Innholdsfortegnelse for No 169 i Artist's Palette

I have been drawing since I was a child, although many thought it was a waste of time and energy; and that I could divert my skills into a more productive direction. I have never given up on my dream to paint, and perhaps one day have my own studio. I never really started to paint until I was at high school and my arts teacher encouraged me to pursue my dream. She was a very inspirational woman who helped me tremendously with figure work and portraits. After high school, I entered the Melbourne Art Institute, via correspondence. I passed the entrance exam with Honours. I studied composition, market advertising, figures, portraits and book illustration. I have also had tuition with landscape artist Tom McGeoun, who was a great believer…

I have always had a special interest in natural history – plants, animals and their landscapes – both artistically and scientifically. I grew up in Oxford where I took an Honours degree in Natural Science (Zoology). It was not very useful in terms of earning a living, but the knowledge has been a continuing source of fascination and insight into the non-human world and a source of inspiration for my painting. I later spent some years in the Solomon Islands. At that time it really was paradise: Exquisitely beautiful with unspoiled rainforested mountains; magnificent coral reefs; fascinating bird life; traditional villages; friendly (and apparently happy) people. I drew and painted passionately, importing all my materials from overseas; and I exhibited regularly. I met my husband Mike there. We returned to…

Ampersand Claybord is a Masonite board which is covered with white Kaolin clay and this is then covered with India Ink. Scratch art is a form of etching which is done by scratching lines and dots with the white areas being achieved by removing the black ink to show the white clay underneath; and for very dark shading, the black is left ‘as is’. There are a number of tools that can be used for scratching. I have used a craft knife that has a number of different blades (which can be purchased from the ‘dollar’ stores). Animals with fur and hair are ideal subjects for scratch art; although portraits and still lifes can also be done. Scratch art is very unforgiving if a mistake is made during the progress…

STEP ONE This work ‘Nature’s Joy’ combines all I feel passionate about … the ocean’s powerful waves, whales and dolphins in the marine environment; tied in with the cosmos and Nature with an Art Nouveau layout. First, I work out and sketch details onto sections of clear paper. This allows me to move elements around as I go, until I am happy with layout and composition. I use photographs from a variety of sources for reference. STEP TWO Once the composition is worked out to a stage I am happy with, I transfer the image to canvas board by retracing the entire design on the reverse side with a 5B lead pencil. I then redraw right-side-up, transferring the design to canvas. Then I go in and highlight light and dark…

Sarajane Hinton was born at Kyabram in Victoria but she grew up in a small town on the mid north coast of New South Wales. After completing her schooling, she moved to Newcastle to earn a Bachelor of Design (Visual Communication) at the University of Newcastle. After she completed her university course, she moved with her husband to Bourke … where they met local gallery owner Jenny Greentree. “Jenny encouraged me to continue with my art,” says Sarajane. “Now, after spending three years exploring the area around Bourke, we have moved again to live at Yamba on the New South Wales north coast.” This pastellist is enthusiastic about animals and wildlife which she loves to use as subjects in her work. She loves to capture unique details of her subjects,…

Born in Queensland, Marcia Rea commenced painting full-time during 1983. She designed neon signs after leaving school, before working as an architectural model maker. She was very interested in art from early childhood, so the natural decision to undertake academic training in landscape and portraiture work led her into an enjoyable career. Marcia studied landscapes from 1983 to 1987 with Allan Fitzell; and portraiture from 1983 to 1989 with Joshua Smith and Yve Close. This lady is now talented in many areas. Her successful works include landscapes, portraits, interiors and figure compositions. She taught art from 1987 to 1997 and presently conducts tutorials and workshops. She enjoys using many mediums including oils, watercolours, pastels, pen and ink, and charcoal. She is a very versatile artist who favours many subjects including…

THE PASTELS I keep my ‘outdoor’ set in a cheap plastic fisherman’s box – the kind with compartments used to keep hooks and lures. I pack the pastels in with cotton wool or rice, so the rougher the journey, the cleaner they get. I use all kinds from the softest Unison, Schmincke, Sennelier, Art Spectrum, Winsor & Newton, to the relatively hard Rembrandt, Conte sticks and pastel pencils, and now the American Pan Pastels. The more colours the better. I never have enough. In this painting I used a wide range of colours, hardnesses and makes of pastels – but the indispensable ones were: Art Spectrum Flinders Red Violet and Flinders Blue Violet; Schmincke Dark Green and Grey Green; Red, Green, Purple and Black Pan Pastels; Rembrandt, W&N and Unison…

• I use 8-10 ounce cotton duck canvas (unprimed). • The canvas is stretched tightly over the wooden stretchers and is first treated with Matisse Polymer Gloss Varnish and Anti-Mould Solution. • I use Matisse Impasto Medium as a further base for my canvas. Both the mediums dry ‘clear’ or transparent rather than opaque like a white primer would. This ensures the paint colours remain very bright, like a painting on a glassy surface. Working on a white primed surface absorbs the brightness of the natural pigments and tends to give a more ‘pastel’ effect.…

Although I have lived in Queensland for most of my life, I was born in Wagga Wagga where my father was in the Air Force. As children, my brother and I both loved to draw and ‘colour in’. I remember my mother keeping the plain white butchers’ paper so that we could use it for drawing. She also kept the inside wrapping paper from biscuits for us to use as tracing paper. I have always been interested in art, as far back as I can remember. At the age of seven, at primary school, I won a first place for Art and Craft (my brother excelled at Technical Drawing). Some years later with encouragement from my mother who was my greatest supporter, I entered an oil painting in a YWCA…