Innholdsfortegnelse for Atists Palette Yearbook i Artist's Palette

Welcome to our 2015 Yearbook issue. Inside these pages are profiles and project demonstrations from five fabulous artists, and we hope that their stories and tutorials will give you a wealth of ideas and inspiration. There’s also plenty happening in the art world, from exhibitions to competitions, and we cover a brilliant selection of these in our Art Beat and What’s On sections. We love to showcase the artistic works of talented Australians, from enthusiastic beginners to accomplished artists, so if you’re keen to be featured in our magazine, please send in your submissions to us. Readers’ letters are always welcome at Artist’s Palette magazine. Please email correspondence to: The Editor, ap@woodlandspublishing.com.au, or post your contributions to Artist’s Palette, PO Box 8035, Glenmore Park, NSW, 2745.…

Born and raised in Bendigo, Victoria, I couldn’t really say if there was a defining moment in my childhood when I decided I wanted to be an artist. What I do remember is that I have always loved to draw. I actually aspired to be a teacher but it seemed that pencils, either colour or graphite, had become an extension of my fingertips and would not break away easily. I often was asked if my talent ran in the family, and can easily remember my dad spending many hours sketching and colouring the props for our primary school musical productions. There may be some innate ability, yet I also think that if an individual has a passion for something, whether it be drawing, baking or singing, that passion fuels improvement.…

Like thousands of other retirees, I started this part of my life with lots of resolutions. I still don’t have a new bathroom or a tidy garden, and the bush that surrounds my home is still a fire-hazard, but I have achieved one aim - to become a competent artisan, not just a dabbler in watercolours. I class myself as a ‘weekend artist’ and enjoy the whole process involved in putting my observations and memories onto paper. Sometimes my travel sketches and paintings amount to a substantial trip journal, which remind me vividly of views and events. Photo albums are okay, but give me a sketch any time. I am particularly interested in the birds I encounter while travelling. Usually they are the only moving thing in the landscape besides…

The brainchild of Brisbane architect John Blackley, Sandgate Art Society is a place to dedicate one night to uninterrupted artistic pursuit; which is not always easy for people who lead busy lives. SAS welcomes novices, intermediate skilled, art teachers, and professional artists... anyone who would like to work in a warm friendly atmosphere and share skills, inspiration and encouragement to continue art practice, on a regular basis. Here are some mini-profile on some of the artists: DAVID CROSS Born and raised in the USA with a Masters Degree in Art, I was a Visual Art Educator for 40 years, lecturing at University and High School levels, primarily in Australia. Throughout my art career I have been asked to curate and judge numerous exhibitions in the Brisbane area as well as…

• For my palette, I use a square plastic cake container with an airtight lid. Inside I use damp paper kitchen towels with baking paper on the top. This keeps your paint moist and will last several days. • I use small water containers such as a lid off the coffee jar. Don’t leave your brushes with the wood in the water as this damages the wood. • Clean your brushes thoroughly after you have finished with them. • You can use anti-bacterial hand wash to clean your hands because it has alcohol in it and will dissolves the acrylic paint. • Look at your paintings in a mirror as it will reverse the image and will make mistakes easier to see. • Enjoy your painting.…

Every year my family spends time at Halls Gap, which is located in the magnificent Grampians National Park, Victoria, and this is where I took the reference photograph I’m using for this demonstration. At the time, I was meandering alongside a massive line of trees which were the end of the grassed area and beginning of the bush. I could see civilisation behind me yet my eyes where focused on these majestic trees which towered above me. I could close my eyes, smell the eucalypt, reach out and touch the rough bark. I took many photographs but I chose this one particularly for the brilliant textures of the bark. MATERIALS • Canson 220gsm white A2 paper • 2H graphite pencil • Eraser • Indenting tools, variety of sizes • Sharpener…

I was born in the USA and lived in Switzerland from the time I was three years old. My parents were both Swiss. For the last few years, I have lived in Australia. An only child, I was given drawing materials to keep me occupied, and thus began my journey into art. My mother had been to art school and she encouraged me to create artistic things. I also had a children’s book with beautiful images and I started copying them. After being hospitalised for a childhood illness, the nurses asked me to draw them Christmas cards. I was kept very busy from morning to night doing these, and their appreciation encouraged me in my art. At school during sewing classes, I would draw pictures for my fellow students while…

• Make every brush stroke count. Don’t fiddle. Be swift and sure and confident. • Create negative spaces. That is leave some whites in strategic places especially to create lines. Rather than painting the line, do it with tone by leaving a gap so that the previous wash shows through and creates the line. • Soften the edges of walls, tops of trees, arms on people, and don’t leave harsh lines. This applies to everything in a painting and is often explained in terms of leaving “lost and found edges”. • Have some quiet areas in a painting. It is not necessary to keep everything busy. The eye needs to stop and work its way around your painting. This is the difference between art and painting. When you buy a…

• I love subjects like landscapes because there is much more leniency with the realism. When you draw or paint a portrait there is little room for error with the proportions and personality because that person should be recognisable to those who you create it for, whether it be yourself or others. But with a landscape there is much more flexibility with the specific subjects, composition, shape, colour and characteristics. • When choosing reference photographs, the more detail you can see the more you can draw • Be aware of copyrighted images and always ask for permission or take your own references! • A black and white photocopy of your reference photograph will help for constantly checking your values • Use a PC, iPad or tablet to zoom in on…

• Spray two or three coats of a workable, waterproof matte fixative onto a good watercolour paper. It makes an ideal support for gouache. It allows me to wipe out and correct frequently. The seal keeps the pigments n top of the paper, so they can be wetted, blotted and layered. • Mix Zinc White gouache with watercolours instead of purchasing a big range of gouache colours. • Fine felt-tipped pens like W&N Water Colour Markers allow me to make fine, clean marks on eyes, beaks and claws. Being watercolours, they blend, mix and dilute. • Attend as many group classes and tutorials as you can. • Make a mark every day. Sketch before sleeping, by the phone, anywhere. • Use digital technology as an aid. iPad’s Pen & Ink…

Before I start, I do a photo collage with the images I have chosen, which have inspired my painting. I listen to repetitive music to get in the rhythm and let that flow through to my brush. This work is on a metal panel. I love to see the shine of the bare metal playing with the grey. The metal is more slippery and solid than canvas. It is also good to recycle and work on different materials. I start by cleaning it with a degreaser then I use a water-soluble oil pencil to draw the important lines. I never do a detailed primary drawing beforehand as I enjoy the element of surprise in my work. MATERIALS • Medium Taklon Langnickel 2-inch brush angular • Catalyst squeegee W – 06…