american artist guia de flores

Talking Colors: Pigments brought to life

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Master your inspiration

~LE OF CONTENTSGuide to Painting Flowers

6 EDITOR'S NOTE

9 ON THE COVER: PATRICK GORDON

10 PATRICIA TRIBASTONE: REVEALINGTHE MYSTERY OF NATUREby James A. Metcalfe

For this New York artist, pastel is the ideal mediumfor creating evocative floral stilllifes.

18 STILL LIFES AS PORTRAITSby John R. Kemp

In his first public workshop, Mississippi artist JasonBouldin showed participants how to capture the"intangible personality" of a still life subject as thoughthey were painting a portrait.

2 Guide to Painting Flowers

24 PAT WALKER: STILL LIFES INTHE MISSISSIPPI DELTAby John R. Kemp

This painter's rich, bold stilllifes explore abstractshapes and light in an attempt to create balance,harmony, and rhythm.

34 GUIDO FRICK: LEARNINGTO PAINT WITH PASSIONby Naomi Ekperigin

German Impressionist painter Guido Frick loves tocapture the landscape of the Western United States,and during his semiannual painting trips there, heteaches workshop participants to relax and trusttheir eyes and their instincts.

44 OBSERVING CAREFULLY,THINKING ABSTRACTLY,PAINTING TRADITIONALLYby Linda S. Price

For New York City artist Ellen Buselli, painting iscentered on translating what she sees to canvas,which is why she finds observing and understandingthe nature of color and light so important.

ON THE COVER10) 44 Make Colors Sing: Modern Masters

Show You How

34 Learn to Paint With Passion

52 Don't Stay Still: How to CreateDynamic Action in Floral Painting

66 Learn How to Paint a Rose!

COVER IMAGE:Cantonese Tea Pot With Red Tulips (diptych, detail)by Patrick Gordon, 2007, oil, 44 x 60. Private collection.

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· behind the scenes look

SUPER ADVICE ON:Ughting On a budget?Learn to Stay In Your Studio

CONTENTS52 DYNAMIC ACTION IN FLORAL

PAINTINGby James SulkowskiDynamic action is an important element in any typeof painting. Here Idiscuss the concept as it relatesto floral composition.

60 PAINTING FLOWERS COMPOSEDOF SMALL PETALSby Janet WalshA large grouping of these flowers is a challenge topaint. Learn how to discern the different shapes withinthe flowers and still create a unified composition.

66 PAINTING ROSES & DELPHINIUMSby Janet WalshAfter learning how to paint a basic floral still life,you'll likely want to try your hand at a more involvedarrangement. As I've suggested here, you mightwant to practice drawing and painting the shapes ofthe flowers first, because the forms are more com-plicated. Doing this will help you paint with moreconfidence, and you will be better able to capture theeffects of light and shadow that will bring your setupto life on the paper.

70 SKIP STEINWORTH: SETTING THESTAGE FOR STILL LIFESby Naomi EkperiginThis Minnesota artist is known for representationalgraphite drawings that depict conventional subjectsin a way that's anything but.

78 INTERPRETING REALITYTHROUGH COLORED PENCILPAINTINGSby Alyona NickelsenBy following an exacting but creative process, simplereference photographs can be transformed intobeautiful stilllifes.

84 AN EXPERIENCE WITHEXPERIMENTATIONby Lori WoodwardA still life comes together through the course ofmany decisions-some better than others.


66

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EDITORS NOTECelebrating Timeless Art

or more than three centuries, flowers have been a popular andenduring theme among artists working in all media. For rep-resentational painters, flowers present a myriad of challengesthat are a joy to overcome and are ideal for learning classical

techniques. With the seemingly endless benefits of painting floralsubjects, we've put together a collection of some of our best articles onpainting floral stilllifes in oil and watercolor, as well as pastel, coloredpencil, and graphite.We begin with a look at contemporary approaches to this classic

subject matter. On page 18,we revisit Mississippi artist Jason Bouldin'sfirst public workshop, in which he shows how principles of portraiturecan be applied to stilllifes to create paintings that bring a sense ofpersonality to inanimate objects. We also explore the pastel floralpaintings of Patricia Tribastone, who seeks to pay homage to the OldMasters using pure, bold color (page 10).The subsequent articles contain detailed demonstrations, materials

lists, and tips to help you apply these tenets to your own practice. Westart with Ellen Buselli, a painter who shares how she creates award-winning stilllifes (page 44). James Sulkowski provides useful diagramsfor those seeking to create more dynamic action in their bouquets (page52). Janet Walsh and Lori Woodward offer in-depth looks at how theycreate delicate and luminous watercolors, from their initial sketchesto the finished paintings (pages 60 and 84, respectively). For thoseinterested in working with other media, artists Skip Steinworth andAlyona Nickelsen show how graphite and colored pencil can be used tocreate floral stilllifes that are anything but ordinary (pages 70 and 78,respectively) .Whether you're a beginner or a professional, a longtime painter

of flowers or someone who's trying the subject for the first time, thecollection of articles in this magazine will provide helpful tips thatyou can refer to time and time again. As you practice the techniquesfeatured here, please share your results with us at www.ArtistDaily.com.We'd love to hear from you.

Happy painting!

\_~~bYlLy(ep+NAOMI EKPERIGINAssociate [email protected]


HIGHLIGHTSGuide toPainting Flowers

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On the Cover:PATRICK GORDON

Cantonese Tea Pot With Red Tulips (diptych)by Patrick Gordon, 2007, oil, 44 x 60. Private collection.

Patrick Gordon has painted flowers for more than 30years and still finds himself challenged and surprisedby them. Born and raised in Oklahoma and educated atthe University of Tulsa, the artist's preferred mediumwas watercolor, and his dense and sumptuous stilllifes earned him several solo shows at New York City'sFischbach Gallery between 1981 and 1993.

For the last decade, the artist has worked in oil andadded even more elegance and luxury to his stilllifes. In2003, he moved to New York City, where he returned toa rigorous 12-hour-a-day painting schedule and beganworking on a large scale. With canvases measuringupward of 7611 -x-48II, the artist practically challengesviewers to look away. In the diptych Cantonese Tea PotWith Red Tulips, the bouquet appears almost "hyper-red"against the decorative pot and gold-leaf frame in thebackground. These flowers aren't found in nature, yetthey are almost more beautiful for it.The artist's most recent show, "Paper or Plastic?

Secrets From Tornado Alley" (on view October 13throughNovember 12) is his second exhibition at FischbachGallery since he relocated to New York City. Decades ofstudying and rendering flowers and flower paper havemade the seemingly innocuous inquiry of "paper orplastic?" a somewhat loaded question for him. Gordonfinds the crinkles, wrinkles, and folds of paper and plasticto be an endlessly fascinating subjects. "Flowers are justso perfect in every stage of their existence," the artist says,"whether they are in bloom or starting to wilt." As hecontinues to find the pleasure and joy in painting flowers,it seems 12 hours a day may not be enough.

For more information, visit www.psgordon.com orwww.fischbachgallery.com.

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FOR THIS NEW YORK ARTIST, PASTEL IS THE IDEALMEDIUM FOR CREATING EVOCATIVE FLORAL STILL LIFES.

by James A. Metcalfe

10 Guide to Painting Flowers www.ArtistDaily.com


onsidering her affinityfor drawing, her love ofdramatic light and shadow,and her passion for rich,

sumptuous color, Patricia Tribastonefinds pastel to be the perfect vehicle toexpress herself. "Pastel offers such abroad range of possibilities," the artistsays. "From a delicate drawing to arichly layered surface filled with pure,bold color, pastel allows and encour-ages the artist to express himself orherself much more freely and withfewer limitations."

Motivated by the Old Masters-Leonardo, Vermeer, Rembrandt,Prud'hon, and Ingres-and their dedi-cation to their paintings, Tribastonefears that much of what they taught ushas been forgotten or overlooked todayin favor of newfound freedom to ex-press ourselves. As she states, "I makeevery attempt to learn as much as Icanabout how they worked, as well as thefundamentals they developed to createtheir masterpieces, and Ilike to think

that my artwork, in some small way,pays homage to the Old Masters."

