Innholdsfortegnelse for April-May 2021/ No. 138 i International Artist

Welcome to International Artist’s April/May issue! We are happy to announce our new website will be launching in conjunction with this edition. The updated website will have many new features for you, including our Art Workshop Guide available in a new format with each entry having images, links and rotating information about upcoming classes. As a subscriber, you will be able to view articles on the website and they will be separated by genre. This allows you to search through the articles and find just what you’re looking for. It is the print magazine with search capabilities. Our Art Challenge competitions are continuing to be a big draw for artists, and on our new website we will be featuring the artwork from the three prize-winners as well as the finalists.…

Second Prize is a two-page editorial feature in American Art Collector magazine Second Prize My Inspiration My daughter took a gap year before University and then COVID hit us all. She got a job as a caregiver in a local elderly peoples’ home during the first wave and then contracted the virus and had high temperatures. Her little dog would not leave her side and every time we took her out, she managed to sneak back in. I was so happy when the fever broke, and I could see she was on the way to recovery—this inspired me to paint this piece, and the joy of her being well, the happiness as the fear was passing, has inspired me to paint similar works. I love to paint the shadows on…

Finalist My Inspiration I believe there are two things worth doing in life—helping others and creating beauty. When I get to work on a project that celebrates a person who does so much for others and at the same time creates beauty themselves—well, the work of painting becomes almost effortless. Sticky Steve Morrison exemplified both and was the inspiration for this project. Sticky is a musician, beekeeper and humanitarian, but it was his work for the Nature Conservancy in protecting Florida lands that moved me; that and the scholarship he founded in his deceased wife’s name to inspire young women to develop music skills and self-esteem. When a friend showed me her watercolor of Steve that was to be part of a celebration called the Sticky Steve Exhibit, I said,…

Finalist My Inspiration I have loved mythological and Arthurian literature since I was young. My inspiration is film, the pre-Raphaelite period and the poetry of Tennyson. In my visual story, my female goddess figure is Eve. She has survived for centuries and now resurfaces in the 21st century holding a bitten apple, offering it to the male viewers. This is the first in my series Femme Fatale, so it had to express empowerment of strong women via allegory, myth and hope in contemporary society. Eve is non-redemptive for eating the forbidden fruit. She was innocent as she was tricked by the serpent. She stands bold and daring in the modern world. My Design Strategy My choice of model runs Art629 Gallery and is also an artist. She came to my…

FULL COLOR DIGITAL PRINT-OUTS Use the Official Entry Form over the page ONLINE Visit our website to upload digital files of the images you want to enter and pay for them using our secure server. www.internationalartist.com To upload your entries you need to prepare your image files to be at least 400 pixels at the shortest edge. Once you are in the Official Online Entry page simply select which challenge you wish to enter then follow the prompts and finally pay the entry fee via our secure server. There you can also see other entries received along with past winners of our competitions. HINTS FOR PHOTOGRAPHING YOUR ARTWORK Set your camera to the highest quality available. Shoot your paintings dead square on and fill the frame as much as possible.…

Alexandra Tyng First Place Commissioned Portrait Into the Light, oil on linen, 32 x 24" INSPIRATION Alan Gregory commissioned this portrait as a gift to his grandchildren. Alan led a high profile, rollercoaster life as a developer for many years. When he retired, he transitioned into a more introspective phase of life. He wanted the portrait to reflect the life-changing self-improvement campaign of his most recent 20 years of life; he called the improvement “coming out of the darkness and into the light.” PROCESS One of Alan’s requests was for a simple, dark background. I usually compose the figure and background as an integrated whole, but this portrait would be different in that the figure would be not only the sole conveyor of the theme, but also the personality and…

