WatercolorArtist_August2018 [26]

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THE WORLD IS YOUR STUDIO (BRING A SKETCHBOOK!) ARTISTSNETWORK.COM

on the The Best Tips for Making Art Wherever You Wander A PAINTING PLAYDATE

Get Inspired at a Weekend Art Retreat

+

Easy Solutions for 9 Pesky Painting Problems

25th Anniversary 1993-2018

AUGUST 2018

NEW FROM

STRATHMORE

HEAVYWEIGHT MIXED MEDIA NEW 500 Series Heavyweight Mixed Media paper is internally sized for wet media and has a durable vellum finish for drawing techniques. It is excellent for watercolor, gouache, acrylic, graphite, pen and ink, colored pencil, marker, pastel, and collage. • extra heavyweight • 3-ply cotton surface • 350 lb./570 gsm

• suitable for wet and dry media • acid free • lignin free

TONED BLUE MIXED MEDIA NEW 400 Series Toned Blue Mixed Media paper is specifically created for use with light and dark media. It also combines the characteristics of a watercolor paper and the finish of a drawing sheet, creating a paper that performs for all wet & dry media. TONED MIXED MEDIA PAPERS AVAILABLE IN:

Toned Blue

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Toned Tan

• 100% recycled/ 30% PCW • 184 lb./300 gsm • acid free

Strathmore Artist Papers™ A division of Pacon Corporation

www.strathmoreartist.com

® and ™ used under license from Mohawk Fine Papers Inc. 2018

AUGUST 2018

25 th Anniversary 1993-2018

Features

26 THE WORLD IS YOUR STUDIO Meet three artists—Suhita Shirodkar, Stephen Harby and Hazel Soan—who enhance their love of travel by always having paint and brush at the ready. BY ANNE HEVENER

34 ZEN OF TRAVELING WITH ART SUPPLIES This strategy will simplify your next plein air painting trip. THOMAS W SCHALLER

38 THE POWER OF SUGGESTION Steve Griggs’ evocative landscapes allow viewers to forge a personal connection.

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BY JOHN A. PARKS

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BRIGHT IDEAS

TAKING ON THE CITY

USE YOUR WORDS

A trio of art-loving friends gets lasting inspiration from a weekend art retreat.

For artist Ingrid E. Albrecht, a distinctive perspective is key to painting expressive cityscapes.

Record your travel adventures in words and pictures, using practical tips for keeping an illustrated art journal.

BY MARIA SEDA-REEDER

BY BRENDA SWENSON

BY MARY ANN MOSS

ArtistsNetwork.com

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AUGUST 2018 Columns 4 EDITOR’S NOTE There’s power in travel, and it can impact your art.

6 HAPPENINGS Gouache miniatures take flight, plus other surprises. BY MCKENZIE GRAHAM

10 CREATIVITY WORKSHOP To create eye-catching interest, establish an area of dominance in your painting. BY ERIC WIEGARDT

16 ANATOMY OF A PAINTING Revel in the beauty of the Italian countryside in this George Inness watercolor. BY JERRY N. WEISS

20 WATERCOLOR ESSENTIALS Rescue your watercolors with these quick-and-easy solutions to nine common painting aggravations. BY BIRGIT O'CONNOR

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64 BURNING QUESTION Is your must-paint-there spot a dream location? Or a familiar place that still calls? COMPILED BY ANNE HEVENER

72 OPEN BOOK Inspire your next sketching session by revisiting some favorite “old friends” from your art toolkit. BY CATHY JOHNSON

Get Social

ON THE COVER The World Is Your Studio (Bring a Sketchbook!) 26 Art on the Road 34, 56 Get Inspired at a Weekend Art Retreat 46 Easy Solutions to 9 Pesky Painting Problems 20 Fairmont Road, Ohio (watercolor on paper, 24x18) by Thomas W Schaller

@ARTISTSNETWORK Watercolor Artist (ISSN 1941-5451) is published six times a year in February, April, June, August, October and December by F+W Media, Inc., 10151 Carver Road, Suite 300, Blue Ash OH 45242; tel: 513/5312222. Single copies: $7.99. Subscription rates: one year $21.97. Canadian subscriptions add $12 per year postal surcharge. Foreign subscriptions add $18 per year postal charge, and remit in U.S. funds. Watercolor Artist will not be responsible for unsolicited manuscripts, photographs or artwork. Only submissions with a self-addressed, stamped envelope will be returned. Volume 26, No. 4. Periodicals postage paid at Blue Ash, OH, and additional mailing offices. Postmaster: Send all address changes to Watercolor Artist, P.O. Box 421751, Palm Coast, FL 32142-1751. F+W Media, Inc. Back issues are available at northlightshop.com or by calling 855/842-5267. GST R122594716. Canada Publications Mail Agreement No. 40025316. Canadian return address: 2835 Kew Drive, Windsor, ON N8T 3B7.

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Watercolor artist | AUGUST 2018

Editor’s Note

Watercolor ARTISTSNETWORK.COM

t

he power of travel has been extolled throughout the ages. And the connection between travel and art is also age-old. Even at a time when long-distance travel was left primarily to the world’s high sea adventurers, there were artists on board to capture the experience. Take British explorer Captain James Cook, for example, who charted the Paciic Ocean in the 1770s. hanks to the eforts of artists who sailed with him, Cook returned from his voyages in the South Seas with illustrated documentation of the animals and plants that he and his crew had encountered. his desire not only to go on a journey, but to document it with art is alive and well today. In this issue, we celebrate this passion. On page 26, you’ll meet three artists whose sketching and painting is completely intertwined with travel. heir watercolor sketches and paintings draw inspiration from—among many other things—elephants in Kenya, architecture in Rome, and the hustle and bustle of a New York City street. On page 56, artist Brenda Swenson demonstrates the additional pleasure of adding words to her art journals and, in this way, capturing not just a visual record but also the sounds, tastes and smells of a particular moment and place. Each of these artists talks about his or her favorite tools to carry along for these purposes. Plus, you’ll ind, on page 34, artist homas W Schaller’s detailed “pack smart” guide for watercolor painting on-the-go. Carefully honed from years of plein air experience, his lean, less-is-more toolkit will help you spend more time painting—and less time pp g as yyou travel. schleppin

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Anne Hevener ART DIRECTOR Amy Petriello SENIOR DESIGNER Brian Roeth SENIOR EDITOR Beth Williams ASSOCIATE EDITOR McKenzie Graham CONTENT STRATEGIST, FINE ART GROUP Courtney Jordan

ADVERTISING ADVERTISING CONSULTANT Mary McLane Western U.S. & International; 970/290-6065 [email protected] ADVERTISING CONSULTANT Kaline Carter Southeastern U.S.; 505/506-7698 [email protected] ADVERTISING CONSULTANT Deb Aldrich (for ArtistsNetwork) Northeastern U.S.; 917/991-1807 [email protected] MEDIA SALES COORDINATOR Barb Prill 800/283-0963, ext. 13435; [email protected] DIRECTOR OF ADVERTISING SALES—FINE ART, WRITING + DESIGN Tony Carrini Office: 646/859-6599, ext: 12901; Mobile: 646/793-1424 [email protected]

F+W, A CONTENT + ECOMMERCE COMPANY CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER Greg Osberg CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER Jennifer Graham SVP, GENERAL MANAGER—FINE ART, WRITING AND DESIGN GROUPS David Pyle MANAGING DIRECTOR—F+W INTL. James Woollam VP, GENERAL COUNSEL Robert Sporn VP, HUMAN RESOURCES Gigi Healy VP, MANUFACTURING & LOGISTICS Phil Graham VP, CONSUMER MARKETING John Phelan NEWSSTAND SALES Scott T. Hill [email protected]

EDITORIAL OFFICES 10151 Carver Road, Suite 300, Blue Ash, OH 45242 513/531-2222; [email protected]

SUBSCRIPTION SERVICES

Thomas W Schaller’s dog, Otis, likes to think of himself as a travel essential. He can be rather convincing.

P.O. Box 421751, Palm Coast, FL 32142-1751 US/Canada: 800/811-9834 Foreign subscribers: 386/246-3371 ART I S TSN E T WO RK .CO M /CO N TAC T- US Back issues are available. For pricing information or to order, call 855/842-5267, visit artistsnetwork.com/store, or send check or money order to F+W Media Products, 700 E. State St., Iola, WI 54990. Specify Watercolor Artist and the issue month and year.

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PRIVACY PROMISE

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Watercolor artist | AUGUST 2018

Occasionally we make portions of our customer list available to other companies so they may contact you about products and services that may be of interest to you. If you prefer we withhold your name, simply send a note with the magazine name to: List Manager, F+W Media, Inc. 10151 Carver Road, Suite 300, Blue Ash, OH 45242. Printed in the USA Copyright © 2018 by F+W Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Watercolor Artist magazine is a egistered trademark of F+W.

PHOTO BY CARA HUMMEL

You don’t have to be a Captain Cook to enjoy a voyage of discovery whenever you’re visiting a country or city for the irst time. And that feeling of excitement is the perfect fuel for art-making. So, go ahead. Choose your destination, pack your kit and ill up. WA

M U S E U M

A Q U A R E L L E

Caran d’Ache introduces MUSEUM AQUARELLE, an innovative approach to the art of watercolour in the form of a pencil. A high concentration of pigments and excellent solubility ensure that MUSEUM AQUARELLE pencils are perfectly suited to both watercolour painting and artistic design. Developed and manufactured in Geneva, they are proposed in three assortments: Standard, Portait and Marine. The 76 colours are also available individually. Caran d’Ache. Swiss Made excellence since 1915

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Happenings

/ MAKING A SPLASH /

Dina Brodsky A hit on Instagram, one might say that Dina Brodsky’s series of gouache miniatures proiling birds around the world has taken light. “Many years ago,” she says, “I fell in love with Islamic miniatures, as well as medieval manuscript illumination, and tried to experiment with some of the techniques those artists used.” Brodsky tried egg tempera and gold leaf before settling on gouache for its less inicky application.

Birds have been appearing in my paintings and sketchbooks ever since I started painting.

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Watercolor artist | AUGUST 2018

Brodsky’s fascination with birds has come primarily from personal experience, watching an elderly woman feed pigeons every morning over a bridge and the frequent occurrence of birds in her favorite poems. “Birds have been appearing in my paintings and sketchbooks ever since I started painting,” the artist says. “I’ve included them in my paintings as stand-ins for people.” Her miniatures project is inspired by a Pablo Neruda quote that says, “Bird by bird, I’ve come to know the earth.” Brodsky says, “It’s a way of discovering the world through a single window.” he artist isn’t the only one beneiting from her research. “I have a toddler, so this is a chance to do something that’s interesting to both of us,” she says. “I tend not to think further ahead than my current series, but I do know that I’ll always be painting.”

CLOCKWISE Green Bird (gouache on paper, 6½x4¼) Beacon Down (gouache on paper, 9¼x7) Hummingbird (gouache on paper, 4¾x4½)

New + Notable

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Gift Wrap [$12] Summer is notoriously full of birthdays, and what better way to celebrate a fellow watercolorist than to bundle a gift in art. Rachel Nieman uses watercolor to create her sweet gift wrap designs. .//

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/ ON THE SHELVES / Sketches and Sundries [$35] Read about author and artist Abigail Halpin’s inspiration and ideas alongside the sketches, doodles and illustrations that result. Halpin’s colorful, natureinspired style pops off every page. ./

Vibrant Watercolours [$25] Make your home studio a creative haven with this colorful book by Hazel Lale, and go beyond the basics of watercolor. Learn how to amp up the drama and create art with impact. .

Because we can spend hours falling in love with beautiful art #everywatercolor

ArtistsNetwork.com

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Happenings / JULY 1-31 / WORLD WATERCOLOR MONTH Started by Charlie O’Shields, creator of the popular blog, Doodlewash, World Watercolor Month is a worldwide charitable event with a portion of proceeds going toward the Dreaming Zebra Foundation. Join in the fun on social media and share your work, goals or musings using the hashtag #WorldWatercolorMonth or #MyArtistsNetwork_WCMonth.

The Dreaming Zebra Foundation helps underprivileged kids— our future artists—get the supplies they need.

“

”

— CHARLIE O’SHIELDS

Water Media en Plein Air with Stephen Quiller T SE

8 Chapters of Finished Paintings • Different Subjects & Atmospheric Conditions • Materials and Setup Chapter • Plus Bonus Material

www.quillergallery.com

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Watercolor artist | AUGUST 2018

719.658.2741

$99.50

/ JUST FOR FUN /

The Art of Entertainment TRY THIS NEW GAME IN PLACE OF TRIVIA TO TEST YOUR SKILLS IN ART HISTORY.

We’ve got game night covered with this new card game focused on art movements throughout history created by Federico Florian and artist Lauren Tamaki. Published by Laurence King Publishing, “Manifesto: he Art Movements Game,” is a modern take on the classic favorite, “Go Fish,” and contains 52 illustrated cards of iconic artists. Group them into the artists’ respective art movements to win. For those who may need some brushing up on their art history, the game comes with a pamphlet depicting each artist properly placed in his or her category. Pablo Picasso sits under “Cubism,” and Andy Warhol under “Pop Art,” for example. If your game night wants for beverage accompaniment, stick with the art theme and pick Picasso’s favorite, Absynthe; Warhol’s favorite, Jack Daniels; or take a cue from health-guru-ahead-of-her-time, Georgia O’Keefe, and drink fresh-pressed vegetable juice. WA .