When it comes to selecting hersubject matter and the visual aspects oflife that most fascinate her, Tribastoneis most drawn to anything that projectsa strong sense of light, shadow, andcolor. "I want the viewer to rememberthe light, the color, and especially thesensitivity with which the painting wascreated," the artist explains. "Althoughfeelings can be difficult to capture,knowing what colors convey certainemotions and how lines, composition,light, and balance affect them are veryimportant. Generally, Iwant to createa sense of peace, and my goal is also tocreate a question in the viewer's mind-where did these things come from, andwhat's in the other part of the room?"It is this visual concept that is the

starting point for most of the artist'swork. "I am attracted to the way lightplays with its subjects, the way it bendsand bounces, and the surprising placesit lands," she says.

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OPPOSITE PAGE

Pink Blossom2010, pastel, 30 x 40.All artwork this articlecollection the artist.

LEFTPurpleSunflower I2011, pastel, 20 x 23.

Guide to Painting Flowers 11


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Tribastone usually begins by drawing the composi-tion and choosing the colors first, steps that often takeher longer than the painting itself "Drawing skillsare essential to my work," she stresses, "and ones thatIpractice daily. For some time I relied on formulaiccompositions; recently, however, I have been usingstructural compositions based on armatures employedby the Old Masters. The armature allows me greaterfreedom in the placement of my objects. The processdivides the surface area of the painting into horizon-tal, vertical, diagonal, and circular segments, and bydividing the surface into thirds, fourths, sixths, eighths,et cetera, one can place subject matter in harmoniouspositions almost without limit. Diagonals then help tocreate drama and movement within the composition."

Point of view is another important aspect ofTribastone'sart. "I use traditional methods to view my subjects ina slightly different way," she explains. "By using lightand color, Ican give work with an 'Old Masters feel' anew look. The classical techniques I use in my paint-ings start with my choice to paint in a representational

"Mypoint of view is oftenstraight-on; I look directly ata subject at eye level, whichperhaps best reflects howI approach art and how Iapproach life."

style relying heavily on accurate drawing and soundcomposition. Whereas our predecessors often hadlimitations in terms of subject matter, we are freetoday to paint anything we like. Therefore, I can useOld Master techniques to paint a close-up floral or apainting of contemporary objects. We also have at ourdisposal pigments that were not available in the past,not to mention the use of a camera to capture lightand fleeting subject matter. I often choose traditionaldark backgrounds but offset the dark with bright, purecolor, as seen in my florals. My point of view is oftenstraight-on; I look directly at a subject at eye level,which perhaps best reflects how Iapproach art and howI approach life."Tribastone loves the drama that darks and lights,

colors and shapes can create. She explains, "The darksand lights in my paintings are usually at the extreme



ends of the value scale, creating asmuch contrast as possible." Althoughher colors are usually bold, she plansthem to be harmonious rather thandiscordant, resulting in drama withoutconflict. "The values in a paintingdefinitely define the drama," she says."The extreme lights and darks add tothe feeling of rhythm and movementand create both mystery and excite-ment. I use analogous colors often,generally on the warm side of the colorwheel. In so doing, the bold values aresoftened by the harmony of colors."

For example, in her sunflowerpaintings series, she chose a harmo-nious palette of red-orange to yellow-

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Purple Orchid II2010, pastel, 20 x 24.

green. The background is a brown,which is nothing more than darkred-orange. "Generally," she explains,"when I choose my colors, I decidewhich color has the purest chroma,and that color becomes the lead color,with the others being secondary inimportance. My brushstrokes are notusually evident, as that is not what Iwant the viewer to focus on."

Tribastone, who presently workson stilllifes, florals, and portraits,also very much enjoys working on

different views of the landscape. "Ienjoy science and nature," she says,"and I have never lost my enthusiasmfor looking at it, marveling at it, anddrawing it. Nature amazes me, andI want to bring that amazement tothose who view my paintings. It isnot the broad landscape that I wantto draw, but rather the colors andsmallest details. In all my work, it isthe quieter, understated aspects thatmove me, coupled with a dramaticway of bringing them to life." *James A. Metcalfe is afreelancewriter residing in WestWarwick, Rhode Island.



DEMONSTRATIONPurple Sunflowers IIBelow) Tribastone takes us step by step through herprocess for creating vibrant floral still liies.

1

.. .......... • • • oi

Step 1 Step 2I begin by taking photographs of my subject from vari-ous perspectives. My process takes a week to com-plete, and the flowers change and wilt in that time,so most of my florals are done from photographs. Ialways start by doing a value drawing to determine mycomposition and values.

I then draw the outlines of the image on pastel paperusing a medium-dark value pastel pencil. For this pieceI used UArt 400 grit pastel paper adhered to a piece offoamboard.



2 Valuescale

TRIBASTONE'SMATERIALS

Surfaces• (anson Mi- Teintespaper, fine-grit sandedpaper, or UArt paper;IIFor a rough and texturedlook, I use a surfacethat I coat with my ownmixture of pumice dust,acrylic pastel ground,acrylic paint, and water,"Tribastone says. IIFor asmoother surface, I useUArt paper of varyinggrit."

Once I'm satisfied with my initial drawing I choose which colorschemes and corresponding pastels I'll use. My color schemesare chosen based on the color wheel; this painting will be ananalogous palette with yellow-green, a complementary color tothe red-violet. After I choose a color scheme, I don't deviatefrom that.

In choosing my pastels, I pick out at least 3 values of eachcolor, usually more. Here I have begun to block in the back-

Step 3

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Pastels• NuPastels or Holbein,Rembrandt, Girault, andDiane Townsend pastels

Other• Lascaux finishing spray

Tribastone'spastels

ground using harder pastels and then softer ones. I havemade the decision to blend the background, knowing thatthe painting would read with too much texture if I didn'tblend. The background is the only area that I will blend withmy fingers; the rest of the painting has no finger blending, inorder to maintain the freshness of the color.



DEMONSTRATION CONTINUED

As I finish more of the flower, I add thebackground to other areas. I decided tocreate a darker value toward the bot-tom of the painting to help the viewerfocus on the flowers.

4

Steps 4 & 5 Step 6In my next step I begin with dark pas-tels on the leaves in the upper part ofthe paper. I usually work from top tobottom to avoid pastel dust falling onlower parts of the painting. This pro-cess works for me because I carefullyplan my painting and my colors, so Iam free to enjoy the act of painting.After I have worked on the leaves, Imove downward, working on the petalsand then the rest of the flower.


5

Step 7:The completedpaintingMy next step will be to work on thestems. After I have completed all ofthe areas, I take some time (some-times as long as a week!) to look at thepainting and decide where I may needto make improvements such as valuechanges, edges, or highlights.

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THE COMPLETED PAINTING:

Purple Sunflowers II2011, pastel.

About the ArtistPATRICIA TRIBASTONE-a self-taught artist from Webster, New York, with a B.S.in dietetics-isa signature member of Pastel Society of America and a member of the Adirondack Pastel Society.She serves as the president of the Rochester Art Club, a juried-entry organization that has been inexistence since 1877. The artist has won national awards at Pastel Society of America's InternationalExhibition; the Northeast National Pastel Exhibition, in Old Forge, New York; and the IIFor PastelsOnly on Cape Cod" exhibition, in Massachusetts. Tribastone has also exhibited with the ConnecticutPastel Society's national exhibition, as well as with the International Association of Pastel Societiesat the Butler Institute of American Art, in Youngstown, Ohio. The artist currently teaches beginneroil painting, pastel, and colored pencil at the Art Stop, in Webster, where she is also represented. Formore information, visit www.patriciatribastone.com.


