Innholdsfortegnelse for March/April 2025 i Artists Magazine

“My work is a visual diary, and my paintings are the pages. A title often acts as a posting for the day, such as Forgotten Towel, a title I used for a painting I made at a cottage on Harsens Island, Michigan. The family who’d been vacationing there left a towel behind on the clothesline. It was as if they’d never left.” W. TRUMAN HOSNERARTIST “Sometimes I know the title before I begin, but mostly I find little phrases out in the world and collect them into an ‘Orphan Titles’ document. When a painting needs a title, I go to my list and find the one that clicks.” JULIE BECKARTIST “My approach has tended to be mostly descriptive. If my drawing has two polar bears and a flamingo, I’ll title…

At first glance, Marcos Rey’s figurative drawings look like they’re from another time. It’s impossible to just glance at his work. With exquisitely rendered details and subjects who grab your attention with fierce expressions, Rey’s style evokes century-old, sepia-toned photos with modern compositions and moody mystery. You’re left wondering: Who is this person; what’s her story? It turns out that Rey’s subjects aren’t from the past; they’re conjured from his imagination, sometimes sparked from a childhood memory. “Most of my works portray specific moments in the life of someone who probably only exists in my head,” says Rey, who’s originally from Spain but now lives in Arequipa, Peru. “I try to make the viewer feel drawn to look at the work, to reflect on it or simply observe it, and…

Caspar David Friedrich (1774–1840) is considered one of the most important practitioners of German Romantic art, so it’s a bit surprising that he hasn’t had the exposure in the United States that equals his reputation in Europe. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, in New York City, seeks to remedy that situation by presenting “Caspar David Friedrich: The Soul of Nature,” the first comprehensive exhibition this side of the Atlantic dedicated to one of the most influential landscape painters of the 19th century. The Met’s exhibition, held February 8 through May 11, features more than 75 works arranged chronologically and thematically, including unprecedented loans from the Alte Nationalgalerie of the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin; the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden; and the Hamburger Kunsthalle. These German museums all presented major exhibitions of Friedrich’s…

CITY SLICKERS: LINE & WASH Whether you’re a beginner planning to take the plunge into drawing outdoors or a more experienced urban sketcher wanting to loosen your style and use watercolor in a whole new way, renowned urban landscape artist Neil Whitehead will help you bring your favorite places to life on paper. Packed with inspirational paintings, plein air demonstrations and practical exercises and tips to help you loosen up and let go, Line & Wash in the Urban Landscape (Search Press) is a comprehensive guide to this popular media combination. Of particular interest are Whitehead’s thoughts on how to prioritize continuous line drawing and rhythm over perfection; choose a scene; capture character; and use watercolor to achieve drama, depth and energy in your work. CLASS IS IN SESSION! GET…

In 1963, Karel G. Boon, then director of the Prints and Drawings Department, Rijksmuseum, in Amsterdam, wrote, “In the history of graphic art, it rarely happens that a technique can be completely identified with the genius of a single artist; however, it can be said that etching, in the 17th century, is Rembrandt.” Even during his lifetime, Rembrandt (Dutch, 1606–69) was recognized by his peers and patrons for his innovative techniques as a printmaker. More than 300 prints are now credited to the artist. His first etchings date from around 1625, before he was 20 years old. The prints display a variety of intention and resolution, ranging from highly finished interpretations of Old and New Testament narratives to sketchbook-like sheets comprised of casual portrait and figure studies. Rembrandt experimented freely…

Think of a map. Not a map supplied by Google or Apple or Waze. Not the map delivered by your car’s navigation system, but rather a printed-on-paper map. The kind you used to unfold on the table when exploring a new city, or a pocket map you might have tucked into your backpack when tackling an unfamiliar trail. Have you ever thought about the marks on that paper map? The lines that designate borders and elevation, and delineate cities and towns? Have you ever thought of these as a blueprint for art? That’s exactly how British artist Ed Fairburn’s mind works when he looks at a map, and this has filtered into his approach to art. “I describe my process as topopointillism, a combination of topography and pointillism,” Fairburn explains.…

Last fall, on October 14—a day observed as Columbus Day and Indigenous Peoples Day—I met up with Denver-based artist Tony Ortega at his studio, where he sat surrounded by various pieces of his art—vibrant works created in different media that celebrate Chicano culture. For the artist, the bifurcated holiday feels significant and ironic. He and his wife, artist Sylvia Montera, had their DNA tested through 23andMe. “We found out that I’m 30 percent Indigenous,” Ortega says, “and my wife is part Apache.” Ortega’s ancestral mix also includes forebears from Iberia (Spain or Portugal) and Mayans from Mexico. He discovered he has some Jewish roots as well. “I grew up in a bilingual, bicultural household,” he says. Spanish was the first language for his single mother and for his grandmother, who…

Spring has always been my favorite season for painting. After months of Oregon rain, my garden comes alive with an explosion of color that makes my artist’s heart sing. Every morning brings new inspiration—daffodils trumpeting the arrival of warmer days, tulips standing tall in their jewel-toned glory and cherry blossoms dancing delicately in the breeze. These moments in my garden remind me why I fell in love with painting in the first place. There’s something magical about capturing the way the light plays through petals or how a single stem can tell a story of grace and renewal. Every flower offers countless possibilities for exploration on canvas or paper—from bold splashes of color to the most subtle value shifts. Add to this the sparkle and sheen of a favorite vase…

A magnificent dahlia triumphantly unfurls its petals, resplendent against a dramatic black backdrop. A stem of cheerful alstroemeria blooms pops up from its vase as though singing in a bright-pink chorus. Three statuesque pitcher plants silently reach for the sky, making a dignified statement with their sculptural forms and distinctive red markings. These are just a few of the floral personalities that artist Megan J. Seiter celebrates in her compelling colored-pencil drawings. Whether she chooses a familiar subject such as a rose in a glass vase or a much-less-predictable “floating” orchid with exposed roots (opposite), her precisely rendered still lifes capture each specimen as an individual. Indeed, Seiter thinks of her drawings less as still lifes and more as portraits of flowers. “I really look at each flower instead of…