Innholdsfortegnelse for Artist Palette 157 i Artist's Palette

Beryl Crofts proudly maintains she is proof of the theory that people can take up painting in their senior years and still succeed. She believes it is never too late too start, and the quality of her work reinforces this claim. Beryl’s secondary education in a New South Wales country town was abruptly cut short in the middle of World War II when her father was transferred to Sydney. The family faced a daunting challenge in trying to find accommodation and it was decided that Beryl should pursue a course in typing and shorthand. In her youth, Beryl had displayed a real aptitude for art … but it was impossible for her to enrol at the National Art School (known then as ‘East Sydney Tech’) because all the available spaces…

MATERIALS • Painting surface. • Sable brushes, palette knife and hands. • Artists’ oils: Pthalo Blue; Burnt Sienna; Sky Blue; Violet; Trans Oxide; Cerulean Blue; Naples Yellow; Zinc White; Mars Violet; Cobalt Blue; Cadmium Red; Cadmium Orange; Naples Yellow; Titanium White. STEP ONE The first stage of the turbulent sky is done using hands only. Colours: Pthalo Blue, Burnt Sienna, Sky Blue and Violet. STEP TWO More work on the sky. Also, the fore ground begins to take shape, using the knife along with hands. Colours: Trans Oxide, Cerulean Blue, Pthalo Blue, Naples Yellow and Zinc White. STEP THREE At this important stage, a sable brush is used – together with fingers – to give the riders the same passion as that depicted in the sky. Colours: Mars Violet and…

MATERIALS • Canvas. • Artists’ Oil Paints in traditional colours. • Various brushes. STEP ONE In this particular painting, I commenced by applying the sky and cloud formation in a mix of Ultramarine Blue and Titanium White, attempting to obtain a hazy, soft application. I maintained less colour at the lower centre, as this was to become an area of highlight as I progressed. STEP TWO This is where I applied the mountain range at the head of the painting. At this point I used French Ultramarine Blue, maintaining the darkest areas at the left and right extremities and leaving the centre lighter in colour (once again) as it was to later become a point of highlight. This area could be lightened with a touch of Titanium White, but it…

MATERIALS • Arches hot pressed ‘Satine’ 300gsm paper (finished size 28 x 19 cm). • Sable Brushes: Numbers 0, 1 and 2. • Pencils. • Winsor & Newton Watercolours: Cadmium Lemon; Cadmium Yellow; Yellow Ochre; Cadmium Red; Permanent Rose; Cerulean Blue; French Ultramarine. STEP ONE The arrangement and sketch. With seven Beurre Bosc pears, I experimented with several arrangements. I eventually discarded two pieces of fruit for a better, less cluttered composition. Having decided on an arrangement, I secured the placed fruit with Blu a -Tack few dots ® and of very strategically lightly drew an outline of the pears onto my watercolour paper. So that it would reproduce satisfactorily, I made the outline in this demonstration much heavier and darker than usual. STEP TWO The first watercolour wash. Working…

MATERIALS • Watercolour paper. • Acrylic paints: Ultramarine Blue; Cobalt Blue; Cerulean Blue; Winsor Blue; Cobalt Turquoise; Cadmium Yellow; Lemon Yellow; Raw Sienna; Alizarin Crimson; Magenta; Cadmium Red; Burnt Sienna; White. • Various brushes. • A piece of plate glass (painted white on the back) for a palette. STEP ONE Using a reference photograph of the scene, I drew a sketch onto gessoed heavy watercolour paper. STEP TWO Here I established different areas of colour with thin acrylic washes. STEP THREE At this stage I refined important areas including the headland, the sea and the beach. STEP FOUR The finalisation of all areas including the surf and the houses at Terrigal. FINAL STEP This was the stage where I added the Norfolk Island pines and the figures on the beach.…

MATERIALS • Watercolour paper. • Artists’ quality watercolours. • A suitable selection of brushes. STEP ONE After wetting the back of the watercolour paper sheet (to slow the drying down), I painted the sky and then dropped the initial light colours into the trees. STEP TWO While the beginning stage was still wet, I decided to work on the roadway – with the colour being built up in Yellow, Red, and then Cobalt Blue. STEP THREE At this stage I returned to the the background and painted the distant hill. I also introduced the deeper colours of the distant and left mid-distant trees. STEP FOUR Next I began to work on the buildings, working forward; dropping in some local colour. STEP FIVE As the paint on the roadway area had…