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IN HIS FIRST PUBLIC WORKSHOP, MISSISSIPPI ARTISTJASON BOULDIN SHOWED PARTICIPANTS HOW TO CAPTURE THE

"INTANGIBLE PERSONALITY" OF A STILL LIFE SUBJECTAS THOUGH THEY WERE PAINTING A PORTRAIT.

by John R. Kemp



, , lthough I primarily paintcommissioned portraits,I also take great delightin still life and landscape

painting," said artist-instructor JasonBouldin. "And I consider stilllifes andlandscapes to be portraits themselves.In fact, most of the subject matterthat inspires me has portraiture at itsheart. The essence of portrait paintingis to attempt to capture not only what aparticular subject looks like physicallybut also to capture something of thesubject's more intangible personal-ity. I find this goal of painting to betrue whether the subject is a person,a landscape, or still life. As apainter who is attempting tofollow a realist tradition, I amalways trying to achieve a bal-ance between the tangible andthe intangible. It is a balancebetween the physical and thespiritual."

It was interesting tonote that Bouldin's portraitdemonstration followed the

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same steps as the still life. Bothbegan with in-depth explanationsof his painting philosophies, thematerials he uses, his choices insetting up his palette, and his goals.Although his process is finely honed,Bouldin explained that he hatesrules. "Rules," he said, "get you to acertain point. I'm for principles ratherthan rules. Take your cues from thesubject you are painting, not froma rule book." He did, however, listseven elemental choices he followsin painting: subject, perspective,light, background or setting, support,paints, and medium. These are

"In the poetry of painting)stilllifes can have a lot ofnobility to them. They canspeak of something that isnatural to who we are andour natural environment:"

ABOVE

Bouldin talked to students during his demonstration.

OPPOSITE PAGE

Oak Boughs: Debris After Katrina2005, oil, 19 x 15. Collection the artist.

choices that must be made beforeone begins to paint. Other criticalelements to be considered in thecomposition include shape, value,placement, and drawing.The instructor divides those choices

into two broad categories: strategicand tactical, or general and specific.UMyexperience with my own paintingand with other artists is to disregard

the strategic in favor of thetactical," he revealed. "That is,to focus on the specific beforefocusing on the foundational.Everybody loves detail, andit is often just a detail-theglint of light off of a glass vase,the look in a subject's eyes,or the highlight on a silverspoon-that compels me topaint a subject. But this detail



must be put in its proper relationshipwithin the painting. It's importantto focus on the more strategic goalof composition. How can the artisttake compositional clues from thesubject? How can the compositionbe manipulated after one is intothe painting and thus committed?"A painter, he said, must "oscillatebetween the strategic decisions andthe tactical decisions. Those strategicdecisions are the most important.The sexy choices are when to put inthose highlights. They won't work ifyou don't have a good foundation."Composition, he emphasized, "isequal to organization. If you don'torganize, you have chaos."

Stilllifes are enjoyable for Bouldinbecause they are a manageable sizeand can be done in one sitting."In the poetry of painting," hecommented, "still lifes can have a lotof nobility to them. They can speak ofsomething that is natural to who weare and our natural environment. Still

THIS PAGE, CLOCKWISE FROM ABOVE LEFTBouldin commented on a student's drawing.

The floral arrangement and Bouldin's painting.

Helen Smith and the instructor talked aboutthe progress of her painting.

2 0 Guide to Painting Flowers

lifes are often seen as mundane, butthat depends upon one's approach. Ifyou have an honest approach, nothingcan be nobler. It is a response tothe physical with the spiritual, andthe intangible with the tangible.That's what poets do. They recognizerelationships most people don't see.

"The idea is for the artist torecognize something in the subjectand to convey that to an audience,"he continued. "In painting, I stepaside to let the audience see whatI saw. I don't choose the subject. Itchooses me. If I try to find a subject,I fall on my face. I have to respond towhat I see. The very common thingsare often so beautiful." He gave theexample of oak limbs that had fallenin his yard after Hurricane Katrinadevastated southern Louisianaand the Mississippi Gulf Coast.He placed the boughs in his houseas a memorial to the storm andits destruction. Eventually, he felt"compelled to paint it."After setting up his subject and

palette, Bouldin began his paintingdemonstration with a charcoal sketch,first with a triangle that representedthe subject's central focus. Fromthere, he roughed in the placementof flowers and other elements in the

composition. Because charcoal canbe erased easily, it gives paintersthe flexibility to change elementsquickly. "In my compositions," heexplained, "I want balance, but I don'twant boredom. I want resonance andexcitement."Upon completing the sketch,

Bouldin went back in with a broad,flat brush and drew over the charcoallines with a thin solution of burntumber, viridian, and mineral spiritsto re-emphasize proportionalrelationships between one elementand another. He then establishedvalues, beginning with the darkestdarks, followed by the middle tones,and then the lightest lights. As heroughed in his values, Bouldin toldstudents to keep three things in mind:color, value, and temperature. "Morethan anything else ," he emphasized,"value is the most important, followedby temperature, and then color. If it'sthe right value and right temperature,

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BOULDIN'S MATERIALS

PaletteThe artist uses a homemade board given to himby his father, Marshall Bouldin III, also a portraitartist. The younger Bouldin arranges his oil paintsin the order taught to him by his father: He setsup high and low values of each color side-by-side.Bouldin uses Winsor & Newton oils in thefollowing colors:

• cadmium green• viridian• cerulean blue• French ultramarine

blue

• alizarin crimson• cadmium red

• burnt sienna• burnt umber• cadmium orange• yellow ochre• Naples yellow• cadmium lemon• Permalba white

TOP

Bouldin drew his still life subject in charcoal on stretched canvas.

ABOVEBouldin's initial drawing.

LEFTThe artist's palette.



it can be a great painting. Colordoesn't matter all that much. Whenyou squint your eyes to establishvalue, the most important thingsstand out." Joking somewhat, Bouldintold his students to talk to themselveswhile painting. "It helps you verbalizewhat you are trying to do and keepsyou focused." Painting, he said, islike composing a symphony, writinga novel, or telling a joke: The artist isslowly building the plot to the finalpunch line or crescendo.

In this very early phase of thepainting, Bouldin explained how heestablished his image hierarchy. "Theblossom in front will receive moreattention than those in the back," hetold his students. "It's the focus, andit brings you into the painting." Withhis broad, flat brush he added colorfrom darks to lights, working on theentire painting at the same time. Tocreate strong contrasts among theflowers , thereby establishing the onein the foreground as the painting'sfocal point, he painted them in darkervalues of the same color. Then, witha NO.2 synthetic brush, he applied

finishing details to complete the"crescendo"-that final momentwhen everything came together. "It'sa matter of the right color, the rightvalue, and the right shape," he said."That's all it is. All of a sudden itbecomes a composition."

Bouldin's approach to portraitpainting is much the same. "Perceivinghas to do with feeling," he said. "In

2 2 Guide to Painting Flowers

LEFTThe demonstrationpainting after Bouldinpainted oil colorsover his charcoaldrawing.

BELOWA display of some ofBouldin's finished stilllife paintings.

OPPOSITE PAGE

"I paint on oversizedcanvases or boardsso that I candetermine my finalborders at the end,"the artist explained."If you use astandard-size canvas,you paint as the sizeof the canvas dictatesrather than let thesubjects dictate sizeand space."

a portrait you want likeness but youalso want essence. If you get all thetangibles right, you get likeness. Butit doesn't tell you anything about theperson. The successful portrait has tocapture the physical and the spiritual.Perceiving is about personality.Observing is a physical description. Inmaking a portrait, you not only haveto look at a person but perceive him orher. While painting, you take cues fromseeing but you also have to put backthe spiritual. A painting is influencedby your own perspective and your ownexperiences ."Whether Bouldin paints stilllifes or

portraits, several underlying currentsrun through all his work. With deepspiritual connections to his physicalenvironment, he talks about his workin terms of spirituality, music, andpoetry. "Unlike a novel or a symphony,a painting is a relatively brief work,more like a short song or poem. Allart attempts to connect the physicaland the spiritual. I try to achieve thatbalance, or, as William Faulkner said,that 'cosmos of my own.'" *John R. Kemp, the author of numerousbooks and magazine articles on the arts,is the deputy director of the LouisianaEndowment for the Humanities.