ArtistsNetwork.com

9

Creativity Workshop

Back Off Want to attract the viewer’s attention? Learn the push and pull for establishing an eye-catching area of dominance. By Eric Wiegardt

t

here are three elements I look for in a strong composition. First, the painting needs to catch the eye at a distance with a good value and shape construction. Second, the eye needs to be “carried” throughout the picture plane. And, third, the eye needs to arrive at an area of dominance and be held there as long as possible. I’d like to address the third

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AUGUST 2018

element—the area of dominance— but approach it from a diferent angle. But, irst, an observation and an analogy. It seems that many artists sufer from a case of “Wow! his looks so good that more has got to be better. his strong value contrast gives my painting so much snap, and the intense colors have so much pizzazz, and oh, the detail—let’s have

In Study of Ilwaco (watercolor on paper, 11x15), I used the hardest edges and the most intense blue for the boat in the foreground. I’ve left the other boats on the periphery very soft-edged. The viewer will know that they’re boats by their association with the dominant one.

more!” his approach inevitably results in too many similar elements competing for attention, which results in an insuicient area of dominance. Elements of design—space, line, shape, value, texture and color— that have a uniformity in strength tend to cancel one another out. It’s akin to a ballet performance featuring lots of ballerinas, but no prima ballerina. here’s a lot of spectacular movement occurring, but there’s no center of focus. he area of dominance is just that—an area—and not necessarily an object. To create the area of dominance, we need to construct sharper value contrasts, more intense color, warmer colors, harder edges and more detail. Backing of on the rest of the painting gives the area of dominance the opportunity to make a more powerful impact. But how do you accomplish that? As the picture plane moves away from the area of dominance, it’s all about using softer value contrasts, grayer colors, cooler colors, softer edges and fewer details.

TWO SECRETS TO SUCCESS here are two characteristics speciic to watercolor to keep in mind when constructing the area of dominance. 1) Soft edges are much easier to work with than hard edges. A soft edge can be tightened up easily into a harder one by overlapping a crisp stroke over the underlying soft edge. his can create a beautiful, loose, painterly stroke. It’s much more diicult to make a hard edge softer. Usually, we have to resort to scrubbing with a stif brush to soften the edge, which often results in a tired, overmixed passage of muddy color. Because of this, I’ll frequently begin a painting on damp paper, which encourages soft edges throughout. his allows for lexibility in the process, too, as I’m not caught in a corner with too many hard edges that need softening. I’m also careful to stay away from portions of the area of dominance that will need a razorsharp edge. I know I can adjust, making the softer areas harder as the painting progresses.

Toward the end of the painting session, I ensure a tight, hard edge, or possibly several, in the area of dominance. But, I’ll progressively construct fewer and fewer hard edges as I move to the outside of the picture plane, where there’s usually little change from the initial soft-edge washes. 2) Intense colors are easy to neutralize with successively gray washes, whereas gray washes that have dried are diicult, if not impossible, to intensify. With this in mind, I start each of my paintings with a lot of intense color— more than I’ll need—in anticipation of graying areas apart from the area of dominance later. It’s important to incorporate grayer colors, fewer details and value contrasts—as well as the necessary, but often overlooked, softer edges—outside the area of dominance to create an efective painting. hey’re all key to driving attention to the area of dominance.

Turn page for demo Compare the edge quality of the left side against the right side in Indian Tobacco (watercolor on paper, 19x25). The harder edges are reserved for the foliage and flowers on the right, which is where I ultimately want the viewer’s eye to land. I also grayed some of the colors on the left to give the right side more power and focus.

ArtistsNetwork.com 11

Creativity Workshop

r iega g dtt e wie i ad c has n awarded h t ho orr n w e c lorr p ing: g: he M a a D l in n elllow w rom m th A Wat collo ci Ass a he a ts , he s b t k n f r hi s , oose se ntin n s yl . He an w n, e n a a h. h, eree h y o gga dtt S r wh ch is l c t Er s g eat an n s home.

Try this at home ABOVE The trio of boats in Ilwaco Rest (watercolor on paper, 19x25) is the area of dominance in this painting, thanks to strong value contrasts, warm colors and edge details that I added when the paper was damp. RIGHT I ran the first wash of color in Cafés in Cobalt (watercolor on paper, 22x16) directly through the figures in the foreground. This immediately established a harmonization with the rest of the painting. As the paper began to dry, I added successive strokes to create the hard edges that further define the figures.

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AUGUST 2018

USE THESE TIPS TO CREATE A PAINTING WITH AN AREA OF DOMINANCE. Send a JPEG (with a resolution of 72 dpi) of your finished painting to [email protected] with “Creativity Workshop” in the subject line—or follow @artistsnetwork on Instagram and share your painting there: #everywatercolor. The “editor’s choice” will receive a copy of Wiegardt’s book, Painting Without a Net. The entry deadline is August 15, 2018.

This text is excerpted with permission from Painting Without a Net (2017) by Eric Wiegardt. Available at ericwiegardt.com and artistsnetwork.com/store.

demo

Area of Dominance

Step 1

Step 2

I block in the large shapes by establishing their appropriate value. I may need to adjust these to darker values as the painting develops, so pinpoint accuracy isn’t necessary at this stage; however, if I start off too dark with the value construction, I may be in trouble because it’s so difficult to lighten a passage. This is the time for large connecting patterns with many soft edges. I also try to have some representation of the darks established as a goalpost against which to compare the mid-tones and lights.

Next, I begin to elevate the area of dominance compared to the rest of the painting. I then work on the rest of the painting in support of the area, but I try not to surpass it in degree of refinement. This naturally brings the area of dominance to a higher level of completion; I follow this process throughout the painting until completion. There’s a logical reason for this: It allows me to keep the area of dominance ahead of the rest of the painting. The area of dominance should control the composition in totality.

Step 3

Final

I place a few more twigs around the flowers and darken the values at the bottom and far right of the painting so that the stronger value contrasts are reserved for areas around the flowers. Again, I go back and forth between the area of dominance and the rest of the painting, always keeping the area of dominance one step ahead of everything else. I ended up with an inadvertent darker twig shape near the center of the composition. I’ve found it best to not touch a possible mistake, but better to leave it for a later evaluation.

I flatten the Masa paper and mount it onto watercolor paper for stability. I make the edges around the flowers harder and define more branches in the same area. I add ultramarine blue to some of the white areas as a contrasting color statement, which helps to strengthen the area of dominance. I rely heavily on my intuitive impulses at this point. Having the darker twig shape slightly off center draws the viewer’s eye to the flowers. I’m glad I left it alone and didn’t fuss with it; it kept the passage fresh and expressive for Quince (watercolor on paper, 22x30). WA

ArtistsNetwork.com 13

4úIVJYP4EMRXMRKW JVóE ;EXIVGñSV1EWXIV Thomas W. Schaller, Architect of Light: Watercolor Paintings by a Master by Thomas W. Schaller

Discover 150 paintings from an artist celebrated for his poignant treatment of light and its dynamic interplay with the natural and manmade landscape. Explore the first and only collection of work from the popular contemporary artist, Thomas W. Schaller, in Architect of Light, which features his finest paintings—buildings, bridges, boats, people and other scenes—from around the world. Architect of Light also includes a series of essays in which Thomas ruminates on his journey as an artist, what drives him, and the “truths” he’s discovered along the way.

9781440350726 R4440 · Hardcover · $45.00 Also available as an eBook

He offers not only insight on composition, color and other technical aspects of painting, but also a provocative perspective on more fundamental struggles for artists, such as overcoming self-doubt and honing one’s own, unique voice.

“The most nearly ‘perfect’ paintings to me are rarely the ones simply characterized by technical expertise. More often, they are the ones in which you can sense the beating heart of the artist just below the surface—flaws included.”

Available at your favorite bookseller. To learn more about the full range of Artists Network products, including North Light books, visit ArtistsNetwork.com.

Fundamentals of Photography Taught by Joel Sartore National Geographic Photographer

Making Great Pictures

2.

Camera Equipment—What You Need

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Shutter Speeds

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Light I—Found or Ambient Light

7.

Light II—Color and Intensity

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Light III—Introduced Light

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Composition I—Seeing Well

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10. Composition II—Background and Perspective 11. Composition III—Framing and Layering 12. Let’s Go to Work—Landscapes 13. Let’s Go to Work—Wildlife 14. Let’s Go to Work—People and Relationships 15. Let’s Go to Work—From Mundane to Extraordinary 16. Let’s Go to Work—Special Occasions 17. Let’s Go to Work—Family Vacations 18. Advanced Topics—Research and Preparation 19. Advanced Topics—Macro Photography 20. Advanced Topics—Low Light 21. Advanced Topics—Problem Solving 22. After the Snap—Workflow and Organization 23. Editing—Choosing the Right Image

Learn the Inside Secrets of Professional Photographers Photographs can preserve cherished memories, reveal the beauty of life, and even change the world. Yet most of us point and shoot without really being aware of what we’re seeing or how we could take our photo from good to great. Just imagine the images you could create if you trained yourself to “see” as the professionals do. With Fundamentals of Photography, you’ll learn everything you need to know about the art of taking unforgettable pictures straight from photographer and National Geographic Fellow Joel Sartore—a professional with over 30 years of experience. Whatever your skill level, these 24 engaging lectures allow you to hone your photographer’s eye, take full advantage of your camera’s features, and capture magical moments in any situation or setting imaginable.

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Anatomy of a Painting

Olive Trees at Tivoli A rare watercolor by GEORGE INNESS encapsulates the beauty of the Italian countryside.

The mood of Olive Trees at Tivoli is consistent with Inness’ later work. Composed of muted values, the painting is a harbinger of the Tonalist movement and gives an abiding impression of serenity.

By Jerry N. Weiss

a

rguably the greatest American landscape painter of his—or any—era, George Inness (1825-1894) developed a personal response to the subject, grounded in the observation of nature and his own spiritual interests. hough Inness was inluenced by classical art, and the Hudson River and Barbizon schools, the paintings of his later years are uniquely visionary. His oils, imaginative and idiosyncratic in handling, are designed with geometrical precision, yet imbued with a mystical sensibility. He painted convincingly realistic depictions of the natural world; at the same time, his paintings are dreamlike in efect and impart a sense of intimacy. Before settling in Montclair, N.J., Inness traveled widely throughout the Northeast, Florida and Europe, living for two extended periods in Italy. During the 19th century, Italy served as a sort of inishing school for American and European landscape painters, who were drawn to the country’s artistic legacy and its geographical beauty. Inness was especially taken with the striking Italian countryside.

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Olive Trees at Tivoli (1873; watercolor, gouache and graphite on blue wove paper with colored fibers, 7x12⅜) by George Inness

He painted Olive Trees at Tivoli during his second prolonged stay in Italy, from 1870-74. Central to the composition are the trees that so engaged his imagination. Perhaps painted en plein air, the work is marked by the impression of solitude before nature that was central to Inness’ work. In part, this is because the artist balanced a narrow band of active shapes—a row of olive trees— with broad, paciic areas. “In Italy,” he recalled in 1878, “I remember frequently noticing the peculiar ideas that came to me from seeing odd-looking trees that had been used, or tortured or twisted—all telling something about humanity.” WA Jerry N. Weiss is a contributing writer for ine art magazines and teaches at the Art Students League of New York.

Inness apparently painted relatively few watercolors. He adopted the then-common liberal use of opaque pigment, applying gouache to the sky, trees and trunks in the middle distance, and the grass and rocks of the foreground plane.

THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART/MORRIS K. JESUP FUND, 1989

The large olive tree is the focal point by virtue of its dominant presence. It’s the only shape that breaks the horizon line. It’s also the painting’s darkest mass and host to the work’s most irregular edges.

The twisting road acts as a symmetrical mirror to the bent trunk of the main tree. Together, the two shapes form an oval circuit at the center of the painting.

The composition—a diagonal foreground plane set before a distant, flat expanse—was a favorite of 19th-century artists. Perhaps the most well-known example is The Oxbow by Thomas Cole (American, 1801-1848). Instead of a broad river curling toward the distance, Inness observed a narrow road that leads our eye to the horizon and the miniscule dome of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.

The artist never exhibited his works on paper. He used watercolor in a particularly personal way, freely applying washes, intermixing transparent and opaque passages, and working with a spontaneous feel that was then-uncharted territory in American watercolor painting.

Though Inness was influenced by classical art, and the Hudson River and Barbizon schools, the paintings of his later years are uniquely visionary. ArtistsNetwork.com 17

SPANNOCCHIA | SEPTEMBER 16-22, 2018

Immersive. Transportive. Restorative.

• Enjoy extensive instruction in site observation, perspective composition, and drawing fundamentals that will lead to the creation of inspired watercolor work that truly captures your time in Tuscany • Embed yourself in the natural experience and see this willingness to explore and to be changed reflected in your work in both in-studio and en plein air opportunities • Spend six days at Tuscany’s Tenuta di Spannocchia artist’s retreat and working organic farm, plus a final day and night spent in Florence

Space is limited to the first 20 registrants.

REGISTER NOW ArtistsNetwork.com/Retreat-Tuscany-2018

believe it is our job to “ Ilearn how to see; how to identify what it is that will result in the best possible paintings; paintings that tell the stories we wish to tell.

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JOIN PAINTER-INSTRUCTOR THOMAS W. SCHALLER FOR AN INTIMATE WATERCOLOR EXPERIENCE IN TUSCANY!

Thomas W. Schaller

T H A N N U A L I N T E R N AT I O N A L

watermedia

showcase

Early-Bird Deadline: July 2, 2018

Enter for your chance to win! Earn worldwide recognition for your best work in watermedia. All award-winning paintings and honorable mentions will be published in the April 2019 issue of Watercolor Artist. Enter by July 2, 2018, for your best entry price.

Juror of Awards, John Salminen

Best of Show: $2,500

2nd Place: $1,250

3rd Place: $750 4th Place: $500 Blick gift card

5 Honorable Mentions: $100 Blick gift cards Gift cards courtesy of Watermedia Showcase sponsor: Playing (detail; watercolor on paper, 22x30), by Yin Jun from WuHan, China

FOR A COMPLETE LIST OF PRIZES, CATEGORIES AND ENTRY DETAILS, VISIT:

artistsnetwork.com/watermediashowcase The competition is open to artists from around the world. All works must be original. Mixed-media entries are accepted, but the primary medium must be watermedia on paper. There is no limit to the number of entries you may submit. For additional guidelines and to enter online, visit artistsnetwork.com/watermediashowcase.

Watercolor Essentials

Watercolor SOS From studio lighting to errant brush hairs, we’ve got surefire solutions to nine pesky painting problems. By Birgit O’Connor

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ou’re painting, in your groove, and then, wham, a bloom spreads across your paper. Or, you’ve inished your painting and have moved it to another room, and you notice that the lighting makes the colors appear garish and the values wonky. Sometimes it’s the smallest things that can cause the most stress during the creative process. For a more carefree experience, implement these tried-and-true tips for addressing head-on some common watercolor painting challenges.

