] about Dancing Backwards in High Heels Part ll, More Lessons with Fred and Ginger and Judith Leyster in Haarlem
Dancing Backwards with Elisabeth Vigee LeBrun: Painter to the Stars and Royalty
Elisabeth Vigee LeBrun lead a life of political intrigue and privilege. She met and mingled closely with royalty achieving the status of court painter to Marie Antoinette. Throughout her career, she would paint more than thirty paintings of the last queen of France and her family. The French Revolution interrupted her stellar reputation and career … [Read more...] about Dancing Backwards with Elisabeth Vigee LeBrun: Painter to the Stars and Royalty