Continued growth comes from both accurate observation and creative experiment. There is a great deal of learning from painting outdoors that informs my studio work, but the reverse is also true. For me, painting in plein air is not simply a one-directional path leading to a larger studio painting of the same scene. As a painter of a wide range of subjects, I find that what nature shows me in the field can serve as prompts, often feeding more creativity indoors. The controlled environment of a studio frees me to take on different challenges, experiment with materials, be spontaneous or make a concrete plan, push boundaries and explore totally new ideas. Often Mother Nature’s database in my brain spills out in the most surprising of ways. When I return to…

I strongly believe that hyperrealism is about understanding colors and values rather than painting a lot of details. Most of my painting process is focused on creating a base layer that has all of the most important visual elements and works as a coherent representation of my reference images. The more accurate you are in matching values and mixing colors, the less details you will need to make your painting look very realistic. I try to cover the entire canvas as soon as possible since the white of the canvas can be distracting and make it more difficult to match colors. Sometimes I use a uniform wash as my base layer if my reference photo is dominated by one particular color. For example, if I am painting a tiger portrait…

No matter what medium we use, the ability to accurately mix colors is extremely important. Many students struggle at first, but there are a few points that will make the process of mixing and matching color much easier. First, we will look at some color definitions to help us understand the way color works, then we will examine a number of points and techniques to quickly make you an expert color mixer. COLOR WHEEL A color wheel is a very handy tool. The colors around the outside ring are saturated primary colors (red, yellow and blue). Saturated secondary colors which are mixtures of adjacent primaries (orange, green and violet) and six saturated tertiary colors which sit between the primary and secondaries. Mixing between any of the complementary pairs (any colors…

In every issue of International Artist we will feature a Painting Workshop from one of New Zealand’s best artists. It’s not often (hasn’t happened yet) that someone asks me in a workshop how to really tighten up their painting style. With my students at least, the goal always seems to be to loosen up, to give more expression and freedom to their work. The trouble is, if you head straight for expressive painting without first learning the basics of seeing, drawing and painting, yes you’ll get an expressive painting but it will be lacking in realism. How happy you are with the result will depend upon what style you want to achieve. When I started painting it was with tiny brushes and many painstaking hours trying to paint things as…

Two Words: Value Design Here are two words that if fully understood and used, take artists to inspiring levels of art: value and design. This idea is explored within chapter four of Harley Brown’s Eternal Truths For Every Artist. During my life in art, the great artists I’ve known continued to bring them up. It didn’t take long for me to really understand what value and design meant. Look at any remarkable work of art and we see how these two factors bring such masterpieces. A well done drawing or painting needs to be brought together with the strong elements of design and value. Major artists past and present have these same aesthetic goals going through their minds while painting. For Instance While proceeding on a piece, my mind works…

One of my favorite things about International Artist magazine is sharing artwork from talented artists worldwide. It shows that art has no boundaries, and people can connect because of beauty and shared passion. Those contributing are eager to provide knowledge, and those reading are open to learning new techniques or being inspired by how other artists approach their work. Moving to the position of executive editor, my goal is to continue to grow the magazine and expand on our long-established format. I am excited to introduce Alyssa M. Tidwell as the editor of International Artist. Alyssa has been with International Artist Publishing for three years and has shown tremendous talent in working with artists and bringing their stories alive in the pages of all our publications. In her role, Alyssa…

Finalist My Inspiration This painting was part of a local initiative “Artists Painting Artists” and having the chance to paint the human face always excites me. Georgia herself is an inspiration. A single mother, visual artist and an expressive arts therapist, she is part of my local arts scene. After a trip to New York, amongst other works, I was captivated by the portrait Jean-Léon Gérôme completed (Bashi-Bazouk, 1869) of a man, an irregular “headless” mercenary who fought under the Ottoman Empire. I felt what I really loved were the rich, vibrant colors and after conferring with Georgia, this is our modern, feminine, non-colonial revision. My Design Strategy I have been fortunate in my art instruction and opportunities and have spent many years improving my portrait skills, drawing and painting…