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I had to overcome several challenges in Hibiscus (watercolor on paper, 15x22), such as how to apply color to large areas without creating blooms; how to use value to give a seemingly flat flower the impression of depth; and how to avoid overlapping edges to build intensity and drama.

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STUDIO LIGHTING ISSUES When it comes to the kind of light to use in your studio, it’s best to have full-spectrum natural light, ideally from north-facing windows. he reason for this is that the light will stay fairly consistent throughout the day without direct light coming in. For many of us, though, that’s not always possible. he windows may be facing the wrong direction; the studio space may have no windows at all; or perhaps we prefer to paint at night or early in the morning. We all want the lighting where we paint to show the colors as accurately as possible. If your painting style is more realistic, then fullspectrum light is very important to you. If you’re a little more free-lowing, you may have a little more lexibility. Whatever our challenges, all of our situations can be corrected with light-

ing ixtures, lamps and bulbs. Keep the following in mind regarding bulbs: • Incandescent bulbs use too much energy and give of a yellow light that can distort colors. • Halogen bulbs are acceptable, but produce too much heat and are expensive. • Compact luorescent bulbs use less energy, are brighter, last longer and come in a wider range of color temperatures. Just know that they take longer to brighten fully. • LED bulbs are usually more expensive, but use the least amount of energy and are said to have the longest lifespan. A 60-watt bulb uses 10 watts of electricity and is equivalent to 5000K. Basically, all you need is a clean white light that’s closest to daylight without being too blue—5000K should be ine.

MESSY, UNDEFINED EDGES A common mistake watercolorists make is painting an area too soon—before an adjacent area has had time to dry completely. This can be great for looser styles, but not if you’re aiming for clearer definition in your paintings. If a loose look isn’t your goal, you’ll need to allow areas that touch to dry completely before working on the next. If necessary, walk away from the painting for awhile. If you need to clean up a messy edge, let the entire painting dry and then clean up the edges using a wet-on-dry technique.

3 TROUBLE DETERMINING VALUES Many people have problems seeing beyond color to the values of a subject, but there are several ways to make it easier. he quickest way, if working from a photograph, is to make a blackand-white photocopy, or to do a quick, small thumbnail sketch in pencil or in a single paint color such as gray, blue, indigo or sepia. Another way to see value diferences quickly is to hold a sheet of red plastic or acetate over a subject. he red color eliminates all other color, leaving only a range of values. hese methods can help you develop a better awareness of value, which will help you create more interesting paintings. An easy way to see value is to use red plastic or acetate. The red eliminates all other colors, revealing only light and darks. You can find sheets of red acetate in office or art supply stores.

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Watercolor Essentials

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UNINTENTIONAL BLOOMS Have you ever wondered why a wash may look perfect one minute, and then as soon as you turn away, unwanted blooms (also called blossoms or backruns) appear? his happens when the paper surface doesn’t dry evenly or when parts of the painting dry more quickly than others. Before walking away from drying paper, make sure that the surface has an even sheen and has dulled to a more matte appearance, especially if you’ll be away for an extended period of time. If you can’t babysit the painting, use a hair dryer on low heat to speed up the drying process. Don’t hold it over the same spot for too long; keep it moving. And, be aware that hair dryers have a tendency to latten and homogenize the color.

MUDDY COLOR Clean colors are essential to creating effective watercolor paintings. Overmixing or layering colors improperly can lead to muddy-looking color in your paintings. To prevent this, here are a few pointers to keep in mind. • Don’t mix too many colors at a time. Stick to no more than two or three. • Don’t overmix colors on your palette. Allow colors to mingle and mix on the paper—the results are much more interesting. • Work with the most transparent colors possible. They’ll create some of the prettiest mixtures and also will layer the best, allowing light to penetrate through applied layers and reflecting the white of the paper for luminous paintings.

Any water applied or dropped onto a drying surface can bloom easily, ruining smooth washes and causing feathered and hard edges. If that happens, you can either leave it alone, wait for it to dry, and then try to lift or soften the edges with a melamine foam eraser. Or, while it’s still damp, add more water and allow the puddle to move around the surface to spread out the water evenly.

5 HARD RINGS OF COLOR

If you notice a hard, thick ring form has formed around the color on your paper once it has dried, it’s because you’ve applied and reapplied too much water, lifting the pigment and pushing it out to the edges.

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We’ve all had those hard rings form around the edge of a shape. his happens when too much water has been added to the area while the previously applied color is still damp. he additional water is lifting the color from the surface and pushing it out to the edge. If an area needs more color, let it dry completely, and then reapply color in layers.

• Avoid mixing cadmiums, opaque colors and earth colors. When colors such as siennas, umbers and ochres are blended, they can get muddy. • Don’t overuse mixed complements. Mixing complementary colors creates neutral grays and browns that can be useful, but complements are much more vibrant when placed side by side. • Be aware that every color has a warm or cool bias that will affect the final mixture. If you mix a warm red with a cool blue, the resulting purple may be dull or muddy. • Allow each layer of color to dry completely before applying the next. Otherwise, layers may lift and mix, which results in muddy color.

7 COLOR-MATCHING ISSUES If you can’t ind a particular color, but know the pigment numbers that were used to make it, you can usually ind what you’re looking for in a diferent brand of paint. he degree of hue can vary slightly depending on the manufacturer, but it will have the same compositional makeup and is a helpful way to have some consistency. Here’s how to “read” a tube of color. Pigment code Every paint manufacturer has its own way of labeling, but you should be able to find the same information on any paint tube label.

Transparency category Pigment code

Lightfastness rating Series number Pigment code

Series number: his number indicates price. Paint pigments can be expensive, and manufacturers group the material into the amount used and rarity of the raw product. he paint is then split into a series that relects the price: Series 1–5, for example, with Series 1 being the lowest price. Lightfastness rating: his rating refers to the permanence and chemical stability of a color in relation to environmental factors, as determined by the American Society for Testing and Materials. Some brands will use diferent methods for labeling such as Roman numerals, letters or dots. I’d recommend artist-grade paint with a lightfast rating of I (excellent) or II (good) rather than III (poor) or IV (fugitive). Winsor & Newton’s labels, for example, are AA (extremely permanent), A (permanent), B (moderately

durable) and C (fugitive). Keep in mind that most student-grade pigments aren’t as lightfast. Pigment code: Each pigment can be universally identiied by its pigment code. his is a generic international number used for pigment name and color indexing. P stands for pigment; Y for yellow; R for red; O for orange; G for green; B for blue; V for violet; Br for brown; and M for metallic. he number that follows is the chemical composition of the pigment. For example, cobalt blue is PB28, and Winsor violet is PV23. Transparency category: Many brands will have symbols, letters or the word on the side of the tube that will indicate if a color is transparent (T or ), semitransparent (ST or ), semiopaque (SO or ) or opaque (O or Q). Labeling will vary by brand. ArtistsNetwork.com 23

Watercolor Essentials

8 A STRAY BRUSH HAIR IN WET PAINT If a stray brush hair gets stuck in a painting, there’s a natural tendency to retrieve it with your ingernail, but don’t try it as you may damage the paper surface with your nail. You don’t want to leave the hair while the painting dries, however, because a couple of things can happen: he hair can act like a resist, leaving a small white line, or color can accumulate and settle along the hair, leaving a colored line. If this happens, hopefully it’s not in a large, smooth wash because it can be diicult to remove. he best thing to do is to use a small synthetic brush, such as a No. 3 round, to lift the hair out gently. Using a larger brush can remove too much color from the painting. Get the brush wet irst, dry it, fan it out, and then, with a lick of your wrist, lift the loose hair. Stifer synthetic brushes work best. If you use a natural or a sable/synthetic blend, the hair may be too soft and hold too much additional water, which may cause unwanted blooming.

You can use any small synthetic brush that has a stiff tip, even a scrub brush, to lift a loose hair. The idea is to allow only a few of the fibers of the tip of your brush to catch the loose debris, not to touch the paper with the entire brush tip and risk damaging it.

9 THE ENTIRE PAINTING IS A MESS

Birgit O’Connor (birgitoconnor.com), of Bolinas, Calif., holds signature membership in the Louisiana Watercolor Society and the California Watercolor Society. She’s the author of three books, including her new release, Paint Watercolor Flowers: A Beginner’s Step-by-Step Guide (North Light Books, 2018), from which this article is excerpted. Available after June 26, 2018, at ArtistsNetwork.com/store and wherever books are sold. Interactive and non-interactive online courses are available.

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Let’s say you have a painting that just isn’t working. Consider removing all the color by placing it under running water using a faucet or hose or by submerging it in a tub. By rewetting it, you’re allowing the color to soften and to be able to move and lift again. While the surface is still wet, use either a large, soft brush or an original Mr. Clean Magic Eraser (or melamine foam) to gently wipe the surface to remove color from the painting. Just don’t press too hard, or you could damage the paper ibers. he amount of abuse the paper can withstand will vary by brand and the sizing used during the papermaking process. Most often, you won’t be able to get back to the bright white of the original surface because some colors will be more permanent and staining than others, which will leave a ghost image. Be creative. Try using that ghost image to your advantage as the undercoat for another painting, or restart the same painting afresh. WA

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The World Is Your Studio THERE’S NOTHING QUITE LIKE SKETCHING AND PAINTING FOR CAPTURING THE MEMORIES OF YOUR TRAVEL ADVENTURES. TAKING THE TIME TO OBSERVE THE DETAILS ALLOWS US TO SEE THE WORLD WITH EYES WIDE OPEN. By Anne Hevener

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he 19th-century writer-naturalist Henry David horeau said, “It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see.” It’s a statement that perfectly elucidates the beneits of traveling with your sketching materials. To make a sketch of that bustling piazza or glorious cathedral requires time. It demands that you slow down enough to really take notice of the scene in front of you. hat extra efort, however, is also the payof, for an unhurried pace assures a deeper experience and a greater appreciation of your subject. Suhita Shirodkar, Stephen Harby and Hazel Soan are three artists who clearly know how to relish the joys of travel. In the following pages, you’ll see how brush and paint are vital to their experience of a place.

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Hazel Soan loves painting the Maasai cattle herders in their colorful blankets. “The Maasai are tall, which makes for elegant shapes,” Soan says. “In Companions, Maasai Herders [12x26], I’m intrigued by the gaps and spaces between the limbs and robes of the men and the cattle’s legs. I painted this watercolor across the spread of a Khadi paper sketchbook; hence, the middle seam. This paper is made of a rough, longfibered cotton, which holds water longer, making it easier to work wet-into-wet in a hot climate.” Soan used yellow ochre, cadmium red, violet, ultramarine blue and brown madder.

Suhita Shirodkar made this small sketch (about 7x9) of the Palacio de Bellas Artes (Palace of Fine Arts) in Mexico City from the top of the Torre Latinoamericana building. “I worked quickly and nearly in blind contour with the line to capture this angle without any real perspective setup,” she says. Stephen Harby made this sketch in his 5x8-inch Pentalic sketchbook on site in the Piazza della Rotonda in front of the Pantheon in Rome. “This structure, built in 112 A.D. by the emperor Hadrian, is widely viewed as the greatest wonder of the world,” he says. “I blocked out a rough pencil outline, then applied a series of layered washes using a 1:4 mix of ultramarine blue and burnt sienna. The first layer is quite diluted and covers the page, except for highlight areas, which I leave white for maximum illumination.”

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Suhita Shirodkar The Life of the City Working primarily in pen, ink and watercolor, artist Suhita Shirodkar (suhitasketch.com) does most of her sketching on location, working quickly to capture an impression of the world around her. “hat irst, quick, almostcalligraphic capture is the one that gets to the heart of the subject,” she says. Shirodkar, a freelance illustrator, enjoys world travel and often teaches at the Urban Sketchers Symposiums.

Q Tell us about your traveling life. A My travel experiences range from trips I take to teach urban sketching to trips I take with my family. My husband and I have two children, ages 10 and 12, and I’ve painted on all of our family travels since they were little. Seeing me paint through our travels is second nature to them. I travel domestically and internationally, and I love it all. I think I could live out of a suitcase with just a few trips back home for a little break now and again. In reality, though, I travel about three or four times a year—usually a week or two at a time. Q How do your travels impact your art-making?

single pass—almost always in less than an hour, which forces me to work small. I never touch up my pieces later. I like to preserve that irst impression, so I leave in the dripping paint, the “uninished” bits, the smudges and smears; they’re a part of the experience. Most of my work is done with colors mixed wet-into-wet. It makes for less predictable results, but allows for the watercolor to work its magic.

Q What do you carry with you? A Most of my art is plein air urban sketching and painting, created on location. It’s an unedited response to where I am, what I see and what it feels like. hat’s what makes traveling such a great space in which to create: I see more keenly than usual, and I’m more aware of experiences.

A I carry a sketchbook, typically a 9x12-inch Stillman & Birn Beta; a small travel-sized palette with a mix of artist watercolors; water; brushes; and pens. My “portable studio,” as I like to call my sketch bag, accompanies me everywhere I go—not only when I travel, but also in my everyday life. Q How do your travels continue to inspire your artmaking at home?

Q Describe your sketching process. A Each sketch is made quickly in a 28 Watercolor artist |

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A I try to keep a bit of the traveler in me even at home— to help me see the unusual in the everyday and mundane

Shirodkar visited Chicago in 2017 for an Urban Sketchers Symposium and sketched in the city during breaks in her teaching schedule. “The energy at Crown Fountain is exactly what I love about cities—the buzz of people gathered together in shared spaces,” she says. “Here, the kids and adults romped in the cool water while the huge fountain ‘spat’ water at them.”

4 Tips for the Traveling Artist 1. Even if you’re primarily a studio painter, carry a sketchbook wherever you go. Sketch the little things—the impressions that may get lost later if not noted: a gusty breeze, the light at a particular hour, the feeling of being in a crowd. 2. Learn to paint with a limited color palette and a (relatively) easy setup. The more mobile you can be, the more adventurous you can get with where and what you paint. Since I love to paint in the city, I’ve learned how to work standing up, while holding my supplies, in a crowded space. 3. Be truly interested in the places and people you encounter. It makes a huge difference to your art if you feel a personal connection to a place—no matter how many times it has been painted before.