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About the ArtistJASON BOULDIN, a native ofMississippi, is the youngest offour sons of the renowned por-trait artist Marshall Bouldin III.Jason Bouldin graduated fromHarvard University with a B.F.A.in art history and quickly estab-lished an impressive career as aportrait painter. He received theGrand Prize in the InternationalPortrait Competition spon-sored by the Portrait Society ofAmerica; and achieved interna-tional recognition through hisshowings at exhibitions of TheRoyal Society of Portrait Painters,in London, where he has twicebeen a finalist for the CarrollFoundation Award. The artist andhis wife, Dr. Alicia Bouldin, live inOxford, Mississippi.

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THIS PAINTER'S RICH, BOLD STILL LIFESEXPLORE ABSTRACT SHAPES AND LIGHTIN AN ATTEMPT TO CREATE BALANCE,

HARMONY, AND RHYTHM.

by John R. Kemp

at Walker's century-old cottage in the town of Rolling Fork, Mississippi,is a living still life. Every room, shelf, table, and windowsill is filledwith curious odds and ends that the artist has collected from junk andantique shops or simply found in her wanderings through the Delta

and along the Mississippi Gulf Coast. This house of curiosities and the paint-ings inspired by them call to mind what Henri Matisse once said about objectsin stilllifes: "A glass of water with a flower is different from one with a lemon.The object is an actor [and it] ... must act powerfully on the imagination, andthe artist's feeling, expressing itself through the object, must render it worthyof interest. It only says what one makes it say." Each floral vase, copper pot, andearthenware pitcher in Walker's colorful menagerie stands anxiously in placelike actors at a Broadway casting call, awaiting their chance to playa role in oneof the artist's still life compositions.



Stand Still2011, oil on linen, 12 x 16.



Walker's philosophy about paintingis straightforward. In a booklet sheprepares for her workshop students,she asserts, "Taking a flat surfaceand making it dimensional, readable,and beautiful is matchless in one'saccomplishments." Whether she isdoing a landscape, portrait, or stilllife, she prefers to work from life."It's easier because you can see andthe implications are obvious," sheexplains. UIdon't feel there is any wayto possibly paint from a photographas easily as from life. Using a photo asa reference is sometimes necessary.However, I feel you will end up witha better painting if you can completethe painting from life."Walker, who returned to Rolling

Fork shortly after Hurricane Katrinadestroyed her home on the Missis-sippi Gulf Coast, has had a passionfor painting since childhood. Herskills as a painter, however, were notinnate. "It was a struggle," the artistsays. UIdidn't learn to paint like thisovernight." Her progress was at timesimpeded by the fact that the art facultyat the Mississippi community collegeshe attended in the late 1960s stressedAbstract Expressionism and other fadsof the time, while Walker was moreinterested in representational painting.


With this art instruction and fewopportunities for art lessons, Walkertaught herself about painting usingart books and painting demonstra-tions in American Artist. In the early1990s, she attended a workshop inJackson, Mississippi, led by Daniel E.Greene. He liked her work so muchthat he invited her to study withhim at his studio in Brewster, NewYork. After a few weeks with Greene,Walker attended additional work-shops taught by Cholla, at the ArtLeague of Houston, in Texas; KimEnglish, at the Fechin Art Workshop,in Taos, New Mexico; and David A.Leffel, Daniel Gerhartz, and Sher-rie McGraw, at the FredericksburgArtists' School, in Texas. UIwentafter this with passion and tenacity,"Walker says. uThis has been in me allmy life. I'm the most serious studentyou ever met." After Fredericksburg,Walker moved to Bay St. Louis, onthe Mississippi Gulf Coast, whereshe had a pleasant life painting andlearning from artists such as WilliamKalwick and Oregon painter TomBrowning, who came to the coast toteach. Hurricane Katrina requiredthat the artist relocate, but she hasnever stopped working on her art andinspiring others.

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Touch of Red2008, oil on linen,12 x 24. Courtesy Brown's Fine Art,Jackson, Mississippi.

ABOVE

Made Light2011, oil on linen,20 x 16.



Walker enjoys teaching artists ofall skill levels. For more than twodecades, she has conducted workshopsfor children and adults and organizeda Students' Art League for children inher region. Since returning to Roll-ing Fork she has helped to create anartists' community, which includedthe founding of Artists of SouthernHeritage, a nonprofit artists' guilddedicated to promoting the work ofSouthern artists. "The dream is toestablish a multidimensional culturalfacility with a permanent gallery," theartist says on the guild's website. "Ourgoal is to preserve artists' legacies andincrease the public's awareness of art-ists' work." A vacant storefront and for-mer pool hall now serves as Walker'sstudio, where she and visiting guestartists from around the country con-duct painting workshops."I can't give you the soul of an artist,"

she tells workshop participants, "but I


can teach you to paint. I can teach youenough to enjoy it." And she means it.Walker's passion for painting is infec-tious, and her approach to paintingand teaching is organized and disci-plined. Extensive preparation goes intoher work before she begins to paint. Inher workshop handbook, Walker takesstudents through each step of hercreative process. Before starting a stilllife, she asks herself seven questions:"Where is my dark? Where is mylight? Do I have reflected light? Whatcolor is my cast shadow? What colordo I see in my turning point color?What color is my highlight? Do I havea double highlight? Learning to paintdepends primarily on learning to seelike a painter. You must observe andbe sensitive to everything, even theatmosphere around you."Take enough time to get your setup

right," Walker continues. "It is impor-tant that you feel it is gorgeous and

something that you can't wait to start.If it is not exciting to you, you will notbe able to maintain the energy to com-plete the painting. You will lose inter-est, the painting will be mediocre, oryou will never finish." Unlike earlierstill life painters who sought to cre-ate cryptic vanitas messages in theircompositions, Walker chooses objectsbased on "how they feel" together andoverall harmony. "Sometimes it takesas much time to choose the items andput the composition together as it doesto paint," she says with a laugh. Shealso notes that additional objects canbe added later if the composition is notworking.Walker advises her students to

think abstractly, which may seem likean odd suggestion, especially for abeginning artist who wants to paintrealistically. "It means to not look atthe object or subject and think 'apple,''kettle,' or 'face,' but instead look and

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ABOVE

Good Will2010, oil on linen,10 x 30.

LEFT

Golden LinkNO.22011, oil on linen,11 x 14.



"Learninq to paint depends primarily on learning to see like apainter. You must observe and be sensitive to everything,

even the atmosphere around you."

observe," she tells her students. "Lookfor abstract shapes. Look at how thelight hits an object, the color, theedges, and the value." Setups, shesays, must have "balance, harmonyand rhythm. They must look natu-ral." After everything is placed, shesuggests stepping back and lookingthrough a viewfinder or frame to "seeit as a painting."Lighting is critical to a successful still

life. In paintings such as Purple andGreen, for example, Walker uses cooldirect light sweeping from left to right."I have the light source on the left ofthe setup," she explains, "[because] ourbrains are programmed to read fromleft to right. I also manipulate the light


source to hit hardest on the object Iwish to make the focal point in thepainting." In setting up stilllifes, am-ple time should go into the placementof objects, she says. Focal points andcenters of interest should not be inthe middle of the painting. To createmore rhythm and interesting composi-tions' the artist suggests placing thesepoints about a third of the way fromthe left or right sides of the canvas."You want viewers to stay inside thepainting," she says. In many of herpaintings, Walker uses light the wayan orchestra conductor uses a baton-to control the audience's attention.Walker paints wet-in-wet almost

exclusively with oils. "I can't get what

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LEFTPurple and Green2009, oil on linen, 30 x 40.

