Mixing colour is really hard!

I'm currently studying Itten's colour theory, "Treatise of Colour", and the practical end of this is to actually mix colours together.

So I am hugely disappointed to discover today that I'm really bad at making colour on the palette. And I was hoping I would be the Mozart of mixing, LOL. Turns out most beginning painters suck at this (although I find my former method of "mixing by layering" seems to work out rather well, but thinking more about it, that seems to be the way a person would successfully mix "dry" colours , e.g., pencil or chalk - and is something I've done a lot so I'm comfortable with it).

I was just thinking I'd be equally good at mixing wet stuff, and am at a loss as to what to do next, now that I see I'm not good at it. At all. I give myself a D+ today for mixing success, LOL.

So my husband, a former theatre student and now a computer whiz, sent me straight to YouTube. And in a matter of minutes, I find that:

a) most if not all beginning painters have this problem (*whew* I'm not alone)
b) there *IS* help for us! :)

I found more than a few books on the subject, and am especially looking forward to Michael Wilcox's book, "Blue and Yellow don't make Green" (great title, eh?).

And tomorrow, I'm going to try and stop applying mathematical formulae to my colour mixing (e.g., 0.5 blue + 0.5 yellow = 1 green) - which obviously ISN'T WORKING!

- til next time...

Abstract Expression: Turtle

I was 5 when I painted this :) inspired, I think, by the turtle we had for a class pet. Or maybe my brother and I had found a box turtle in the back garden. Who knows where I got the idea.

It seems I wasn't remarkably co-ordinated with drawing the shell but none-the-less, I've captured a lot of detail - even his little tail! However I didn't know that turtles have ears, or maybe this one did!

(I don't think I'm the one that wrote my name on this one, though, because I used to spell my name "Kritin", always losing the "s" somewhere). LOL.

Anyway, just thought I'd share a bit of the young artist Kelise.

p.s., I sign my name to my art Kelise, which is a mash-up of my first initial, K and my middle name Elise. I don't sign my surname because that has changed a few times over my life, and so, in terms of identity, the surname doesn't seem that important to assign to my artwork.

The Big Day

... is tomorrow. Only it doesn't feel SO big after all. The way I figure things, the Head of Painting will like my stuff, or he won't. I will go to art school or I won't. I will go to THIS art school, or I won't.

Either way, I'm still an artist. And I will continue to paint as if I really am one, no matter what :)

So let's see, what am I forgetting?

Portfolio... check. Sketchbooks... check. Super positive outlook... check.

Now all I have to do is get some sleep, get up tomorrow, go to the gym (which ALWAYS puts me in a zen-like state!), get dressed, and do this interview thing at 10:45 AM.

I can't WAIT, I'm so excited!

more still life...

Here is the result of my latest assignment from my tutor... and no, still life is definitely NOT my favorite. I suppose, though, this is necessary exercise so I can get lots more practice applying paint to canvas.

So Cezanne I am not, that much is obvious. LOL.

I feel the end result is fairly successful. However, when I study the final painting carefully, when I have a good look, it’s usually only then that I notice the painting seems to be slightly distorted (e.g., one or more of the objects is slightly askew in some way). Likely causes are: my drawing wasn’t as accurate to begin with, perhaps the lighting changed, or perhaps when I got up for tea, I sat down again in a slightly different spot.

When I think about it, quite a lot of my drawings and paintings seem to have this “slightly awkward” quality, so I’m not sure if it can be helped or even if I want to start obsessing over this lack of perfection. I’m kind of awkward as a person so maybe it’s just my personality coming out, and as such, I try not to worry too much about it. (Knowing myself, I suspect trying to be more “perfect” will result in my work losing some of its character.) Besides, past attempts at perfection have only resulted in paper that looks somewhat chewed up. :)

At some point, I've learned to recognise when I've lost interest or when I'm trying too hard, which is exactly the point that the painting necessarily is finished, and a mere few strokes away from destruction.

And here's another one for my portfolio (maybe!)