After sketching the Empire State Building on a New York City street, Shirodkar turned to face south and caught this lively scene with pedestrians and taxis in front of the Flatiron Building.

4. Be flexible and willing to change a plan to respond to what you might encounter. When traveling, the best paintings often arise from grabbed opportunities. —Suhita Shirodkar

In her sketch of these Painted Ladies in San Francisco, Shirodkar created unity by allowing the highlights to read as white—only telling the story of color and details in the shaded areas.

stuf. he little things that happen in life then become events and scenes worth capturing.

Q What types of places do you recommend for the best sketching opportunities? A Travel to places that attract your interest. Some people are drawn to quiet places in nature; others to great architecture; others to busy city streets. Each has its own challenges, but as long as it’s a place that speaks to the artist, any challenge can be resolved. Standing in New York City at a bustling intersection to sketch isn’t an obstacle for me; it’s my happy place. Find your happy place and then try to capture the spirit of what moves you in your work. ArtistsNetwork.com 29

Stephen Harby A World of Architectural Wonder Stephen Harby (stephenharby.com) is an architect, educator and artist. He maintains an architecture practice in Santa Monica, Calif., and is a visiting lecturer at the Yale School of Architecture, where he has directed the school’s study program in Rome since 2002. He also leads cultural and artistic tours for small select groups to destinations all over the world.

Q Describe your experiences as a world traveler. A I realize that I was born to be a passionate traveler. My American parents were sojourning in London upon my birth and brought me home at six 30 Watercolor artist |

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months on the legendary Cunard Lines ocean liner, the SS Queen Elizabeth. Since then—well, since the age of autonomy—I’ve traveled as often as the spirit, funds and opportunity permit.

Q How does traveling impact your art-making? A One non-negotiable tenet of the Yale School of Architecture, where I also was a student, was that students maintain a sketchbook to document phenomena observed in the built and natural environments. For me and others, watercolor made its way into these sketchbooks to give added clarity and vividness. It wasn’t long before my images got larger and transitioned from the rather unforgiving paper of the typical sketchbook to the inviting surfaces of Arches 140-lb cold-pressed.

Q How do your travels continue to inspire you when you’re home working in the studio?

Harby made this watercolor of the Parthenon, which sits atop the Acropolis in Athens, on 11x14-inch Arches paper. The Parthenon, he notes, is one of the earliest buildings [447-432 B.C.E.] designed by known architects [Iktinos and Kallikrates]. “The use of color permits the bright warm tone of the stone to be framed by the cool blue sky,” he says, “and the gradations of light created by the sun-cast shadows define the forms.”

BELOW Harby created this larger-format piece (11x18) on site at the Temple of Angkor Wat in Siem Reap, Cambodia. This is the great lost city of the Khmer kings whose heyday lasted from the ninth to the 14th century A.D. “I painted at sunrise,” he says, “as the temple forms emerged from the mist right before my eyes. It’s a reminder of the plein air challenge: While there’s pressure to adapt to changing conditions, one must fix the scene to a specific point in time.”

A I’d say that 80 percent of my past work has been done in the ield during travels, which means that both the size and amount of detail are limited by the constraints of time on site and size of my luggage. Within the past few years, however, I’ve become more interested in working in the studio to complete larger, more complex paintings that are inspired by sketches and smaller watercolors I produced on-site. hus, my travel sketchbooks, of which I have dozens, serve as a catalyst for potential larger-format paintings. Q What’s your favorite location for painting and sketching?

A My favorite place to sketch and paint by far is Venice, just as it must have been for Whistler, Turner, Sargent and so many other artists before me. Called “la Serenissima” when it was an autonomous republic, its serene atmosphere results from the absence of the bustle and clatter of wheeled vehicles—since canals replace streets and roads. The quality and movement of light, thanks to the city’s marine atmosphere and the reflections off the water, offer endless inspiration, as does the wonderful architecture, which is always presented with great vistas and viewpoints. I also find Rome greatly inspiring due to its rich palimpsest of architecture from all ages. I’ve had the pleasure to visit the city many times over the past 50 years and have traveled there with architecture students for more than a decade. I’m sure I’ve done more sketches and paintings in that ancient city than anywhere else.

The Things He Carries I always travel with at least a sketchbook, but often bring a setup for painting with an easel in larger format. I never check luggage, so I’ve organized my kit to be as light and compact as possible. I use a lightweight camera tripod with telescoping legs, on which I’ve mounted a 9-inch aluminum strip which holds a sliding clip. This, in turn, secures a Masonite board cut to fit the side flap of my roll-aboard suitcase. Two of these boards sandwich however many sheets of paper I think I’ll be able to use. I’ve created a thin plywood shelf that slips onto two of the tripod legs to hold water, palette and brushes. This setup allows me to work standing up and eliminates the need for a folding stool, which takes up valuable space.” —Stephen Harby

“I did this monochrome sketch at the Pyramids in Giza in my sketchbook,” says Harby. “These are the largest man-made structures on earth and the only surviving wonder of the world as identified in Hellenistic times. I defined perhaps four gradations of light value—from full sun to deep shadow—using layered washes. The vast scale and emptiness of the space are conveyed and dramatized by these colossal objects.”

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Hazel Soan In the African Bush On a painting holiday in Kenya, Soan’s group was invited to paint in a Maasai Village in the Rift Valley. “The people were welcoming and even invited us back for a wedding,” says Soan. “It was the colorful sarongs that attracted me to paint Mother Africa [watercolor, 30x22], depicting three Maasai ladies engaged in a group conversation.”

Artist Hazel Soan (allsoanup.com) grew up in the U.K., where she studied at Camberwell and Leicester art colleges. Her work has been exhibited widely in her home country and farther aield at venues in Namibia, Venezuela, South Africa and Zimbabwe, among other places. Soan has been traveling across Africa since 1981 and keeps a studio in Cape Town as well as in West London. he people and animals of Africa—particularly those in Southern Africa, East Africa and Malawi—feature prominently in her work.

Q Tell us about your traveling life. A I travel often and frequently, sometimes for prolonged periods and always for painting. When I left college, a professor gave me three pieces of advice: Always maintain

a studio where you can work uninterrupted; always have an exhibition on the horizon that you can work toward; and always travel, so you never get into a rut.

Q How do your travels impact your art-making? A Almost all of my work is made during my travels or back in the studio using reference from my trips, so my artmaking impacts my travels rather than vice versa. I love to paint strong light and shadow, and I prefer to paint with yellows, reds, blues and browns than with greens, so I’m often traveling to places that ofer abundant sunshine and arid landscapes. Q How do you combine travel with your sketching and painting? A Watercolor is ideal for travel because the materials aren’t cumbersome. I carry my materials in a shoulder bag: brushes, an enamel palette with pans, 5-ml tube colors, three lightweight water pots, a kitchen towel, a pencil, a blade, an eraser and water. My paper (100 percent cotton paper, mainly Saunders Waterford, Arches and Khadi) its inside the bag, unless I’m traveling by car, in which case I might bring something larger. he idea is to have the bag over my shoulder, with my right hand free, so that as soon as I see something I want to paint, I need only to lip back the lid of the bag; grab my palette, brushes, water and paper; sit myself down or lean against a wall; and begin. I usually have a camera in my bag, too, for momentary subjects that are impossible to paint on site. I carry about 35 tube colors, but use very few in any one painting. Sometimes I’ll go out with just three to six colors and a couple of brushes carried in my pockets. I can paint anything if I have a cool and warm version of the three primary colors.

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“Elephants are lovely creatures,” says Soan, “and artistically, they offer wonderful form and mass for painting. Being gray, they can be painted with yellow, red and blue in quick succession by building both the tone and color through the values inherent to those three hues.” Soan’s painting, The Silent, Heard (watercolor, 11x15), depicts a herd that had just come down from the forest slopes of Kilimanjaro to cross the plain at Amboseli.

For the Love of Elephants

Q What advice would you give to a would-be travel painter? A Do it. While traveling to a faraway destination may seem daunting before departure, once you’re on the road, it gets easier. In my experience, what you forget to pack is usually available in some form—or doesn’t matter anyway. And, people are generally eager to help anyone in trouble. A motto on my studio wall in Cape Town says: “Fear is temporary, regret is forever.” here’s so much to see and paint; don’t put it of. One last tip: Don’t forget spare batteries for your camera! WA

“I used only Prussian blue and cadmium red for Incoming [watercolor, 14x11],” Soan says. “The painting demonstrates what I love most about watercolor—that less is more. The white paper as the light, the power of suggestion, the descriptive brushstrokes and the complementary nature of color combine to make an impact. The ambassador to the European Union in Southern Africa commissioned a life-size print, which hangs at the embassy in Windhoek, Namibia.”

I first traveled to Africa in 1981 when I was offered an exhibition in Harare, Zimbabwe, just after the country gained independence. Unfortunately, I learned on opening night that I was forbidden by Customs and Excise to sell anything. So, I went off instead to the National Reserve and fell in love with elephants! I’ve returned to Africa almost every year since, painting wildlife on safari. My wet-into-wet approach to watercolor was born and honed while painting on these trips. I particularly like painting the Kalahari, because a lack of thick foliage means I can see, and therefore paint, the whole animal from top to toe. Herd animals are great to paint; when one animal moves on, another takes up the pose of the first. —Hazel Soan

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THE

Zen of Traveling WITH ART SUPPLIES

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LESS IS MORE WHEN IT COMES TO PACKING FOR TRAVEL FOR PLEIN AIR PAINTING. By Thomas W Schaller

ABOVE Footbridge (watercolor on paper, 15x22) ABOVE RIGHT Here I am in action in Fengjing, China.

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ike most people who travel for work, I sometimes feel as if I live on airplanes, so packing for trips has taken on added signiicance. I confess to being slightly obsessed with advancements in luggage or the latest space-saving trick, as I never want to be “that guy” who comes home after a month of teaching on the road only to discover an unworn sweater, a forgotten book or a lost pair of sneakers hiding at the bottom of the suitcase. Standard protocol is to ask oneself what items to pack for a trip, but my solution to prevent overpacking has been to do the opposite: Ask, instead, “What can I leave behind?”

PRIORITIZE FUN Apply my obsession with eicient packing to the topic of packing art supplies, and my ixation becomes even more acute. Over the years, I’ve tried to design the ideal complete, compact, lightweight on-site painting ArtistsNetwork.com 35

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kit that can be set up and broken down quickly. After many false starts and mistakes, I’ve inally come pretty close to something that works perfectly for my situation. here are at least a thousand reasons why painters everywhere dread the very idea of painting en plein air, but if I had to identify the single most common mistake that painters make initially, it would be trying to replicate how we paint on-site with how we paint in the studio. It’s so easy and feels natural to commit the entirely self-inlicted error of hauling almost everything from a studio through cities and across the landscape. At irst, understandably, it’s simply diicult to determine what’s truly needed, but the whole process of on-site painting can quickly become a cumbersome and exhausting experience if too many supplies are present. What that means for the painter is that

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Everything needed for days of painting fits snugly in my small backpack. Larger paper can be taped to lightweight boards made of corrugated plastic and carried separately.

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LEFT All of my travel essentials fit inside one small backpack. ABOVE RIGHT My plein-air tripod and easel are all set up and ready to go.

Travel Essentials 1. Misc: water containers; sea sponge; masking tape; water mister by Holbein 2. Tripod: collapsible carbon fiber with camera mount by Manfrotto 3. Paper: Fabriano Artistico Block and half sheets by Fabriano; not shown: Saunders Waterford; Arches 4. Easel and shelf: custom made by Rolando Barrero 5. Palette: hand-made silver plated brass palette by Steve Fanelli of House of Hoffman 6. Sketchbook: soft cover Beta Series by Stillman & Birn 7. Brush holder: American Journey from Cheap Joe’s 8. Backpack: canvas and leather by Montezemolo (18-in tall; 12-in wide; 5-in deep) 9. Paints: Daniel Smith Artists Materials; Holbein 10. Pencils: aluminum clutch pencil by Worther; Vintage Wooden Mechanical E-Motion sketch pencil by Faber-Castell; Palomino Blackwing–Pearl Series; classic graphite sketch pencil (not pictured) 11. Eraser: MONO Dust Catch by Tombow 12. Brushes: Perla, Versatil and Prado series by Escoda; various Raphael; Savoir-Faire Art board: lightweight corrugated vinyl by Artmate/ Champion (pictured on page 35)

the session is wiped clean of any fun. As soon as painting becomes an activity we don’t enjoy, we’re doing something wrong.

LESS IS MORE With some thought and experience, the answer to the question “How much do I need?” is almost always, “A lot less than you might think.” All the art materials shown here—enough for days of painting—fold up and it nicely inside a small backpack. My passport, wallet, phone, headphones

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Meet the Artist Thomas W Schaller (thomaswschaller. com) is an architect and artist living in Los Angeles, Calif. His instructional DVDs and new book Thomas W. Schaller: Architect of Light are available on artistsnetwork.com/store.

and charger share the space, and it all weighs only a few pounds and can be carried onto any airplane. I dread packing my supplies with checked luggage. Except for some occasional scrutiny given to my precious palette, I’ve been all over the world without issue. Well, OK, sometimes I’ve forgotten to empty the water bottle! One of the most surprising beneits to come from my eforts at “supply minimalism” and the editing of painting materials is the parallel beneit of becoming better at editing my paintings. Having the mindset of carrying “only the essentials” has helped make it more clear to me what must be included in my paintings and what can be left out. I believe that this approach has helped make my work— both in the studio and out—more clear, direct and impactful. And I paint with more joy than ever. WA ArtistsNetwork.com 37

THE POWER OF

SUGGESTION COLORADO ARTIST STEVE GRIGGS USES ENERGETIC BRUSHSTROKES AND BOLD COLOR TO EVOKE A SUBTLE SENSE OF PLACE. By John A. Parks

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here are times in painting when suggestion is more powerful than careful and complete description, when a brushstroke can serve as a whole tree, or an area of loose, watery wash can summon an entire ocean. Instead of engaging in a meticulous account of the world, the artist presents an array of hints and simpliications, relying on the viewer to complete the vision. To do this, the artist must ind exactly the right set of clues to trigger the appropriate response, something that requires a deep understanding of the properties and possibilities of the medium. he viewer, meanwhile, generally interprets and reads sense into the image. his approach is central to the watercolors of Steve Griggs, a Colorado-based artist whose work is composed largely of cues and suggestions that, when taken together, add up to highly evocative—and extremely satisfying—pictures. “I keep ‘viewer completion’ in mind and allow just enough information for viewers to know what’s being expressed,” says the artist. “I allow them to enter into the scene and bring their own images and experiences to complete the painting. I believe this is what helps to create a painting that’s alive and that can tell many stories to many people.”