I'm looking for with anything elsebut oils," she says. "I like the waythe paint feels, the way it glides oncanvas like butter. Acrylics dry fastand can't be moved around as easily.I can do more with oils." Althoughpaint brands vary by color, she pre-fers Winsor & Newton, Grumbach-er, Daniel E. Greene, and Holbein.Before painting, Walker lays outher full palette with colors run-ning warm to cool, and she placeswarms on one side and cools on theother. "I lay the whole palette outin the beginning because mentallyyou get used to where your paintis," she explains. "Your hand goesto the same spot every time." Herfavorite brushes are Richeson 7530and 7550 and Silver Grand Prix1003 filbert and fiat, all syntheticbristles. Her preferred medium isWinsor & Newton Blending andGlazing Medium because, as shesays, "it doesn't dry too fast anddoesn't get shiny."Walker's canvases and boards

are triple primed with paint orgesso. She tones them with amixture of burnt umber or burntsienna with ultramarine blue orcobalt blue. (She does several can-vases at a time to have ready sur-faces.) Her next step is to block inthe forms and shapes of objects inraw umber. "In effect, I'm doing avalue study, setting dark and lightareas," she explains. "I'm alsotrying to figure out if my place-ment is good. If I don't like whatI see, I wipe it off." She also tellsher students to "make sure youget the darks dark enough. Thedark is what holds the paintingtogether. The light area shouldbe seen as one whole piece whenyou squint. The eye will naturallygravitate toward the light first,and it is what makes the paint-ing beautiful. The most commonreason one will lose a painting is


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that the darks and the lights get tooclose to the same value."Once Walker masses in her shapes

and values, she paints in deep, dark,and warm backgrounds to give greaterstrength and contrast to lighted areas. Inbuilding up the painting, she paints thinto thick. Dark areas and shadows arepainted evenly and thinly, with brush-strokes disappearing intothe paint. "If my darks aretoo thick, the lights won'tpop out," she says. teldon'twant the background tocompete with focal pointsin the painting." She thenasks herself the followingquestions: Do I have at leastone-third or two-thirds ofmy painting in darks? Do Ihave at least one-third ortwo-thirds of my paintingin light? Walker believesthe answers to bothquestions are important,because "shadows hold the


painting together."An object's true color is in the con-

trasting lighted areas," Walker contin-ues. "This is where you want to havethe beautiful brushwork and thickerpaint. This is the beauty of the paint-ing and is what will compel a viewer towalk across a room to take a closer lookat the piece."

To add dramatic emphasis and a "wetlook" to where light hits objects, Walkergradually builds up impastos of lighterpaints and thin glazes ofWinsor &Newton Artists' Retouching Varnish."If the painting has dried too muchand I see something I feel needs to bechanged," she explains, "the only wayto go back into the painting and create

the look of wet-in-wet isto apply a thin layer ofretouching varnish on theentire painting and thenalter whatever is bother-ing me." The varnish,she adds, brings backthe glossy appearance ofdried paint, which helpsone more accurately judgevalues when applying newpaint. The retouch varnishalso helps new paint adhereto earlier layers.When a painting is

finished, Walker waitsabout a month for it to dry

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BELOW

Casting Kindness2011, oil on linen, 12 x 40.

OPPOSITE PAGE, BonOM

Sunflowers2009, oil on linen, 24 x 36. Courtesy Brown's FineArt,Jackson, Mississippi.

before applying a thin coat of Winsor& Newton Conserv-Art Gloss Varnishmixed with Winsor & NewtonSansodor at a ratio of 3 parts varnishto I part thinner."It's so much fun the way the rhythm

bounces around from object to object,"the artist says as she looks aroundher studio at various finished andunfinished paintings on easels and

on the walls. "Sometimes when Iamobserving the beauty of our world orjust watching people, I thank God formaking me an artist. I believe artistsare the happiest people on earth." *John R. Kemp is the author of numerousbooks and magazine articles on the artsand is the deputy director of the Louisi-ana Endowment for the Humanities.

About the ArtistPAT WALKER is a member of Oil Painters of America, Southern Artistry, Artists ofSouthern Heritage, the Delta Art Association, Vicksburg Art Association, and theMississippi Artists Roster. Her work has received awards from the Joan MitchellFoundation, the Mississippi Arts Commission, The Andy Warhol Foundation forthe Visual Arts, and the Contemporary Arts Center, in New Orleans. Walker isrepresented by Caboose Art Gallery, in Long Beach, Mississippi; Brown's FineArt, in Jackson, Mississippi; The Tin Rooster, in Greensboro, North Carolina, andAlexandria, Louisiana; Friedman Fine Art, in Savannah, Georgia; and Gabriel Gallery,in Santa Fe. She has participated in several regional and national juried shows, andher work is held in private and corporate collections throughout the United Statesand Canada. For more information, visit www.patwalker-fields.com.


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Frick advised a student painting a stilllife on the first day of the workshop. Heprefers that students paint en plein airbecause rapidly changing light forcesthem to work quickly and not overthinktheir choices.

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GERMAN IMPRESSIONIST PAINTER GUIDO FRICK LOVESTO CAPTURE THE LANDSCAPE OF THE WESTERN UNITEDSTATES, AND DURING HIS SEMIANNUAL PAINTING TRIPSTHERE, HE TEACHES WORKSHOP PARTICIPANTS TO RELAXAND TRUST THEIR EYES AND THEIR INSTINCTS.

by Naomi Ekperigin

rtists who choose to takea workshop with GuidoFrick want to make achange. The artist is

known for his use of bold, vigorousbrushwork and the sense of spontane-ity that his paintings exude, and heaims for his students to adopt thissame level of freshness-at least forthe duration of their workshop theystudy with him. At a New Mexico work-shop sponsored by the FredericksburgArtists' School, in Texas, studentswatched Frick "demonstrate how tocombine your visual impressions withyour inner sensitivity to find your own

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artistic language, allowing your indi-vidual personality to be recognizablein every brushstroke," as the coursedescription stated. If this was theirgoal, participants certainly got whatthey were looking for-and more."Maybe 50 percent of the truth ex-

ists in the subject you paint," Fricktold participants. "But the other 50percent comes from within-yourtemperament, your emotions, yourcreativity, your past, and your pas-sion. As Sergei Bongart once said,'There is a tree. When you copy thetree, you have two trees-but youdon't have a piece of art.'" Frick's

views on the goal of art are deeplyinfluenced by Bongart, with whomhe studied in the late 1970S and early1980s. One of the foremost teachersof the Russian method in the UnitedStates, Bongart stressed the impor-tance of painting with emotion. "Heliterally opened my eyes and taughtme how to see the world with theeyes of a painter," Frick said. "By thatI mean to see the world in colors,temperatures, and values, and not bepreoccupied with names, terms, andlabels. His motto became a personalgoal for me: 'Paint bold, vigorous, andbrilliant! rn

Guide to Painting Flowers 3 5


-

Frick passed this lesson on to artistswho did not have the privilege of study-ing with the Russian master. Althoughhe acknowledged that his students areseeking to learn a particular way ofpainting, he stressed that what he pro-vides is an example, not a prescribedmethodology. "Most students think of'style' as something you can grab in aweekend workshop, the way you cangrab a skirt or blouse in a departmentstore," the instructor said. "In my work-shops, I want them to learn that style issomething that develops like handwrit-ing-it happens naturally, and it doesnot happen overnight. It only comesfrom painting miles and miles ofempty canvases, the same way hand-writing forms over years of writing."He often notices that students lack the


confidence to trust their own individu-ality' and instead focus on accuratelycopying their subject. "Too manypaintings look like they could havebeen painted by Mr. Miller as well asMiss Smith," the artist asserted. "Theyappear fiat, dull, boring-where is theunique personality of the painter?"Most students who attend Frick'sworkshops are beyond a beginner leveland have a grasp of the language ofcolor. Trusting their instincts is theirbiggest challenge."I always tell my students, 'Sacrifice

one week of your life, leave your pastas an artist behind, and go with me onan exploration into unknown territory.I will be with you, going from easelto easel, to correct you, advise you,and keep you on track," he continued.

Guido Frick'sGolden RulesFor more than 15 years, Guido Frick hasreminded his students to loosen up andpaint with passion. Here are some of hismain tenets:

Use your brain before you startpainting, and then switch it off,

letting your emotions take control.

See yourself as the master of yoursubject, not its slave.

It took you years to develop your ownhandwriting;don't expect to develop

a painting style after one weeklongworkshop.

Howyou paint is more importantthan what you paint.

Painting is likea race: Ifyou want towin, you have to save some of your

energy for the finish.

Your best tools are your eyes. Youshould rely on them more than any

how-to book.