Finalist My Inspiration I love painting people. My joy is to not only capture a person’s likeness, but more importantly their essence. An entire story can be told simply from an expression, gesture or attire. However, the global pandemic presented a problem in finding a model willing to pose for me. After a long struggle of thinking what to paint, I found the solution staring at me in my bathroom mirror. I realized I could just paint myself. I was moved by the challenge to self-reflect and discover. With quarantine in full swing, I had nothing but time to explore. Perhaps something about myself would be revealed during this strange time. My Design Strategy While I experimented with a range of various poses, I became drawn to the profile. There…

Finalist My Inspiration I am inspired by human nature because the psychological characteristics, feelings and behavioral patterns that we all share as human beings are infinitely complex and mysteriously beautiful. My visual stimuli has always been drawings, paintings and sculpture by past and present masters of the art of the nude. My Design Strategy My design strategy begins with developing a themed series of nudes. Callisto is the second allegorical figure in my painting series honoring all art models essential to figurative artists who draw, paint and/or sculpt the human form. She, like the other figures in this series, is named after a heavenly body in the universe. Callisto is one of the most intriguing moons of all orbiting Jupiter. Each painting has an allegorical message representing one of the…

ENTER OUR NEW ART COMPETITION CHALLENGE No. 124 Landscapes See your work published in International Artist magazine and also receive a 4-page Editorial Feature in American Art Collector, the prestigious magazine read by collectors and galleries looking for new art work in the world’s biggest art market. Winners and Finalists in our competitions don’t just win awards to hang on their walls. The real value of entering and being one of the winners is that your work will not only be seen by hundreds of thousands of readers worldwide but also by leading galleries and collectors in America, the biggest art market of all. Our Grand Prize Winners receive a 2-page spread in International Artist magazine and a 4-page Editorial Feature in American Art Collector. Publicity at this level is…

Not all galleries will cooperate with your agent, and the best galleries serve as agents for their artists. In this situation it is likely worth asking the gallery to be your agent too. If that means you have more than one agent then no problem, but you will need to make sure the demarcation lines are clear. There should be no financial link between your agent and the gallery. A gallery may not do their normal job when an agent is involved. When you hire a space there is less chance of demarcation problems. What buying influences are there? Having a mentor.…

In 1998, I received a phone call from my friend and mentor, Everett Raymond Kinstler. Days before, he had attended a meeting in New York City with Gordon Wetmore, Ed Jonas, Tom Donahue, Christine Egnoski, Bill Draper, Daniel Greene, Burt Silverman and Stephen Doherty. They were forming a new society of artists, a not-for-profit organization that focused on a singular mission: to foster and enhance educational opportunities for artists, where they may learn, grow and connect called the Portrait Society of America (PSoA), and he wanted me to join. I was a 29-year-old artist, excited by the idea that a group of dedicated professionals were forming a community committed to sharing their knowledge and experience with each other. I joined the following year and attended my first conference as a…

When I was growing up in South Carolina, my father had an art gallery where he principally dealt in antique paintings, much of it being oil paintings from the 19th and early 20th century. He employed an art conservator and offered very fine picture framing services as well. I spent much of my free time and summers working there and gaining an exposure to the art business which, it turns out, ended up being very instrumental in my formation as an artist and as a portraitist. The presentation of our gallery paintings was always of utmost concern. It was important that they were clean, varnished and appropriately framed. And it was not just a priority for the paintings that we owned and represented for sale, but also for many of…

It is hard to argue that oil painting is an easy technique. During the painting process as we’re continuously fueled by inspiration, we artists have to manage a number of drawing and painting skills, plus consider the slow drying period of the paint. Once we approach an idea of painting something, our sketchbook and pencil become our best friends. Idea and aesthetic drive get tested on paper as an arrangement of shapes and values. It is a conversion of real scenery into an abstraction. Throw hints of texture in here and there, define values for major shapes, place this all into a rectangle, and we’ve got a rough blueprint of a finished artwork. Sketching and drawing are important steps on our way to a successful painting. Then comes the moment…