A Painter of Places Griggs divides his work into landscapes and cityscapes, and he’s equally at home with throngs of people as he is with forests and mountains. “Essentially, I’m a painter of places,” he says. Gifted with an almost-photographic memory, Griggs says that sometimes he’ll just glimpse a scene from a car and then be able to recall it in its entirety when he goes to work in the studio.

He collects other images in the more traditional fashion on painting trips, which he then records in sketchbooks or on canvas. Along with his commitment to visual brevity, Griggs is a master of atmosphere, imbuing his work with a sense of narrative. Many of his paintings evoke watery gray light and project a relective moodiness that can be highly afecting. Feelings produced by the work often emerge from the story behind the image.

ABOVE Saturday in the Park (watercolor on paper, 28x20) OPPOSITE Shape Shifter (watercolor on paper, 10x13)

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At Rest (watercolor on paper, 13x10) and its value study

Sailing Boldly In At Rest (above), for example, we’re presented with a pared-down view of a sailboat loating in an expanse of water. “It’s a painting about the end of the sailing season,” explains Griggs. “It’s about knowing that continuing to sail is risky because hazardous winter storms arise quickly. But, choosing not to sail means missing the absolute beauty of autumn. his sailor has found a place of peace and rest amid the fall color and still water.” With this information, the painting takes on a new dimension. he moody, autumnal light carries with it the threat of bad weather, and the presence of the sailboat indicates a sailor who’s chancing his luck. To reinforce this feeling, Griggs has engaged in a very physical bit of painting. “he background was applied aggressively: wet-into-wet with rich, thick paint strokes,” he says. “Despite the way I approached the background, as the paint settled and melded together, it became placid and retained the chroma and beauty of each color,” the artist continues. “I wanted the boat to be of-center, not as

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the focal point, but as a participant in the magic happening around it, with sails down and secure, as it loated on the glassy, warm-gray water. It relects the momentary peace of this part of the season and the oneness of the moment.” Griggs also notes that At Rest carries with it a more personal meaning. Now in his early 60s, the artist is committing himself to painting fulltime after a career as a designer. “he painting expresses where I am in my own life journey: entering the fall of life, but at rest and in love with the rich colors of my world. I know winter is coming, but I’m sailing boldly, and I don’t want to miss a moment of the spectacular fall I have ahead of me.” Powerful as this narrative is, Griggs says that it’s an invention, essentially a work of iction. “he background washes were a continuation of some washes I’d been working on in other landscapes, and the boat was drawn from some sketches I did in Egg Harbor, Wis.,” he recalls. “he tree marks were scratched in with my pen knife. I do lift sometimes, with tissue or a sponge, but rarely. Mostly I choose to scratch back to the white paper or a warmer wash beneath the dark, heavier glaze while it’s still damp.” Griggs keeps other techniques in his arsenal, including the use of granulation medium to create more

A Sketchy Vibe Although his paintings are often achieved at a fast pace, Griggs develops ideas and images over long periods of time, often working them up in sketchbooks and then making multiple versions of a finished piece. “I love my sketchbooks,” he says. “I ‘live’ in them and have done so for most of my life. I usually go through a book about every two months or so, sometimes even one in a month. “I make it a practice of putting the date on the first page, so I have a reference point for where I was and what I was doing during that period of the year,” Griggs continues. “I include everything from quotations, inspirational statements and my own thoughts, to exercises for working on a new way to make a painting or explore a new theme. I do a lot of practice paintings and drawings in the pages as well. And, sometimes I’ll even jot down a stray phone number or grocery list in them.” Griggs stresses the importance of continuous work and engagement. “I believe it’s important to do something every day to keep the muscle memory at a high level. Sometimes I’ll draw or paint figures or groups of people in a social setting to keep these skills sharp. I work out things like format, composition, color and value by painting and drawing in my books, so many of my final paintings have a direct link to my sketchbook.” One example of this is Beneficence of Nature (on page 42), a painting that began as an experiment in a sketchbook. “I had bought two new colors—turquoise and quinacridone sienna,” he says. “I wanted to see what I could do with them.” From his first free sketch, augmented with a little ultramarine, Griggs eventually developed a final painting.

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Sage Advice Griggs, who’s an enthusiastic workshop teacher, offers advice and inspiration to beginners. “I like to encourage others to look to their artist within and begin to explore and free their talent,” he says. “At the end of a workshop, my hope is that each individual will leave with paintings that are expressions of his or her own voice, not a copy of my work. “On a practical level,” Griggs continues, “at the beginning of a workshop, I encourage the participants to stand up instead of sitting to paint; this frees them to move. “I also tell beginning painters to take risks, to avoid comparing their work to other artists’ and to have fun.”

LEFT Beneficence of Nature (watercolor on paper, 13½x9½) and its sketchbook beginnings OPPOSITE Impossible Dreamer (watercolor on paper, 9½x16)

textured surfaces. He also has a spray bottle that he has altered so that it emits an uneven, spattering spray. his can give a lively, variegated texture to an area of painting. Both of these techniques incorporate an element of chance, something the artist embraces. “Sometimes I ind myself just watching the paint as it dries,” he says. “It’s always exciting.”

Working Through the Challenges Because Griggs adopts an open style and assertive techniques, he’s able to establish a lively rhythm of work. “I generally paint quickly,” he says, “which keeps the subjects as simply expressed shapes. Over the years, I’ve let go of the usual methods of painting. While I know how to paint in a ‘traditional’ watercolor style, I’ve

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developed my own style of painting that pushes the boundaries of traditional or step-by-step methods. I love exploring what watercolor can do—and how simple brushmarks can afect people.” Griggs inds that his major painting challenges are more cerebral than technical. “At times I ind it challenging to control the critical voices in my head that are constantly trying to deine for me what’s good, acceptable and worth submitting for exhibition or sale,” he says. “I also ind it challenging to work through the moments when I seem to be stagnating,” Griggs continues, “but every painting seems to have a turning point where it begins to inally come together. I have to remember to trust the process and keep going until things fall into place. I ind it diicult, sometimes, to stop painting at that moment when I’ve said just enough. If I keep going, I’ve said too much.”

A Personal Connection In the end, Griggs is clear that what’s ultimately important to him is the connection to others that he achieves through his painting. “he most rewarding response to my work is for the viewer to have an immediate reaction to the story or the beauty expressed in my paintings,” he says. “People who’ve purchased my paintings tell me they see something new and diferent in the work each time they look.” John A. Parks (johnaparks.com) is a painter, a writer and a member of the faculty of the School of Visual Arts in New York.

Meet the Artist Steve Griggs (stevegriggswatercolor.com) was born in Detroit and studied product design at Michigan State University. Taking courses in painting and drawing as part of the program, his interest in watercolor developed. He studied further at Art Center College of Design and then took up a career in the design world, eventually working in interior design. His work took him to Denver, where he now lives, although many of his paintings remain inspired by his native Michigan. His watercolors have been exhibited widely, and he has garnered many prizes, including the Colorado Watercolor Society State Exhibition Best of Show award in 2017. He’s currently transitioning into life as a fulltime painter. He’s a signature member of the Rocky Mountain National Watermedia Society and the Colorado Watercolor Society.

Turn for a demo

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demo

The Long Road to a Painting Steve Griggs shares his process for creating a work that offers a personal connection for each viewer.

Photo

No matter what type of artist one is, there’s no denying that it takes discipline, practice, tenacity and commitment to develop not only the technical skill, but also the artistry to make a piece effective. Of course, not everyone is attracted to the same thing, which makes art wonderful and exciting. I don’t paint using a realistic style, although I find great beauty in realism and have tremendous respect for what it takes to represent a scene as realistically as possible. I choose, instead, to paint in a style that’s loose and evocative, in a medium that can be unruly and unforgiving. Painting in this way isn’t without its challenges. So many factors can influence whether a painting is captivating or just ordinary, and whether the viewer enters the scene or simply sees it from the outside. I’m never the master of the paint. In this style of watercolor painting, the paint and the artist agree to a respectful relationship. I often have to practice a painting several times before I get it just right. Sometimes people ask me how long it took to do a painting. My tongue-in-cheek response is “62 years.” While not entirely true, I’ve been painting for the majority of my life, either on my own or as part of my formal education. Each painting is influenced by those years of practice and schooling. This is a series of practice sketches and paintings I used to create Coming Home. Although I started with a photograph, the intention was never to re-create the scene as much as to “infer” it, changing the perspective slightly and letting the viewer complete the story. —steve griggs

I took this reference photo on a cloudy autumn day in northern Michigan. As you can see, the trees were just beginning to change. I was particularly taken with the red tree in the center.

Sketches I mused in my sketchbook, contemplating the painting’s composition. Should I move the trees to the right side of the road? Should I crop horizontally or vertically? Tightly or loosely? What type of brushstrokes should I use? I also explored values and color—and even the painting’s title.

Preliminary Studies Next, I did a few quick painting studies to help me determine how I wanted to paint the perspective of the road. I wanted the viewer to think about where the road was headed. What’s just beyond what can be seen? In the sketch on the right, I left the red tree obscured by the others, with just a hint of color peeking through.

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Artist’s Toolkit PAPER

• Arches or Fabriano 90-lb. and 140-lb. rough WATERCOLOR

• Winsor & Newton Cotman for sketching and preliminary studies; Daniel Smith and Holbein for paintings MOST-USED COLORS

• French ultramarine blue, cobalt blue, cerulean blue, manganese blue, cadmium red light, alizarin crimson, burnt sienna, cadmium yellow light, pyrrole red, quinacridone sienna, green turquoise light, cobalt teal blue, neutral tint, sepia, indigo BRUSHES

First, a Test

• Princeton Neptune and Escoda Versatil

In this practice painting, I focused on the road in order to draw the viewer’s eye all the way to the horizon line.

Final In the final painting, I slightly adjusted the road’s perspective, offering more than the photo showed and letting the colors of the tree come forward with their beautiful dance. I named this painting Coming Home (watercolor on paper, 14x21½); I grew up in Michigan, and whenever I’m there, it feels like home. The viewer, however, might have an altogether different experience when looking at this painting. That’s my goal: to paint a scene that allows viewers to connect with whatever story it’s telling them. WA ArtistsNetwork.com 45

Bright Ideas

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lthough I have a serious case of wanderlust and travel almost annually to places such as Budapest, Lisbon and the Amali Coast to draw, sketch and paint, there’s something to be said for a quick art getaway just a couple of hours from home. It doesn’t require a passport; it’s cost-efective; and it provides uninterrupted days of artistic exploration. Five years ago my close friend, Pam Garrison; my sister, Carol Mulvenon; and I decided to begin a yearly January pilgrimage to the desert for winter art retreats. Making a trip for the sole purpose of drawing and painting together over a long weekend felt like the perfect way to ring in the new year. So, each year, sometime in mid-January, we converge on Palm Springs with our sun hats, stacks of sketchbooks, inspirational art books, watercolors, brushes and loads of ideas. It’s a luxury to devote an entire three-day weekend to art-making at a mid-century vacation rental with a pool and a Jacuzzi. Our retreat spot is just a 90-minute drive for Pam and me, and an easy light for Carol, who’s usually escaping Midwestern snowstorms and freezing temperatures. Who says you have to travel far and wide to fuel your creativity?

A Journey Near Home An annual weekend art retreat stokes the creative fires all year long. By Mary Ann Moss

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PHOTOS COURTESY OF MARY ANN MOSS

LEFT TO RIGHT: Pam, Carol and me

FACE IT All year long, Pam, Carol and I send one another emails and texts of things we want to try and paint at our art retreat. Of course, some ideas fall by the wayside, but we always make time for portraits of all kinds. A rousing session of blindcontour portraits, for example, always leads to gales of laughter.

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The art retreat isn’t about making art. It’s about play—making marks on paper that sometimes look like something … and sometimes don’t.

ABOUT ME A public school teacher in Los Angeles by day, I moonlight as an artist by night. I’ve got bookcases filled with handbound stacks of visual journals, sketchbooks and travel journals. For more than a decade, I’ve been blabbering about my art and travel exploits to anyone who will listen on my blog, Dispatch From LA (.). In between keeping sketchbooks, traveling and educating young students, I occasionally get a big idea and turn it into an online class (. /--).

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MORE THAN ART Our only goal is to play and explore inside the covers of our sketchbooks. And, that’s exactly what we do for hours at a time, occasionally taking a break to eat, pour a glass of wine or dive into the pool.

LINGERING EFFECTS Our annual Palm Springs art retreat beckons to us quietly throughout the year, like a giant moon glimmering on the horizon. All through the spring, it becomes a soft halo of light that settles around our daily lives, reminding us of the lovely date in the desert we’ve just shared. As the year draws to a close, we turn our faces toward the desert, knowing that in another month or so, rain or shine, we’ll gather there, like we always have, for another art-filled playdate.

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LEFT The Museum Is Now Closed (watercolor on paper, 11¼x7¼) RIGHT The View From 11B (watercolor on paper, 26x20)

Taking on the City A LOVE FOR TRAVEL AND AN INTUITIVE APPROACH TO PERSPECTIVE, SHAPE AND LIGHT INFORM INGRID E. ALBRECHT’S APPROACH TO EXPRESSIVE CITYSCAPES. By Maria Seda-Reeder 48 Watercolor artist |

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hicago-based artist Ingrid E. Albrecht never really traveled as a child—or experienced life in a big city. “My family was poor,” says the Dixon, Ill., born and raised painter. “he biggest trip we ever took was to Iowa.” But, Albrecht always felt that she’d like to travel. When she won a trip in high school to study abroad in eight European countries, it not only widened her outlook and perspective, but it also made a lasting impression on her artistic vision that came into play later in life. Getting there was a circuitous route, however.