Ifyou've just finished a good sec-tion of your painting, leave it alone

and don't try to make it better. It is alreadygood enough.

"After the workshop, you can go backto your comfort zone, but give yourselfa chance for this one week.'" Withsuch words of support, Frick cre-ated a comfortable environment forself-discovery, enabling his studentsto take risks and work with looserbrushstrokes and bolder color, like theinstructor himself. He then followedthis introduction with a 45-minuteexplanation of his technique andshowed numerous samples of hiswork, pointing out how he achievedparticular effects. In this first lecture,the instructor laid out what he calledthe "three steps": color, value, andtemperature. "Students often cometo points where they don't know whatto do next. In these moments, theirfirst thought is that there must be a

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formula, a specific way to paint thistree, or this flower, or this apple,"explained the artist. ttBut there is nosuch thing. Assuming the drawingand composition are fine, there areonly three possible areas in which amistake is made: the hue, the value,or the temperature." The instructorcalled these the theoretical steps, andsaid he feels these are essential tounderstand in order to troubleshootand take a painting to the next level.He followed his explanation with ademonstration of how these steps areexecuted in a painting-in work-shops the instructor usually takes afloral still life as his subject."When Idemonstrate, Iwant the

students to be able to follow mythree practical steps-the abstractstep, the modeling step, and thefinishing step-which are muchclearer than a discussion of color,value, and temperature," Frick said.Before even beginning to paint,the instructor makes sure he has afirm grasp of these three concepts.ttl analyze my subject before I grab

a brush, checking the temperaturedifferences and the range of values,determining my focal point, andmaking sure the composition is bal-anced," he explained. "By studyingmy subject Icreate a road map sothat when Idecide to paint, Icanwork quickly." After toning the can-vas (usually 24" x 30") and complet-ing a graphite drawing, he beginsthe first step. "During the abstractphase, I am blocking in the big colorshapes, but I'm not focusing onareas of light and dark, and Ihaven'teven begun to think about detail,"the instructor said. "In this stage thecanvas should be divided into threeto five big shapes-I am pullingitems together, simplifying them,and focusing on the large masses."In the modeling phase, I give

roundness to the subject by addingsome shadow and emphasizing lightareas, but I don't put in the darkestdarks or lightest lights, and there arestill no details," he continued. "Atthis point the values are close togeth-er across the canvas, and the paint-

OPPOSITE PAGE

A Place in the Corner2007, oil, 30 x 24. Private collection.

ABOVE

Frick worked on a student's canvas,holding his brush toward the endso that he could make looser, freerstrokes.


Botanical Workshops:Martha KempGraphiteDec. 2) 3) & 4) 2011

Rhonda NassGraphite &AcrylicJan. 27) 28) & 29) ~~~~§fA2012

Connie SayasPetals and Leavesin WatercolorMarch 23) 24) & 25) 2012

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"I analyze my subject before I grab a brush, checking thetemperature differences and the range of values, determiningmy focal point, and making sure the composition is balanced.By studying my subject I create a road map so that when I

decide to paint, I can work quickly."

ing is developing as a whole at thesame level-like a pyramid. Pyramidsaren't built one side at a time, or thetop and then the bottom-the founda-tion is established all the way around."In the final step, the finishing phase,he adds the highlights and details-allwith a brush that is roughly the samesize as the large one used in the ab-stract stage. Overall, this first demon-stration took just under an hour and ahalf, and was done entirely outdoors,with the students seated with a clearview of Frick's easel.The instructor always paints en plein

air, whether his subject is a still lifeor landscape, and he does not rely on


reference photos. "My greatest passionis painting outdoors. I am not a studiopainter," Frick said. "To paint out-doors is totally different than sittingin a comfortable studio-it is a greatand wonderful challenge, especiallybecause of the rapid changes that cantake place." The entire five-day work-shop took place outdoors, with Frickprepared to paint under a shelter incase of inclement weather. Over yearsof teaching he has found that paintingon location forces students to respondto changes in the environment andmake decisive choices, which makesit easier for them to employ the strongcolors and looser brushstrokes that

Frick espouses in his work. "They arehere because they want to get rid oftheir tight, tiny brushstrokes ," he saidfirmly. "They want to learn to paintfreely, in the style of Sergei Bongartand myself, and responding directly tonature is the best way to do this."After Frick's first demonstration,

students began to work on their ownfloral stilllifes en plein air. As theybegan to paint, the instructor wentaround to each easel, watching themwork and offering advice. "This givesme the chance to see what level theyare on," he explained, "so that duringthe rest of the workshop I can respondto each student's needs and give them

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OPPOSITE PAGE BELOW

A student looked on as Fresh CutFrick painted en plein air. 2007, oil, 24 x 20.

Private collection.

exercises that target areas of difficulty." Some exercisesincluded a black-and-white study of a subject, to sharpentheir eyes and increase the understanding of value;painting a collection of five items in the same color fam-ily, enabling students to learn about temperature; andtimed studies, which forced them to loosen up."Let the brush dance!" Frick said to his students over

and over. He had them work on large canvases because,"that way Ican get them to use a larger brush, whichimmediately loosens up their brushstrokes. Byworkingwith a bigger brush, they see that it's pointless to starttheir painting with a small detail such as a wormhole, aflea, or a doorbell; they instead establish bigger shapesright from the beginning." Frick painted at a distancefrom his canvas-and encouraged his students to do thesame-because it keeps the composition as a whole inview, enabling them to more easily gauge how theselooser, larger brushstrokes are functioning. "When youfinally do jump into the details with a smaller brush,"the instructor said, "they will not distract from the gen-eral mood of the painting, because that's already beenestablished. I do not seek a response to the fact that I


is/'sf

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the crafter's guide to

takinggreatphotos


painted accurately; I want a responseto the mood I've created in my work."The second half of the workshop

focused on landscapes, and theinstructor began with another 24"_X-30" demonstration. As with the stilllife, the same rules of color, value,and temperature applied. Frick firstanalyzed his subject, becoming a"master of it," so that when he sethis brush to his canvas, he was fullyaware-and in control of-what hewanted to express. "There should beno hesitation, no wondering, (Whereshould I go next?'" he said. "Withoutdoor painting, you have to go forit right away, and work quickly tostay in the mood before time goes by


and the mood changes." Integral tothe success of this method is a clearunderstanding of your subject beforepainting-an understanding thatFrick believes can only be developedafter years of painting on-site andengaging in a dialogue with nature."A student who expects to leave aworkshop with a bunch of complete,finished paintings has the wrongexpectations and attitude," he said."I have had students who, after acouple of days, are upset-upset withthemselves, with their subject, theirtools, even the direction of the wind.I always try to remind them thattheir masterpiece is still light-yearsaway.

"To come to a workshop means youare willing to study," he continued."So I remind them to lower theirexpectations, and I try to take awaythe pressure they put on themselves.I also remind them that I, too, hada lousy start and went through mo-ments of frustration and despera-tion' and the only way to get throughit is with commitment, strength, anddiscipline." With a focus on emotionand mood, rather than renderingevery detail, Frick encouraged hisstudents to take risks and experiencetheir subjects in a new way. Insteadof slavishly following every line andcurve of a subject, they are shownhow to apply bold, confident strokes

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OPPOSITE PAGE

Mixed Lilacs2008, oil, 30 x 30.Private collection.

that evoke an emotional responseand mirror their own connection tothe subject. Although he acknowl-edged that students are comingto learn his style, the root of theinstructor's method is an emotionalconnection to the subject, whichcan't be re-created, but can be taught."People often ask me the name of mystyle, and note that Sergei Bongartwas considered a Russian realist,"

Naomi Ekperigin is an associate editorof American Artist.