Movement and mood are at the core of my artistic style. I merge both abstract and traditional painting in a loose painterly way to create an energetic and impactful artwork. My painting philosophy is to interpret reality and not copy it. I paint quickly with large gestural strokes free of preconceived logical steps, infusing passion and excitement. A fleeting moment is captured and transformed by means of rules and omissions, acceptance and refusal, luring the viewer round and around in circles. The brushstrokes are moving, pushing, emerging and overwhelming, but never still and quiet. Sometimes I jokingly call my approach “create-destroy-dcreate” for this is exactly how I approach my work—a brushstroke is laid down on the paper and then part is taken away, followed by a new one in an…

Key Discovery: Color Maps A color map is a very quick, small abstract painting that consists of just a few color spots of approximately the right size and placement. Use the color map to: Captureyour first impression of a scene so you do not lose sight of what attracted you to it. Capturethe exact relationship between the planes of the light and shade. This is the most critical color relationship in any painting. Workout which gray will best show off your main color accent. Helpyou work out a major color strategy quickly. Materials Use any heavy drawing paper such as Strathmore 400-I medium 80lb (130 gm) white drawing paper. I do not gesso the paper. The advantage of regular, thick paper is that the paint sinks in and dries quickly.…

Here’s something you might think strange. When I saw this work recently, I thought, “Hey, that’s a terrific portrait. I’d like to know who’s the artist.” Well, I looked down for the name and what did I find…my name. I felt both surprised and very happy I did that particular piece. Its origin was revealed. It’s a pastel I did 30 years ago when living in Tucson, Arizona. It’s a portrait of longtime artist friend, Fran Odum. Back then my art friends and I would often get together for painting sessions. One particular day, Fran decided she would model. A few weeks ago, Fran sent me an image of it. It looked interesting enough I wanted to share this story and details with you. Here’s what I put into this…

Grand Prize Pascal Piro Grand Prize is a four-page editorial feature in American Art Collector magazine Infinite Complexity Born in 1963, French artist Pascal Piro’s artistic vocation began not soon afterward, winning a drawing award at the age of 6 and taking lessons until 1983. The self-described academic post surrealist says that his “style is a trait of my personality at a given moment. Each of its periods can be translated into an experience; my work has developed over time and through various encounters. The unique story of everyone. Your experience feeds the need to express yourself, painting being only a great vector.” The term “post,” he says, refers to the idea of distinguishing between what one wants to freeze in the past, and what is already happening in the…

Finalist My Inspiration I was inspired by a high school student playing the role of Count Dracula from the fictional Gothic novel Dracula by Irish author Bram Stoker. I saw him perform the role in school rehearsals through a period of nine weeks. There is a moment in the play where he hesitates before he takes revenge and bites Mina Harker, the play’s protagonist. That moment signifies anger, tenderness, revenge, solace, adoration and reluctance before dooming her to become a vampire. These are the feelings he experiences before falling in love with her. My Design Strategy The gaze against the dark background was strategically designed so the viewer looks at the dramatic lighting on the face, then at the red vest symbolizing dominance, anger, passion, power and danger. The black…

Finalist My Inspiration Woman in Red is inspired in technique by the Old Masters, and in concept by romantic literature. To think that Old World artists with limited tools achieved a level of technique unsurpassed to this day strikes a chord with me. This morphing quality of paint, where simple shapes of color combine into what seems to be a living breathing thing, is where I find my own spark in front of the easel. Conceptually, the painting is influenced by The Scarlet Letter, the 19th-century novel dealing with themes of identity, independence and the human condition. My Design Strategy My former art teacher Barbara Crawford used to say that “art should entertain the eyes, the mind and the heart.” I always think of that when designing a painting. My…