OPPOSITE Meet Me at the Picasso (watercolor on paper, 20x26)

THE ROAD TO AWARENESS

BELOW The City Awakens (watercolor on paper, 26x20)

Albrecht still remembers seeing Rembrandt’s he Night Watch and Van Gogh’s A Pair of Shoes at museums on that European trip—and the impact of those moody palettes are visible in her recent body of work.

Surprisingly, she never thought that art would be a profession she’d be able to pursue. “My parents wanted me to be a nurse,” she says, explaining that when she was considering future career paths, “women were either nurses, teachers or secretaries.” Albrecht entered nursing training out of high school, “hated it,” switched to dietetics and inally into teaching. When she had the opportunity to go to Argentina as a reading specialist,

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teaching speed and remedial reading courses after college graduation, she took it. In doing so, Albrecht had the chance to travel all over South America. Upon her return trips back to Argentina from Dixon, she’d make sure to stop through a new country she’d never been to before. In the mid-70s, she took a job as a bilingual language arts instructor in San José, Costa Rica, driving herself down the Pan-American Highway in a Datsun 240Z. “Art was nowhere in my mind,” she says, “and yet all of these experiences of interacting with and learning about other cultures made me aware of my surroundings and helped me become who I am today. I think that to be an

“WHEN I CREATE, I WANT PEOPLE TO SPEND A LITTLE MORE TIME LOOKING AT MY PIECE. HOW DO I ACCOMPLISH THAT? I FIND A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE.” artist, you have to be aware. You have to have experienced life in some way.” After becoming disillusioned with teaching at the elementary level as a bilingual irst grade teacher back in Elgin, Ill., Albrecht began to take a few art classes. While in school, one ArtistsNetwork.com 51

OPPOSITE Clearance 12' 5" (watercolor on paper, 26x20) BELOW Train’s Late, I’m Late, Please Wait (watercolor on paper, 26x20)

of her teachers noticed her talents and convinced her to enroll at he American Academy of Art, in Chicago. Albrecht graduated from the academy in 1988 and gave herself ive years in which to establish a gallery and working studio where she could teach other aspiring artists—and she never looked back. Some 20 years later, in the middle of the economic recession, she did the same thing again, setting up a working studio called Ingrid’s Originals, Inc., this time in Chicago. “It was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made,” she says.

THE FOCUS ON PERSPECTIVE Watercolor artist Irving Shapiro was an early teacher and inluence on Albrecht’s work, and she says that he encouraged his students to “paint what you know.”

While Albrecht’s lifelong interest in learning about other cultures remains steadfast, her artistic output has become less about painting “things” and more about taking an intuitive approach to “designing more with shape and value,” she says. “When I create, I want people to spend a little more time looking at my piece. How do I accomplish that?” she asks rhetorically, answering her own question in the same breath. “I ind a diferent perspective.” To that aim, years ago, when she was still painting “things,” Albrecht created a small series based on studies from the vantage point underneath a peony bush that was backlit by the sun. She sold all three pieces in that series and attributes those sales to the distinctive perspective she was able to take on the common subject. “When creating a new reality, you need to give people something they don’t usually see,” she says. his radical use of perspective is evident in Albrecht’s recent “Picasso” series featuring the Picasso public sculpture in downtown Chicago’s Daley Plaza, but from several stories above. Each piece frames the massive sculpture from an aerial point of view. Albrecht describes how she heavily edited and deleted her source imagery to achieve the unique compositions. “It all goes back to design and only including what’s important—not illing in all the blanks.” For Meet Me at the Picasso (on pages 50-51), one of three in the series, she used “big shapes” of contrast, along with patterns of light and shadow crisscrossing the paper for added detail. he result is an impression of the kind of raking light that occurs on cloudless evenings when shadows loom long and the sun hangs low in the sky. his approach takes a recognizable subject and makes it more evocative.

THE STRUCTURE OF LIGHT Albrecht has a self-proclaimed fascination with alleys and light iltered through cityscapes. he contrast between igure and monumental

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Artist’s Toolkit SURFACE

• YUPO 144-lb., Arches 140-lb. cold-pressed and Fabriano 300-lb. rough PAINT

• Daniel Smith and Winsor & Newton BRUSHES

• Escoda’s Perla Toray white, Prado and Versatil synthetic brushes in various sizes. Albrecht has used expensive kolinsky brushes before, but also says that she does “magical work with old scruffy brushes.” MISCELLANEOUS

• white spiral-bound Kilamanjaro sketchbooks by Cheap Joe’s, although the artist rarely makes a preliminary drawing on the paper prior to painting. “I’m more of an intuitive painter,” Albrecht says, likening the restrictions of pencil marks on a surface to “painting in a coloring book.”

ABOVE Alley Grit (watercolor on paper, 26x20) OPPOSITE Here’s Lookin’ at You, Kid (watercolor on paper, 26x20)

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architecture within those uniquely urban locations allows for the sharp contrast between light and dark. Alley Grit (above) is an example of this artistic inclination. To create the angles that allow for such contrast, Albrecht uses cut-up credit cards to apply, stamp, scrape and push paint around on the surface—making strokes that “are far more intriguing than a regular brushstroke and that enable me to ind ways to say the

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same thing, but just a little bit diferently.” Such marks delineate many of the ire escapes throughout the painting. Albrecht uses the implication of blinding light in the painting as a contrast to the dark recesses of shadow in the titular alleyway. Figures are dwarfed by architecture, but ultimately nature is bigger than any man-made ediice. As the space opens up to light in the center of the composition, details of structure dissolve, and the painter’s marks hint at the presence of architecture or mankind. In fact, people in Albrecht’s paintings often are rendered as silhouttes, alluding to the universality and anonymity of big-city living.

THE ART OF KNOWING

Meet the Artist

Albrecht typically works on multiple pieces simultaneously. “he way I work and think, if I were working on one piece at a time, I’d get bored,” she says. Working on multiple pieces “cleans the slate and lets me move on to something else. It keeps my focus clear.” By working on several pieces simultaneously, Albrecht has plenty of time to allow paintings to “rest,” afording her the opportunity to decide whether a painting is complete. When working on YUPO, in particular, she says, “You have to learn to really think before you spray.” She waits until she’s absolutely convinced that the painting is inished before spraying the inal coat. “Knowing when a painting is complete comes with experience,” she continues. “hat’s something that doesn’t happen right out of art school; I’ve learned that I’m my own best teacher.”

Ingrid E. Albrecht (ingridsartoriginals.com), of Chicago, Ill., has a bachelor’s of science and a master’s of art from Southern Illinois University, and a fine arts degree from The American Academy of Art. She’s the owner of Ingrid’s Originals, Inc., where she teaches ongoing art classes and workshops. The artist, who has received numerous awards and has held several solo exhibitions, is a signature member of the American Watercolor Society and the Watercolor Honor Society; an associate member of the National Watercolor Society; a life member of the Transparent Watercolor Society of America; and a signature and life member of the Illinois Watercolor Society. Her work appears in selected collections around the world, including the U.S. headquarters of the Jane Goodall Institute, in Silver Springs, Md., and that of H.R.H. Prince Charles, in London.

THE BEAUTY OF FAILURE Albrecht’s Zen-like attitude has allowed her a good deal of creative freedom to experiment—and to embrace mistakes in all of her creative endeavors. his is a message the longtime teacher shares with her students. “I tell them that failure will be their best teacher—that not failing should be less of a goal than simply trying to fail better than the last time around. You’ve got to learn how to turn lemons into lemonade,” she continues. “You have to be Eastern in your thinking. Don’t say ‘Oh, my gosh, I’ve ruined it.’ Instead, igure out what you can do to work with what you have.” Albrecht’s own life as an intrepid explorer—of cities, countries, cultures and creativity—proves that the teacher truly is also the master. WA Maria Seda-Reeder is an arts writer, independent curator and adjunct professor of art at the University of Cincinnati and the Art Academy of Cincinnati. ArtistsNetwork.com 55

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Use Your

words AN ILLUSTRATED TRAVEL JOURNAL IS A WONDERFUL WAY TO CAPTURE THE STORY OF YOUR ADVENTURES IN BOTH WORDS AND PICTURES. By Brenda Swenson

t Vernazza, Italy (8½x11): This page captures a wonderful memory of the week I spent in Cinque Terre, hiking from one village to the next and sketching along the way. I learned that a terrible flood swept through this village a few months later.

here’s an excitement to sketching on location that’s diferent than working from photos in my studio. I enjoy being surrounded by the history, culture and sounds of a place. And, when I take the time to record a scene within the pages of my sketchbook, something happens that touches my heart. he moment becomes a part of me—a memory of a place and time that I’ll carry all of my days. By merging both images and words on a page, an illustrated travel journal allows me to tell an even bigger story. he pages contain the ups and downs of travel. I feel free to express myself. And, by committing to the practice, my illustrated journals allow me to see tangible growth within the pages. Whether my travel adventure consists of a short weekend up the coast or several weeks in a distant land, I travel to see, to experience and to explore the world—one sketch at a time. My travel journals are precious reminders of places I’ve been and my experiences along the way. ArtistsNetwork.com 57

SKETCHING ON THE GO As a workshop instructor, I travel frequently throughout the United States, and once a year I take a group of workshop students to Europe. Before I’m scheduled to teach, I like to spend a few days exploring and sketching the location on my own. I love the experience of seeing a place for the irst time; the feeling of excitement is tangible. I’ll sketch anything that catches my eye: street scenes, people, open markets, cathedrals, my lunch at a café, the interior of a church. I might walk 8 or more miles in a day and make multiple sketches. I’ve learned that before I start a sketch, I need to consider how much time is available. hat way I can keep my expectations realistic as to what’s possible to start and inish. If I don’t, I know that I’ll become frustrated and

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feel my skills are lacking, when, in fact, I simply didn’t allow myself enough time. So, my irst step when arriving at a location is to walk around for a few minutes to get a sense of the place. When I ind a subject that really excites me— maybe the light or the shadows, or a particularly impressive view—I begin to sketch. Most of the time I sketch in ink; I love the look of a solid, committed line. When I’m using ink, I tend to look longer and draw with a greater sense of understanding. I sometimes use pencil, but a pen drawing feels more like a complete thought to me.

Costa Brava (10x16): This page conjures tasty memories of my time in Catalonia in northeastern Spain where we enjoyed tapas—the name for the snacks, canapés or small plates, which originated in Spain.

“The sketch hunter moves through life as he finds it, not passing negligently the things he loves, but stopping to know them, and to note them down in the shorthand of his sketchbook.” —ROBERT HENRI

Inspiration Now, Inspiration Later

TOP LEFT Prague Journal (8½x11): I spent a week in Prague, the capital city of the Czech Republic, before meeting up with artist friends and traveling on to Germany. I did 58 sketches during the three weeks I was in Prague and Germany. ABOVE A photograph of Prague with the Church of St. Nicholas in the center. LEFT Prague (watercolor on paper, 15x11): My sketchbooks are an endless source of inspiration. This is an example of one of many paintings inspired by sketches from my journals. The photos I take during my travels supply additional information about lighting and architectural details.

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I’m not against photography, and I still take photos when I’m traveling. It’s important to have reference photos for painting architectural details, light, shadows and signage. Also, when I’m working on-site, I never know when something might block my view, or whether I’ll be chased of or rained out. But when I’m able to make a sketch, I know I’ll never forget what I saw. he image will be forever ingrained in my mind.

MAKE A NOTE OF IT You may not consider yourself a “writer,” but you don’t have to be a wordsmith. We all have something to say, and there are easy ways to jumpstart journaling. Because our senses are great for awakening a memory, for example, I’ll often make a note of a certain smell or sound, or other sensation. It might be the smell of bread baking or cut grass, the feel of the warm sun or a cold wind, the

ABOVE Oppede, France (11x10): This sketch is a montage of images drawn on a page to tell a bigger story. The words become part of the design of the page.

RIGHT Poble Espanyol, Barcelona (8½x11): This Spanish Village Museum featured architectural influences of Barcelona.

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Sketch Supplies SKETCH BAG

• I use a canvas rigger bag. PALETTE

• A folding palette box with 18 wells works for me. PAINTS

• I use the following watercolors (Daniel Smith unless otherwise noted): Hansa yellow medium, raw sienna (Winsor & Newton), quinacridone gold, permanent yellow deep, anthraquinoid scarlet, quinacridone burnt orange, permanent alizarin crimson, quinacridone rose, burnt sienna (Winsor & Newton), imperial purple, French ultramarine, cobalt blue, manganese blue hue, phthalo blue GS, cobalt teal blue, green gold, phthalo turquoise, phthalo green (blue shade) and lunar black BRUSHES

• Da Vinci natural and synthetic rounds, sizes 6 to 14; Da Vinci Series 5080 flats, size 20mm; and Miller’s 1.5 bold wash

St. Paul de Mausole, Saint-Rémy-deProvence, France (watercolor on paper; 11x5): This is a sketch of the mental asylum where Vincent van Gogh was hospitalized. SKETCHBOOK

noise of leaf blowers or the sound of church bells ringing. When I re-read my notes, it engages my senses as if I’m right there in the moment. Keep in mind that the words you put down on the sketchbook page can act as both an informative element and a creative one. I may use them as a design element— to tie multiple images together, to balance a page, to serve as a page heading and even to cover a mistake! When I’m traveling, I do my sketching and painting during the day, and leave my writing for the evening, when sketching is less practical. I keep an envelope in the back of my sketchbook for ticket stubs and receipts I collect during the day. I’ve learned that these items provide helpful details later, when I sit down to write.