Frick said. "This is partly true, buthe was also quite an Expressionist,and his paintings always reflecteda mood. This is exactly what I tryto get my students to do: have thecourage to express themselves, anddo that as boldly, vigorously, andbrilliantly as possible." *

About the ArtistGUIDO FRICK was born in Konstanz, Germany, and worked for years as a journalist, coveringmajor sporting events throughout Europe. In his mid-20s, he was in a car accident that causedhip and leg injuries that left him bedridden. Unable to walk, Frick passed the time with a passionhe had nearly forgotten: painting and drawing. Once he was fully recovered, he began takingclasses at the Art Academy of Konstanz, under Karel Hodr and Hans Sauerbruch. In America, hestudied under Sergei Bongart, where he developed the technique of loose, free brushwork that isnow his signature. He has had numerous solo shows throughout the United States and Europeand is represented by several galleries, including Renate Fine Art Gallery, in Carmel, California;Zantman Gallery, in Sun Valley, Idaho; and Red Bird Gallery, in Seaside, Florida. For more infor-mation on Frick, visit his websites at www.guidofrick.com and www.guidofrick.de.

For even more energetic advice on painting flowers from photos go to: http://mwartfloral.tumblr.com/

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http://mwartfloral.tumblr.com/

DEMONSTRATIONFrick's Steps

Step 1:The Drawing StepFrick began by drawing an outline of his sub-ject in dark oil color on his toned canvas. lilt'sa very simple drawing-I don't need morethan this," he said. "My main goal here is tomake sure there's a good balance betweennegative and positive space, and that mydesign is correct."


Step 2:The Abstract Step

Step 3:The ModelingStepThe instructor next laid out the big

color shapes, making sure to stay ina middle key. He used a large, thickbrush, which prevented him from get-ting too detailed because "to eventhink about detail at this point is totallyforbidden," the artist said. "I paint theway a fencer holds his weapon. I holdthe brush at the very end, with my armalmost completely outstretched, asthough I were attacking the canvas. Ithink I can get away with this becauseI've already studied my subject; I'veseen my finished painting before pick-ing up my brush loaded with color."

The artist had a clear ideaof how the painting wouldlook when he was done, buthe still ignored the details."Here I'm stressing theshadow areas and the lighterareas, but I'm still not add-ing the lightest lights or thedarkest darks," the instructorsaid. "l'rn giving roundnessto the subjects and addingvolume."

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4

Step 4: The Finishing StepIn this last step, Frick added the personal touch-es and energetic brushstrokes that he is knownfor. "Hopefully you have saved some breath forthese final moments," he said, "because now youwill need to explode onto the canvas, and pourall your emotions into the painting." Althoughthe artist considers this a phase in which details

are added, he often warned students not to gooverboard. "Details are not allowed to distractfrom the overall piece," he said. "Your paintingshould catch a viewer's eye because of the bril-liant colors, bold brushstrokes, and mood-notbecause you painted the perfect tiny flea on adog's back."

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FRICK'SMATERIALS

PaletteGamblin, Schmincke, andClassic Artist oil paintsin the following colors:• ivory black• phthalocyanine blue• cobalt blue• cadmium yellow light• cadmium orange• titanium white• cadmium red light• alizarin crimson• Venetian red

or terra rosa• yellow ochre• burnt sienna

Brushes• long-hair DaVinci,

nos. 8 and 12 (for theabstract step)

• short-hair DaVinci,nos. 8 and 12 (foradding details andhighlights)

• rigger with a longhandle (for the longlines of branches, twigs,fences, posts, etc.)

• Bob Ross backgroundbrush for toning hiscanvas

Mediums• turpentine gum• damar varnish• linseed oil

Surfaces• Unprimed linen and

cotton, to which heapplies two or threelayers of gesso andstretches himself.



•servzng• •zn zng

FOR NEW YORK CITY ARTIST ELLEN BUSELLI, PAINTING ISCENTERED ON TRANSLATING WHAT SHE SEES TO CANVAS,

WHICH IS WHY SHE FINDS OBSERVING AND UNDERSTANDINGTHE NATURE OF COLOR AND LIGHT SO IMPORTANT.

by Linda S. Price

ainting is all aboutobservation," saysstill life painterEllen Buselli. "The

Hydrangeas,Pears, andGrapes

2006, oil on linen,16 x 15. All artworkthis article private

collection.

light, and shadows remainthe same value and in thesame position all day."Although she arranges her

setup with care, Buselli pre-fers to plunge right into her

painting without thumbnail sketchesor value studies. She prepares hercanvases by toning them with a warmmixture of burnt umber or burntsienna and ultramarine blue becauseshe feels this combination is easy onthe eyes. After the toned canvas isdry, she roughs in the outline of herstill life setup using an umber andestablishes an initial horizon line andrelative positions of the elements-which may change as she gets furtheralong in her painting. The next stepinvolves massing in the major dark

process involves thinkingabstractly-even if you'repainting traditionally-not lookingat the objects themselves but observ-ing how light, atmosphere, value,color, edges, and temperature worktogether to give an object its form.If you're thoughtful about all of theabove, a painting will emerge, and atwo-dimensional surface will becomethree-dimensional." Buselli alwaysobserves-and paints-from life inher studio, admitting that light is oneof the most important elements of herstill life setups. "I paint under northlight," she says. "It's a cooler, indirect

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and light shapes, which sets up thetwo extremes of values against whichto measure all other brushstrokes.From this point on, Buselli paintsdirectly, establishing the right color,value, and temperature immediately."Every new brushstroke depends onthe previous one," she explains. "Iask myself, 'Is it lighter or darker,warmer or cooler than what I alreadyput down?'"



The corners of the background in this still life were lightly painted, allowing the toned background to show throughto create a sense of wear and timelessness.

Buselli gives a lot of thought to herbackground because she knows howstrongly it affects the overall painting."It must be the right value initially,otherwise I can't work on the rest ofthe painting," she emphasizes. Theartist considers, for instance, thata translucent backgroundrecedes and lends a sense ofdepth, as does a neutral color.When she wants backgrounds

to look old and textured, as in OldMaster paintings, she preparesarchaic-looking boards that have "thatold fresco decay of Rome" to placebehind her objects. Alternatively, sheuses drapery to achieve the right color,value, and texture. The artist also has

a collection of platforms-lightor dark, smooth or textured,stained or painted-on whichto stage her stilllifes.

ClassicalLight

2007, oil onlinen, 20 x 21.


Of equal concern to Buselli are theobjects themselves, especially thevases and pottery she collects on hertravels, in antique shops, or at garagesales. She especially enjoys paintingher collection of black Pueblo pot-tery, in part because of its dull shinethat both reflects and absorbs light.If she wants a painting with drama,she chooses contrasting objects. Ifhergoal is harmony, she selects objects

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BUSELLI'S MATERIALS

PaletteOld Holland and Winsor & Newtonoils-with some from Vasari-in thefollowing colors:• Naples yellow• cadmium yellow• cadmium orange• yellow ochre• raw sienna• cadmium red• burnt sienna• burnt umber• raw umber• cobalt blue• ultramarine blue• viridian• sap green• alizarin crimson• ivory black• titanium white

Canvas• prepared Belgian linen

Brushes• Jack Richeson & Co. filberts, Nos.

3 through 12; some sable brushes

Medium• Maroger or Liquin

within a common color family andemphasizes shifts in value and tem-perature. When choosing flowers forher signature floral stilllifes, Buselliopts for those that are in season,preferring hyacinths in the spring andpeonies in June. "Sunflowers are alsowonderful," she says, "and any kind oflily-their shapes are so geometric. Ienjoy the large masses of hydrangeasas well, but you have to be careful notto put in a lot of details." She's partialto pale pink roses for their wonderfultranslucent petals.When painting flowers, Buselli

works quickly and spontaneously withthin paint, trying to capture thembefore they fade and allowing the wetpaint to connect the shapes. In opaqueareas-where the light is directlyhitting the objects and bouncing off-she gradually applies thicker paint butis careful not to overwork any area.She works wet-in-wet, dragging her

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ABOVE

Old RomanGlass2007, oil onlinen, 18 x 15.

LEFTHyacinth(and theMcCoy Pot)2006, oil onlinen, 12 x 16.