Professional artist Ann Russell began her career as a high school art teacher, before switching to commercial art for ten years. Some time after the birth of her children she found herself disenchanted with her work. A decision was made to return to the arena of fine art. “Some years ago, I took up painting seriously again,” Ann relates. “But I spent quite a long time trying to rid myself of the illustrative style I had developed as a commercial artist … a style which gallery managers found less than impressive.” Ann Russell believes that the commercial and fine art worlds are not easily compatible in philosophy, and ‘style’ became a huge issue for her. There seemed to be a very definite right and wrong,” she says. “And mine was…

Sydney painter Liz Cuming describes herself as a ‘mid-career artist’ – she has been creating art and exhibiting her works for more than 30 years. Recently she took a bold career step by giving up teaching to focus on her painting. She is also using her time to market her art; and to conduct a small arts-focused tour operation helping people to explore Central Australia, visiting indigenous communities and their Arts Centres. “My work has long been inspired by landscape,” Liz explains. “To me, experiencing fabulous natural spots is a great battery charge and escape hatch from living in the city and, to date, being tied to a working routine. As much to my own surprise as anyone else’s, recent works have veered away from the overt abstraction of previous…

STEP ONE Using reference photographs of birds in various poses, create a thumbnail sketch of composition. Roughly shade in darker areas to establish tones to work out areas of light and dark. Consider where the Chinese signature stamp will be applied as this should be incorporated into the design. Rule border using 2B pencil and create a 60mm margin around edge of paper. STEP TWO Lightly redraw composition onto watercolour paper. Using Art Spectrum Masking Fluid, paint areas around edges of the birds where there is fine detail such as beaks, legs, spikey feathers – to protect and keep areas white whilst applying the background. Mask out Chinese characters to keep white for later. STEP THREE Using the three porcelain sauce bowls, put a generous squeeze of Cadmium Yellow, Cadmium…

Peter Gasson is more than sentimental about life in the country. Even his studio – housed in historic stables south of Bendigo – is a relic from Australia’s pioneering days when powerful horses worked the land and moved passengers and freight from place to place. Many years ago, teams of horses drawing Cobb & Co coaches were rested at the Axedale stables where Peter now paints wonderful pictures honouring their memory. He loves the history and atmosphere of his surroundings, where he often thinks about the people and the horses that lived and worked at Axedale in the past. The old stables provide a direct link to the most engaging focus of his art. were (from a local quarry). The bluestone walls are now heavy with an amazing array of…

For me, pastel painting is about colour and light. I like to use dashes of bright and unexpected colour to create the luminosity that pastels are renowned for. I tend to build layers – as many as 15 – and use a lot of different saturations of the one colour. STEP ONE Once I have chosen my subject (in this case a seagull), I try various design layouts and colour schemes. I often use the computer to help me quickly alter the colour of the photographs I am working from. Although I often use wildlife in my work, I try to create a mood or use an animal symbolically. In this case, I wanted to create a feeling of peace and serenity and I chose warm, rosy colours to do…

Ray Ellis is definitely a self-made artist – although, in his early development, he sought out art tutors to enhance his technique (in Australia and also while serving overseas as a member of the defence forces). He developed a keen interest in art as a young man, and studied the works of well known artists of his time. Initially, developed a liking for caricature work and cartooning. He developed his cartooning skills convincingly in the military; and later his talents in this area were further advanced while he was a serving member of the Federal police, where he found an abundance of subjects to work with! Ray Ellis became a published cartoonist when he was commissioned to develop a cartoon series for the Australasian Post magazine. The series was entitled…

MATERIALS • Paper: 175gsm Skytone Text Pewter (finished size 26 x 17 cm). • Propelling Pencils: Staedtler 2H and HB, 0.5 leads. The hydrangea in this demonstration drawing by Helene Wild was slowly wilting while she worked. Because she has found that flowers (in most cases) are the first parts of a plant to ‘flop’, she usually completes them before moving on to the leaves. STEP ONE Because it provides an interesting background, I selected a sheet of softly marbled pewter coloured paper for my drawing of a Mophead Hydrangea. Carefully examining the specimen from all angles, I determined its shape would best suit a landscape format. I began by very lightly marking (so lightly that the lines were hardly visible) where the main elements would be positioned – the…