• I like a Stillman & Birn, Beta, stitch-bound, soft cover, in both a 8½x5½-inch size (which opens to 8½x11) and a 10x8-inch size (which opens to 10x16). Or, I make my own 11x10-inch sketchbook using Bockingford 140-lb. cold-pressed watercolor paper and/or drawing papers. PENS

• I like everything from disposable Faber-Castell Pitt pens to pricey fountain pens, for which I use both water-soluble and waterproof ink. MISCELLANEOUS

• Collapsible water bottle and bowl; sponge; spray bottle; cotton rag, paper towels rolled up; 2B mechanical pencils; and erasers

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On a (Sketching) Mission Of the 21 historic missions in Calfornia, built between 1769 and 1823, I’ve sketched 17. One of my favorites is the historic Santa Barbara Mission, founded in 1786. The white stucco buildings with red-tile roofs reflect the Spanish colonial heritage of this small coastal city. The beautiful facade, a blend of Roman and mission architectural styles, has earned it the name, “Queen of the Missions.” I made the sketch below from a large park directly across the street from the mission. Instead of having the building dominate the sketch, I placed roses high in the foreground, pushing the building into the distance. I also wanted the sketch to look softer, to reflect the beautiful soft light of the day. To get the effect, I used Pilot Iroshizuku Fuyu-syogun, a light gray bottled ink. I sketched Santa Barbara Mission in a Stillman & Birn 8½x11-inch Beta Series sketchbook.

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Yes, you’ll ind that these two practices—painting and writing— require diferent parts of the brain. I’m notorious for spelling things wrong, for instance, but I like to recall what a friend once said: “Only a boring mind can think of only one way to spell a word.”

CREATE SOMETHING FOR YOURSELF My travel journals are stitch-bound, which makes it impossible to remove a page without destroying the book. Someone once told me it was a shame that I couldn’t sell my journal. I was surprised. To this person, the artwork needed to be for sale to be of value. But my sketchbooks and illustrated journals are of value to me for so many reasons. Whereas my paintings are me all dressed up and on my best

Munich Airport (8½x11) Traveling requires a lot of sitting in airports—a perfect opportunity to sketch people.

behavior, my sketches are me when I’m alone or with a trusted friend— relaxed, playful and vulnerable. Although it’s not possible to relive that initial moment of discovery when experiencing a new city or country for the irst time, I do have an entire bookcase illed with sketchbooks and illustrated journals that can stir my memories. I treasure these books. To me they’re priceless. And truly, what’s the purpose of art if it doesn’t feed the soul of the one who created it? So, give yourself permission to create, even if the creation is something no one else will see. WA

Meet the Artist Artist and workshop teacher Brenda Swenson (swensonsart. net) is the author of Keeping a Watercolor Sketchbook and Steps to Success in Watercolor (Artist’s Library). Her paintings and sketches have also been featured in a number of competition art books, including Splash 11, 12, 14 and 19 (North Light Books), as well as many art magazines. An active participant in the arts community, Swenson has served on the boards of directors for both National Watercolor Society and Watercolor West.

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Burning Question

What place is at the top of your have-to-paintthere list?

Michael Reardon

Thomas W Schaller

Anne McCartney

What a great joy and privilege it is to lead a life that allows me to travel to the far corners of the earth to paint. But in truth, I most often dream of those hidden painting spots deep within my own imagination. They’re always just around the next corner, just out of sight, which keeps me looking.

There are so many places I’d love to paint, but one that has jumped to the front of the line for me is the Arctic. Because it’s one of the most rapidly changing places on the planet, I would love to be able to document its unique beauty before it changes beyond recognition. To be able to capture its vast landscape and its unusual light would be a true challenge and pleasure.

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ILLUSTRATIONS BY BEAST FROM EAST/GETTY IMAGES

I was able to spend two weeks this spring in a painting paradise at the Villa d’Este. This 16th-century villa near Rome is famous for its terraced Renaissance garden and dozens of fountains. I’ve long been fascinated by the interplay of water, landscape and architecture, and I knew this villa would be a gold mine of potential paintings.

Tim Saternow I have to paint what’s right outside my door. I don’t have to travel far. With such extraordinary variety and visual excitement just within the few blocks from my home in New York City, why go anywhere else? I deeply appreciate all the areas of the world that I’ve visited, but they simply don’t speak to my heart and free my soul like the noisy, dirty, amazing streets of New York.

“

Like many painters, I’ve been drawn repeately to Piazza San Marco in Venice. No matter how many times I go, I find new inspiration to paint. —Paul Jackson

”

Susan Weintraub There are many places I want to paint, but the one place I have to paint is my Brooklyn, N.Y., neighborhood of Brighton Beach. I’ve lived here all my life, and the more I paint this vibrant seaside community, the more I understand who I am and the more I feel connected to my past.

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SPANNOCCHIA | SEPTEMBER 16-22, 2018

INSTRUCTORS

Immersive. Transportive. Restorative. Join Artists Network for Retreat to Tuscany, a weeklong art pilgrimage to the Italian countryside. Two celebrated painter-instructors, Melanie Vote and Thomas W. Schaller will mentor you toward the creation of your best work during intimate oil and watercolor workshops that will take full advantage of the gorgeous surroundings and rustic setting.

Thomas W. Schaller

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RE GIS T E R ArtistsNetwork.com/Retreat-Tuscany-2018

Melanie Vote

Live an Artful Life

From meditations in the studio to trending colors, urban sketchers and Renaissance masters, Artists Network connects you with the artists, ideas, inspiration, and skills that encourage art making and living an artful life. Artistsnetwork.com

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ADVERTISER’S INDEX

Learning, Laughter, and Friendships in an Inspiring, & Inviting Environment

Call Toll-Free 1-888-665-0044 Elizabeth St Hilaire Jun 24-30, 2018 Brenda Swenson Jul 1-7, 2018 Kathyanne White Jul 8-14, 2018 Fabio Cembranelli Jul 15-21, 2018 David Dunlop Jul 22-28, 2018 Patti Mollica Jul 28-Aug 1, 2018 Howard Rose Aug 1-5, 2018 Mel Stabin Aug 5-11, 2018 Self-Directed Retreat Sep 2-8, 2018 Lorenzo Chavez Sep 9-15, 2018 Judi Betts Sep 16-22, 2018 Henry Yan Sep 23-29, 2018 Skip Lawrence Sep 30-Oct 6, 2018 Kellee Wynne Conrad Mar 17-23, 2019 Patti Mollica Mar 27-31, 2019 Alain Picard Mar 31-Apr 6, 2019 Alvaro Castagnet Apr 10-14, 2019 Howard Rose Apr 14-18, 2019 Koo Schadler May 5-11, 2019 Barbara Nechis May 15-19, 2019 Robert Burridge May 19-25, 2019

artworkshops.com 68 Watercolor artist

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ROBERT BURRIDGE

• Burridge Studio App • Free Online Newsletter • Free Weekly BobBlast • Current Workshop Schedule • Workshops in Bob's Studio

RobertBurridge.com

Aquarelle Studios And Galleries ............................71 Art Gallery Frames ................................................. 68 Art In The Mountains ...............................................71 Birgit O’Connor.......................................................25 Blick Art Materials ................................................. BC Caran d’Ache ............................................................5 Cincinnati Art Club ................................................ 69 Colart America ..................................................... IBC Creative Art Workshops .........................................71 F+W............................... 7, 14, 18, 19, 25, 66, 67, 69, 70 General Pencil ...........................................................9 Hudson River Valley .............................................. 68 Huntsville Museum Of Art .................................... 69 Jan Sitts ................................................................... 69 John C. Campbell Folk School.............................. 68 Kanuga ................................................................... 68 MacPhersons ............................................................3 Northeast Watercolor Society ............................. 69 Northwest Watercolor Society ............................ 69 Quiller Gallery, LLC ...................................................8 Renaissance School Of Art .................................. 68 Robbie Laird Art Studio ........................................ 69 Robert Burridge Studio ......................................... 68 South Carolina Watermedia Society .................. 69 Strathmore Division ............................................. IFC The Teaching Company .........................................15 Tom Lynch ................................................................71 Tony Couch ............................................................ 69 Wiegardt Gallery ...................................................... 7

Robbie Laird

WATERCOLOR WORKSHOPS

OHIO August 28-31, 2018 Ohio Watercolor Society Michael McEnroe [email protected]

Mixed Media Workshops

OREGON October 8-12, 2018 Watercolor Society of Oregon Beth Verheyden [email protected] COLORADO November 6-8, 2018 Colorado Watercolor Society Terrey Herrod [email protected] Capturing COSTA RICA In Color Mar 31 - Apr 6, 2019 Franco Marini [email protected] www.RobbieLaird.com

CALL FOR ENTRIES DEADLINE: JUNE 15, 2018 Artistic Excellence. Chance to win $2,000. Plus, winning work will be spotlighted in Southwest Art (December 2018 issue). All media, styles and subjects accepted.

DEADLINE: JULY 2, 2018 (EARLY-BIRD PRICING) Watermedia Showcase. $4,500 in awards and $1,000 in material prizes. Plus winning work will be published in Watercolor Artist magazine (April 2019).

DEADLINE: JULY 16, 2018 The Cincinnati Art Club’s 50th Annual Juried Competition, ViewPoint 50, 2018. Over $5,000 in cash and prizes. September 14 - October 13. Limit 4 images. Digital jpeg entries only, on line or by mail on CD. $50 first image, $25 second and third image, fourth free. All traditional media accepted. Final judge Aline Ordman. For a prospectus go to: www.cincinnatiartclub.com tab ViewPoint. Enter through café www.callforentry.org/login.php, ViewPoint 50. Questions: [email protected]

DEADLINE: JULY 24, 2018 North East Watercolor Society 42nd International Juried Exhibition at Kent, CT: October 14-28, 2018. $10,000 in Awards, Joel Popadics, AWS, Juror of Awards. $30/1 entry or $40/2 entries, Entries by CD or E-mail. For prospectus, visit www.northeastws.com. Email request to [email protected] or SASE to NEWS, 866 Cadosia Rd., Hancock, NY 13783, 607/637-3412.

DEADLINE: AUGUST 4, 2018 South Carolina Watermedia Society 41st Annual National Exhibition, October 6 - November 26, 2018 at City Art, Columbia, SC. $5,000 total cash awards. Juror/Workshop: Laurie Goldstein-Warren. Workshop: September 18-20. Prospectus: scwatermedia.com

DEADLINE: AUGUST 18, 2018 Northwest Watercolor Society’s 26th Annual Membership Exhibition. Dates: October 23 - November 16, 2018 Seattle area. Awards up to $5,000 – 1st $1,000, 2nd $750, 3rd $500. Juror/Instructor Linda Baker. Digital entry/prospectus available May 14, 2018 at www.nwws.org

Oxford OH, July 9-12 Petoskey MI, July 30-Aug 2 Anacortes WA, Aug 27-30

Lac du Flambeau WI, Sept 17-21 Dallas TX, Oct 9-11 La Crosse WI, Oct 22-26

   
 

Learn at home Books and DVDs www.tonycouch.com

(678) 513-6676 ■

ALABAMA Huntsville Museum of Art 8/16-8/18/18, Huntsville. Keith Andry, Strong Design & Bold Strokes in Watercolor. 10/18-10/21/18, Huntsville. David Shevlino, Alla Prima Clothed Figure & Portrait Painting. 11/9-11/11/18, Huntsville. Lian Quan Zhen, Watercolor Painting: Let the Colors Paint Themselves. 11/15-11/17/18, Huntsville. Perry Austin, Painting the Landscape in Oil. Contact: Laura E. Smith, Director of Education/Museum Academy, 256/535-4350 x222 [email protected] or hsvmuseum.org

ARIZONA Jan Sitts AS OTHER ART ORGANIZATIONS CONTACT ME, I WILL POST PROPOSED DATES FOR UPCOMING CLASSES. 11/5-11/7/18, Sedona. Sedona Arts Center. 5/6-5/8/19 and 11/4-11/6/19, Sedona. Sedona Art Center. Contact: Debbie, 928/282-3809

Texture, Color Feeling Book available [email protected]  www.jansitts.com

CALIFORNIA

Eric Wiegardt, AWS-DF, NWS

Robert Burridge

1/20-1/27/19, Lahaina, Maui. Maui Watercolor Plein Air Workshop. Contact: Wiegardt Studio Gallery [email protected]

7/5-7/8/18, Arroyo Grande. Robert Burridge Studio Mentor Workshop. Come paint with Bob in his Studio (includes individual mentor time, demonstrations and personal theme development). 3.5 days Workshop/Mentor Program, limited to 7 enrollees. 7/11-7/15/18, Arroyo Grande. Robert Burridge 5-Day Instructional Studio Workshop in Bob’s Studio. 7/19-7/22/18, Arroyo Grande. Robert Burridge Studio Figure Painting Workshop/undraped model. Come paint with Bob in his Studio (includes individual mentor time, demonstrations and personal theme development). 4-day Workshop/Mentor Program, limited to 6 enrollees. Contact: [email protected] for fees and details.

Robbie Laird 9/19-9/21/18, Nipomo. Central Coast WS. Contact: Jerry Smith, [email protected]

Jan Sitts

INDIANA Art In The Mountains 9/13-9/15/18, Indianapolis. Mary Whyte, The Portrait and The Figure. Watercolor - studio. All levels welcome. Contact: Tracy Culbertson, 503/930-4572 [email protected] or www.artinthemountains.com

MARYLAND Vladislav Yeliseyev AIS, NWS 10/1-10/3/18, Stevensville. Chesapeake Fine Art Studio. 3 day watercolor studio workshop. Contact: 410/200-8019

6/8-6/11/18, San Clemente. San Clemente Art Supply. Contact: Heather, 949/369-6603

MASSACHUSETTS

COLORADO Robbie Laird

6/11-6/15/18, Glochester. Contact: Northeast Art Workshops, 978/729-4970 northeastartworkshops.com

11/6-11/8/18, Colorado Watercolor Society. Contact: Terrey Herrod, [email protected]

MICHIGAN

Stephen Quiller

Tony Couch, AWS

8/16-8/26/18, Creede. Intensive Color and Watermedia Workshop. Quiller Gallery. Contact: Marta Quiller, 719/658-2741 [email protected] 9/23-9/29/18, Creede. Plein Air Watermedia Workshop. 4 UR Ranch. Contact: Robin Christensen, 719/658-2202 [email protected] or www.4urranch.com

7/30-8/2/18, Petoskey. Contact: 678/513-6676, [email protected]

Jan Sitts

6/25-6/28/18, Saginaw. Wiegardt’s Painterly Acrylics. Contact: Saginaw Area Watermedia Artists [email protected]

June or July 2019, Gunnison Art Center. Dates TBA.

FLORIDA Tom Lynch 1/7-1/10/19, Boynton Beach. 3/5-3/8/19, Punta Gorda. Contact: 630/851-2652 [email protected] or www.TomLynch.com

Jan Sitts 2/18-2/21/19, Punta Gorda.