'Til next time...

pumps get revenge...

During the hunt for suitable portfolio material, I found this little drawing which still amuses me...

(This is my version of a "still life" because fruit and vegetables aren't that interesting... but party girl shoes stomping the life out of a Hoover is hilarious!)

pumps get revenge (2001) - 14 x 19 inches

The general theme, one could say, is one of, who the hell wants to do housework when there is something way more fun to do! At any rate, I don't know if it will be included in the portfolio collection but thought I'd share none the less..

Bags of nerves again

*double gulp!* I've been invited for my first interview at art school, next Wednesday. Having a bit of a freak-out because:

A. I have done a lot of work but not too much of it is very recent. And a lot of work is now in other people's homes. In America. Where I can't get to it :) (isn't that a good problem to have, I suppose?)

B. This is the first art school interview I've ever had (College of Art in ISU didn't ask for interviews, and made admissions solely on portfolio and written statement). So I'm not sure what exactly to expect, what to bring, how to bring it... (large canvases seem out of the question on London public transport).

C. Art is *so* subjective, and if my work isn't "en vogue" at the moment, then I might well be screwed...

But 'nuff about that, no more negative thoughts. In any case, this interview will be an interesting experience and I'm sure I'll learn lots - all in plenty of time for the NEXT interview!

OMG, what will I wear????

Tuscany

I finished the first painting of an intended series, with the working name "Tuscany". Hopefully, these won't be seen as trite, but rather as charming little paintings to simply enjoy, even if there's not a great meaning behind them. (There's no law, anyway, that says all art has to MEAN something, right?)

As I haven't painted a great many pictures, I'm using these as an excuse to practice mixing colours and forming simple compositions.

And as for meaning, well, these paintings remind me of a lovely anniversary holiday in Tuscany.

never throw away an old sketchbook

I found this sketch in one of my old sketchbooks... it's a drawing from Georges Seurat's charcoal drawing "The Black Knot" - 1882. I think I did this 2000 or 2001, working on a tonal exercise... and thought it was a cool drawing, which I may use as a basis for a new painting or collage (perhaps in colour to see what happens). I just love the stark contrast of the black shadows against the white back-lighting, suggesting a 3-D form of the lady in a very minimalistic or even, economical, way.

It doesn't hurt that I'm all about Victorian/Edwardian fashion at the moment, trying to come up with a detailed "steampunk" outfit for a clubbing night out soon... LOL... maybe that's why I like this drawing so much...

Painting from Collage

(Top row: collage, bottom row: acrylic on canvas)

Again I struggle with mixing colour (indeed, the whole point of this exercise!) It seems that I have the basic hue more-or-less correct, but getting just the right tone/shade eludes me... most things are just a little too light or a little too dark...

In the few paintings I have done, I tend to layer colours until I am satisfied. This tends to give the effect that the painting is lit from behind, or maybe that light is shining through. Ultimately, layering colours gives a multi-dimensional effect, which is how I see colour anyway (colour is never just ONE, imho) When I use one layer of colours as in the paintings above, to me, they seem a bit... well... flat. A bit lifeless.

Kind of funny, that result, because the collage seems to have a bit more "life" than the paintings, when I might expect the opposite! After all, a collage is just snipped up bits of paper borrowed from an old pile of greeting cards...

All in all I prefer the collages to the paintings, though I'm not sure exactly why; they just seem "right" where the paintings seem a bit... what's the word... forced? Ugly? And another problem with the whole set is that the collages are A3, and the paintings are U.S. 12" x 16" pre-fab canvas sheets... something I hadn't considered until I was drawing the composition on the canvas (there's a slight distortion in the paintings that I didn't really compensate for, when I should've "trimmed" the composition to fit the canvas...)

So, yeah, I probably won't include these in my portfolio! Because one might think these are the first paintings I've ever done in my life. LOL.

(p.s., though I do enjoy collage, I really don't enjoy landscapes or other paintings with no people in them, maybe that's why this project wasn't THAT much fun in the end.)