Vincent Miller, founder of International Artist magazine, is our Chief Judge for our challenges. He has judged art for more than 40 years worldwide, including in the USA, Singapore, Australia, Canada and the U.K., to name just a few countries. In addition, he is an artist and sculptor himself. Mr. Miller works with many of the greatest living artists and art schools. He supports great art by judging our challenge program. If your art is selected you are among the elite in the world to be selected by Vincent Miller. We welcome you to submit your entries for the next challenge judging.…

In February 2005, the Portrait Society’s founding chair Gordon Wetmore phoned artist Joseph Daily to tell him of the good news that his painting, Ben, was juried into the International Portrait Competition, the annual exhibition and competition focused solely on fine art portraiture. Unable to reach him, Gordon had to leave a message, because Joseph was out at his day job painting houses. Raised by two freelance illustrators, Joseph graduated from the School of Visual Arts in NYC, but like a lot of artists he struggled financially. He soon resorted to a job painting houses to pay the bills, and with his last bit of spare time and money, he painted a full-length portrait of his soon to be father-in-law, Ben. It was this painting that won Joseph the Best…

From the tough, wizened skin of the elephant to the fluffy down of a newly hatched emperor penguin, animals are as diverse in their textural qualities as they are in appearance and behavior. The feathers of a hummingbird are soft and delicate, while the scales on a West African green mamba are vivid and glistening—and the fur of a snow leopard looks as plush as the snow on which it prowls. Capturing the likeness of any beast undoubtedly comes down to more than the mere depictions of these surface-level features, but nonetheless, observing the feathers on a painting of a cactus wren that looks exactly like a cactus wren, or a rattlesnake in which every scale and scute has realistic depth and form—well that is just cool. Nine exceptional wildlife…

As a lifelong multidisciplinary artist, I have had many artistic interests over the years, but it was not until I began studying at the Academy of Realist Art in Toronto in 2002 that I realized my passion for academic drawing and painting. I spent several years developing my skills in this area never thinking I would someday become an abstract painter. At the time I did not appreciate abstract work and dismissed it as a less than perfect modality employed by artists for whom drawing proficiency was lacking. My opinion changed, however, when I opened a gallery of my own and took the time to educate myself in the area of abstract art and abstract expressionism. In the beginning I struggled somewhat as I had no idea where I was…

For such a small geographic area, the United Kingdom offers a wonderful array of opportunities for the landscape painter—rugged heathland, rolling downlands, restful pastures and a remarkable coastline. Th e cool northern light that is with us for most of the year shines a soft light onto these landscapes, making them ideal subjects for watercolor. While many experts of the medium prefer painting contre-jour scenes, the time of day that I like to be in the landscape is near dusk or dawn, when strong directional light reveals the landscape’s shape and texture. Working with a limited palette of trusted colors, watercolor enables me to make an immediate response to the landscape around me, capturing the subtle and delicate changes in hue. Th e inspiration from being outdoors, observing and experience…

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Visit www.internationalartist.com and click on the Virtual Art Academy® button to access instant downloads needed to master the art of painting. The Virtual Art Academy® Apprentice Program A structured four-year program of 192 lessons that will help you systematically build up your foundational skills from the ground up to help you master painting. A key element of this program is series of 350+ assignments specially structured to help you build your skills, and an Online Campus where you can meet other students from all over the world to share your artistic journey, and support you along the way. Each lesson includes an overview of the principle or technique, one or more short videos to demonstrate the skill you are learning, many examples of how to do it, and one or…

Meet Tasha. I portrayed her from an old photograph but mostly my memory. Tasha took care of my parents’ house and the family. This was in Russia, I was in my late teens and going to art college. Seeing Tasha here hits me deeply; she was my first love. And those of you who have followed my history know I’ve had my loves. I didn’t think she knew my feelings towards her until her final day with us. She said goodbye to the family and then came over to me and said, “I know how you feel towards me. Never forget this: I will miss you more than you’ll know.” While doing this portrait as often happens, my hand moved within this work guided by spirit and memory. I never…