WORKSHOPS

Jan Sitts

Vladislav Yeliseyev AIS, NWS 12/8-12/10/18, Sarasota. Florida Landscape, Plein Air Workshop. 1/26-1/28/19, Sarasota. 3-day Plein Air Workshop. February 2019, Naples. 3-day Plein Air Workshop. March 2019, Sarasota. 3-day Plein Air Workshop Contact: Marina, 941/330-6865 [email protected] or www.yeliseyevfineart.com 12/14/18, 1/7/19, 3/27/19, Bradenton. Keeton’s Art Supply. One day Watercolor workshops. Contact: 941/747-2995

GEORGIA Art In The Mountains 6/11-6/15/18 and 6/18-6/22/18, Savannah. Charles Reid, Drawing and Painting with Charles Reid. Watercolor - studio. Intermediate to advance painters. Contact: Tracy Culbertson, 503/930-4572 [email protected] or www.artinthemountains.com

HAWAII Stephen Quiller 4/8-4/12/19, Hawaii Watercolor Society. Contact: Anita Bruce, [email protected]

Birgit O’Connor

Chris Unwin Watercolor Workshop Weekly on Wednesdays. West Bloomfield, MI 48322 Contact: Chris Unwin, 248/624-4902 [email protected] or www.ChrisUnwin.net

Eric Wiegardt, AWS-DF, NWS

NEVADA Tom Lynch 8/13-8/19/19, Reno. Contact: 630/851-2652 [email protected] or www.TomLynch.com

NEW YORK Hudson River Valley Art Workshops 6/24-6/30/18, Elizabeth St Hilaire. 7/1-7/7/18, Brenda Swenson. 7/8-7/14/18, Kathyanne White. 7/15-7/21/18, Fabio Cembranelli. 7/22-7/28/18, David Dunlop. 7/28-8/1/18, Patti Mollica. 8/1-8/5/18, Howard Rose. 8/5-8/11/18, Mel Stabin. 9/2-9/8/18, Self-Directed Retreat. 9/9-9/15/18, Lorenzo Chavez. 9/16-9/22/18, Judi Betts. 9/23-9/29/18, Henry Yan. 9/30-10/6/18, Skip Lawrence. 3/17-3/23/19, Kellee Wynne Conrad. 3/27-3/31/19, Patti Mollica. 3/31-4/6/19, Alain Picard. 4/10-4/14/19, Alvaro Castagnet. 4/14-4/18/19, Howard Rose. 5/5-5/11/19, Koo Schadler. 5/15-5/19/19, Barbara Nechis. 5/19-5/25/19, Robert Burridge. Contact: 888/665-0044 [email protected] or www.artworkshops.com

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artist’s marketplace NORTH CAROLINA

OREGON

VERMONT

John C. Campbell Folk School

Art In The Mountains

Tom Lynch

6/10-6/16/18, Kathy Chastain, Watercolor for the True Beginner. $630. 6/24-6/30/18, Carolyn Molder, Summer Flowers in Pastel. $630. 7/6-7/8/18, Teri Jones, Listen, Look, & Learn – An Innovative Approach to Watercolor. $354. 7/15-7/21/18, Suzanne DesLauriers, Mountain Fantasy in Watercolor (Intergenerational). $630. 7/22-7/27/18, Jane Voorhees, Small- scale Watercolor for Beginners. $564. 7/27-7/29/18, June Rollins, Come Test the Waters. $354. 8/17-8/19/18, Kathy Chastain, Beginning Illustrated Journaling. $354. 8/26-9/1/18, Betty Brown, Intermediate Watercolor. $630. Contact: John C. Campbell Folk School Brasstown, NC 800-FOLK-SCH or www.folkschool.org

7/23-7/27/18 and 7/30-8/3/18, Bend. Herman Pekel, Be Brave and Have Fun. Watercolor- studio and plein air. All levels welcome. 8/6-8/10/18, Bend. Fabio Cembranelli, Intuitive Painting, Transcending the Subject. Watercolor - studio. Intermediate to advanced. 8/13-8/17/18, Bend. David Lobenberg, California Vibe. Studio - watercolor. All levels welcome. 8/20-8/24/18, Bend. Lian Quan Zhen, East Meets West. Watercolor - studio. All levels welcome. 8/27-8/31/18, Bend. Ward Jene Stroud, Brusho and Beyond. Watercolor - studio. All levels welcome. Contact: Tracy Culbertson, 503/930-4572 [email protected] or www.artinthemountains.com

7/24-7/25/18, Burlington. Contact: 630/851-2652 [email protected] or www.TomLynch.com

Robbie Laird

WASHINGTON

Kanuga

10/8-10/12/18, Salem. Watercolor Society of Oregon. Contact: Beth Verheyden, [email protected]

Tony Couch, AWS

3/30-4/5/19, Hendersonville. Keiko Tanabe, Jonathan Talbot, Iain Stewart, Michael Pearson, Aline Ordman, Judy Morris, Mark Mehaffey, Stephanie Goldman, Ken Goldman, Joan Fullerton, Amy D’Apice and Drew Bandish. Contact: Chris & Barbara Hutchison [email protected] or www.KanugaWatermediaWorkshops.com

Eric Wiegardt, AWS-DF, NWS 10/15-10/18/18, Landgrove. Wiegardt’s Painterly Watercolors. Contact: [email protected] or artworkshopsatthelandgroveinn.com

Vladislav Yeliseyev AIS, NWS 8/27-8/30/18, Landgrove Inn. Contact: 800/669-8466, [email protected] August 2018, Burlington. Vermont Watercolor Society 2 day Workshop. Contact: Julie Holmes, [email protected]

RHODE ISLAND

8/27-8/30/18, Anacortes. Contact: 678/513-6676, [email protected]

Vladislav Yeliseyev AIS, NWS

Tom Lynch

9/12-9/14/18, Pawtucket. Rhode Island Watercolor Society 3 day Workshop. Contact: 401/726-1876, www.riws.org

9/25-9/28/18, Clarkston. Contact: 630/851-2652 [email protected] or www.TomLynch.com

Tom Lynch

TENNESSEE

Birgit O’Connor

11/8-11/10/18, Raleigh. Contact: 630/851-2652 [email protected] or www.TomLynch.com

Tom Lynch

10/16-10/19/18, Spokane. SSW Spokane Watercolor Society. Contact: Carol Grabowski [email protected]

Vladislav Yeliseyev AIS, NWS 7/29-7/30/18, Cashier. 2 day Watercolor Plein Air Workshop. Contact: Marina, 941/330-6865, [email protected]

6/5-6/8/18, Cookeville. Contact: 630/851-2652 [email protected] or www.TomLynch.com

TEXAS Tony Couch, AWS

OHIO Tony Couch, AWS

10/9-10/11/18, Dallas. Contact: 678/513-6676, [email protected]

7/9-7/12/18, Oxford. Contact: 678/513-6676, [email protected]

Tom Lynch

Jan Sitts 9/6-9/9/18, Coupeville. Contact: Lisa, 360/678-7420 Pacific NorthWest Art School.

Eric Wiegardt, AWS-DF, NWS 7/9-7/13/18, Long Beach Peninsula. Watercolor Plein Air Workshop. Contact: Wiegardt Studio Gallery, 360/665-5976 [email protected]

8/28-8/31/18, Pepper Pike. Ohio Watercolor Society. Contact: Michael McEnroe, [email protected]

9/6-9/9/18, New Braunfels. 9/9-9/13/19, Stephenville. Contact: 630/851-2652 [email protected] or www.TomLynch.com

Tom Lynch

Jan Sitts

WEST VIRGINIA

10/17-10/20/18, Beavercreek. Contact: 630/851-2652 [email protected] or www.TomLynch.com

10/1-10/4/18, Granbury. Lake Granbury Art Association. Contact: Diana, 817/326-5629 or 817/578-1842 March or April 2019, Studio Art House. Dates TBA.

Jaimie Cordero

Robbie Laird

For questions regarding workshop contents, contact Jaimie at 786/303-5293 or [email protected]

The Art of Creative Watercolor: Inspiration and Techniques for Imaginative Drawing and Painting By Danielle Donaldson Between the covers of this book, discover the whimsical world of Danielle Donaldson. Follow exercises and start-to-finish projects in a watercolor world filled with rainbow-infused illustrations, imaginative techniques, fresh takes on color theory, perspective, composition and more! Learn to let go and dive into the details that tell your visual stories. Most importantly, learn to appreciate the unpredictable nature of watercolors and the unplanned beauty it offers you in your creative process. $24.99 · R4573 · 9781440350948 · Paperback Also available as an eBook Available at your favorite bookseller. To learn more about the full range of Artists Network products, including North Light books, visit ArtistsNetwork.com.

70 Watercolor artist

| AUGUST 2018

WISCONSIN

Workshop DVDs

Robert Burridge

Complete 4 Day

6/10-6/16/18, Lac du Flambeau. Loosen Up with Aquamedia Painting. Dillman’s Arts Workshop Retreat. Contact: 715/588-3143, [email protected] or www.dillmans.com/dcaf/future.html

Watercolor Worshops

Tony Couch, AWS 9/17-9/21/18, Lac du Flambeau. 10/22-10/26/18, La Crosse. Contact: 678/513-6676, [email protected]

INTERNATIONAL AUSTRALIA Art In The Mountains 1/5-1/18/19, Karlyn Holman, Watercolor Fun and Free New Caledonia and Gold Coast Australia Cruise/workshop. Contact: Tracy Culbertson, 503/930-4572 [email protected] or www.artinthemountains.com

CANADA Robert Burridge 6/25-6/29/18, Oakville, Ontario. Larger & Looser! Oakville Art Society. 6/30/18, Oakville, Ontario. Art Marketing for the Busy Artist. Oakville Art Society. Contact: Mary Driussi, [email protected] or www.oakvilleartsociety.com/workshops.html

Tom Lynch 7/13-7/16/18, Conception Bay. 7/18-7/21/18, Conception Bay. Contact: 630/851-2652 [email protected] or www.TomLynch.com

A Good Fortune Alexis Lavine, NWS

COSTA RICA

See Alexis Lavine’s Video Clips

Robbie Laird

and Video Clips of these artists Chris Unwin, NWS Nita Engle, AWS Soon Warren, AWS, NWS Bev Jozwiak, AWS, NWS

3/31-4/6/19, Capturing Costa Rica In Color. Contact: Franco Marini, [email protected]

CROATIA Vladislav Yeliseyev AIS, NWS 6/9-6/16/19, Painting Vacation in Croatia. Artists dream vacation! Majestic scenes of courtyards, quaint villages, old stone buildings, olives on the trees, and small fishing boats just a few subjects to name. Contact: Marina, 941/330-6865 [email protected] or www.yeliseyevfineart.com

EUROPE

ChrisUnwin.NET

WWW.   

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Art In The Mountains 10/20-11/8/19, Karlyn Holman, 9 Countries from Denmark to New Orleans. Painting days are ‘at sea’ days only. Contact: Tracy Culbertson, 503/930-4572 [email protected] or www.artinthemountains.com

FRANCE Art In The Mountains 6/10-6/14/19, Paris. Herman Pekel, watercolor- plein air intermediate to advanced. Contact: Tracy Culbertson, 503/930-4572 [email protected] or www.artinthemountains.com

GERMANY Eric Wiegardt, AWS-DF, NWS 9/15-9/29/18, Lake Constance, Friedrichshafen. Plein Air Workshop. Contact: Wiegardt Studio Gallery, 360/665-5976 [email protected]

ITALY Vladislav Yeliseyev AIS, NWS 6/21-7/5/18, Painting Trip – “Impressions of Umbria” - Two weeks, La Romita School of Art! Join Vladislav Yeliseyev for painting workshop in a beautifully restored Capuchin monastery from the 16th century surrounded by olive groves in the foothills of the Apennines Mountains. Contact: Tracy, 202/337-3120, [email protected] or www.laromita.org/workshops-italy-2018/vyeliseyev

MEXICO Tom Lynch 2/9-2/16/19, Puerto Vallarta. Contact: 630/851-2652 [email protected] or www.TomLynch.com

SPAIN Vladislav Yeliseyev AIS, NWS 5/27-6/3/19, Painting vacation in Spain. Don’t Be a Tourist. Be our Guest! Join me for 8 unforgettable days in Barcelona and Costa Brava. Contact: French Escapade, 510/483-5713 [email protected] or www.frenchescapade.com

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[email protected] 630-851-2652 www.tomlynch.com 2018-19 WORKSHOPS June 5 – 8 July 13 – 16 July 18 – 21 July 24 – 25 September 6 – 9 September 25 – 28 October 17 – 20 November 8 – 10 January 7 – 10 February 9 – 16 March 5 – 8 August 13 – 19 September 9 – 13

Cookeville, TN Conception Bay, Canada Conception Bay, Canada Burlington, VT New Braunfels, TX Clarkston, WA Beavercreek, OH Raleigh, NC Boynton Beach, FL Puerto Vallarta, Mexico Punta Gorda, FL Reno, NV Stephenville, TX

Available For Workshops In Your Area

Visit www.ArtAcademyLive.com Your Online Source For Art Instruction 24/7

ArtistsNetwork.com 71

Open Book

Ready to Revisit Years ago, Cathy Johnson’s favorite sketching tools were a dark-hued colored pencil and a watercolor wash of black, warm dark gray, even indigo or black raspberry. “Somehow, once I fell in love with the varied lines of a fountain pen, I drifted away from these,” she says. “But recently, the urge hit me to revisit these ‘old friends.’ I found an indigo pencil [an old Prismacolor] in my kit, and a glorious, shady bench by the river. The tree was old and gnarled, and autumn’s hues were just coming in, providing a colorful backdrop for my sketch.”

YOUR TURN! Reach for a tool you haven’t used in awhile and share the results. @ArtistsNetwork on Instagram: #everywatercolor

“OPEN BOOK” S P O N S O R E D BY

72 Watercolor artist |

AUGUST 2018

The Perfect Combination.

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www.winsornewton.com *While supplies last. No purchase necessary. Only one per household. Must be 18 years or older. Offer good in United States and Canada only – no PO Box; expires October 1, 2018.

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