Cast shadows coming forward, as well as strong light emanating from theleaves and inner space of the flowers, create depth and drama. Objectsup close reach out to the viewer's space and give the subject matter astrong presence. Hyacinth (and the McCoy Pot) won first place in the oilcategory of American Artist's 70th Anniversary Competition, and wasfeatured in the December 2007 issue.



brush to create color unity from onearea of the canvas to another. Her goalis to keep reworking to a minimum,so as to retain the spontaneity of heroriginal brushwork. Sometimes shesculpts the flowers out of the back-ground, relying on the negative spacesto create the form of the bouquet.Dark-green foliage provides a base forthe flowers to rest on and gives themweight and a sense of place in muchthe way cast shadows do for her pot-tery and glassware.

Buselli also gives a lot of thought tocomposition and the arrangement ofher still life items. "The placement ofobjects affects how viewers relate to thepainting," she says. "Objects closer tothe front edge reach into the viewer'sspace, creating intimacy and almost asurreal feeling. When the main flowerin a composition faces forward it canactually appear animated. Elementspositioned farther away produce moreatmosphere because there's more quietspace and a sense of serenity and mys-

The lighter areas of the roses were painted with titanium white and alizarincrimson and warmed up with a touch of cadmium yellow. A little viridian or

cobalt blue makes the flower look cooler as it turns. The shadow areas of thepetals appear violet with the addition of a little more cobalt or ultramarine blue.


tery. Sometimes I use both techniquesin the same painting, positioning some-thing close to the front edge to grab theviewer's attention, and then leading himor her back into the painting."Details, the artist notes, should be

used sparingly to define an object andshould be concentrated in areas wherethe viewer is suppose to focus. It's thesame with sharp edges; they shouldn'tbe everywhere, just where the eyeshould pause-such as the edge of aflower. The most intense color shouldbe reserved for those areas meant toappear closer to the viewer, as shouldthe areas of thickest paint. By usingonly one colorful or bright object in asetup, Buselli makes sure the eye willstop there. In complex setups she'scareful to position the lights to leadthe eye through the picture.Buselli finds inspiration in the work

of many artists of the past: Henri Fan-tin-Latour for the sheer beauty of hisfloral paintings; Emil Carlsen for hismagical space; Chardin for his strongyet simple still life compositions;Walter Murch for the way his isolatedelements emerge from the light;Giorgio Morandi for his pure, simplecollective masses; and John SingerSargent and William Merritt Chasefor their spontaneity and wonderfulbrushstrokes. She advises students tolook at the work of other artists, deter-mine what it is about their work thatattracts them, and then try to figureout exactly how they achieved thatquality. That's what Buselli does, withevery new discovery and painting lead-ing to another adventure in observingand seeing. *Linda S. Price is an artist, writer, andeditor living on Long Island, New York.

LEFTMystic Flowers2007, oil on linen, 16 x 15.

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Blue Hydrangeas2008, oil on linen, 18 x 15.

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Freesias, Plums, and Oranges2007, oil on linen, 16 x 15.

BELOW

King Hydrangeas in Oriental Vase2008, oil on linen, 20 x 24.

About the ArtistELLEN BUSELLI received her B.F.A. from Cornell University, in Ithaca, New York, and also studiedat the Tyler School of Art, in Rome, where she got to see firsthand the work of the Old Mastersshe loves. Studying with David A. Leffel at the Art Students League of New York, in Manhattan,however, proved most instrumental in preparing her for the style in which she would eventuallypaint. Buselli is a signature member of Oil Painters of America and has won their Best Still Lifeaward, as well as the Winsor & Newton Award of Excellence and the Silver Brush Award. She isalso a signature member of American Women Artists, and has won their Best in Show award.Other awards Buselli has received include those from Allied Artists of America, The AmericanArtists Professional League, and Knickerbocker Artists. She is currently represented by CherylNewby Gallery, on Pawley's Island, South Carolina. The artist maintains a studio in New York City.For more information, visit www.ellenbuselli.com.



http://www.ellenbuselli.com.

•

zn oraDYNAMIC ACTION IS AN IMPORTANT ELEMENTIN ANY TYPE OF PAINTING. HERE I DISCUSS THECONCEPT AS IT RELATES TO FLORAL COMPOSITION.

by James Sulkowski

paint from nature, from life.With my subject in front ofme, I can observe the fall oflight upon it, as well as any

atmospheric effects surrounding it. Ican also look for the larger conceptsof form, shape, and movement in mycompositions that will make for aninteresting painting. For example,if one of my florals is taken out offocus, a larger shape will gener-ally emerge. A bouquet of flowersbecomes a spherical shape, or anegg shape, or even an S-shape; andalthough the individual flowers areimportant, each is subordinate to thelarger shape, concept, or idea.Renaissance artists relied on

a few solid, basic compositionalelements-including the cube, thetriangle, and the sphere-and builttheir figure compositions, portraits,

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and stilllifes on these stable for-mulas. The Baroque period of the17th century stressed movement insweeping diagonals, as well as withthe S-shape design tool. This is theapproach that appeals to me. Dutchmasters, including Jan Davidsz deHeem (1606-ca. 1684) and RachelRuysch (1664-175°), incorporatedthese principles into their painting;studying their work can be enor-mously helpful.I like to build a design around a

dynamic action line. In the fol-lowing examples you will see thatsometimes, like the Dutch masters,I will make use of the S-or evena backward S-as in my paintingValentine Bouquet. Note how in thispainting the eye follows the light.It moves through the design fromthe yellow flowers on the left to the

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Valentine Bouquet1991, oil, 20 x 16.All artwork this articleprivate collection unlessotherwise indicated.

ABOVE

Here, a dynamic actionline-in the form of abackward S-movesthrough the designfrom the yellow flowersto the tip of the rose.




ABOVEHere, a spherical concept is enhanced by "the waterfall effect."

LEFTGlory of Summer2001, oil, 20 x 18.

ABOVEThe Baroque diagonal is illustrated here, where flowers radiatelight outward and to the right.

LEFTLilacs2002, oil, 16 x 20.

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pink, orange, violet, pink, and thenwhite flowers, before continuingdown and across the composition topick up the stem of the rose that lieson the table, ending at its tip. Thesurrounding flowers echo, or repeat,in darker colors and tonal values, therhythm of the light just described. Iused the tiny daisies and yellow budsto add sparkle and extra vitality tothis painting.Another design shape that I use

results in what I call the "waterfalleffect." In Glory of Summer I built acomposition around a spherical con-cept that I enhanced with a waterfall

of light and shape in the flowers, aswell as in the vines. Here the whiteroses draw the eye into the composi-tion before leading the viewer outtoward the pinks and yellows, andthen eventually to the light andshadows that pour outward in theshape of the vines.In Lilacs the arrangement follows

the dynamic action of the Baroquediagonal. The cone-shape lilacstems complement this concept,which the white flowers enhance.The flowers radiate light outwardand to the right, in keeping withmy left-hand light source. I placed

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ABOVEThe sweeping action in this painting is enhanced bythe incorporation of light.

LEFTCascade of Color2003, oil, 40 x 30. Collection the artist.

Floral compositionshould not be static,dull, or boring.

the cooler violet flowers (made witha combination of alizarin crimson,ultramarine blue, and white) on thefar left, which allows them to mergewith the darker violet mixtures ofthe shadows. The golden yellows inthe background and foreground addcomplementary impact to the designof the painting.The action in Cascade of Color

should be easy to discern. In thiswork I created a sweeping motionthroughout the composition, whichI enhanced with the incorporation oflight. There are actually three vasesof flowers in the painting, as well as




ABOVE

Rhododendron2001, oil, 20 x 24.

LEFTThe dynamic action linetraces an S-shape fromthe background to the

foremost flowers.

RIGHTA vortex radiates outward

from the centermostflower, which contains thepainting's brightest whites.

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As I paint, I lay in the middle tones and local colors; and as thepainting develops, I build the lights, as well as the darks.

a grapevine. With the light sourcecoming from the left, the yellowand red-violet flowers on the rightstand out brilliantly. The dynamicaction begins on the left with thegrape leaves, leading the eye up andthrough the design, before sweepingdown again to focus on the light andfinally on the leaves.Sometimes I will use more than

one design concept, as in Rhodo-dendron, which makes use of anS-curve-as well as a spiral shape.

BELOW

Pink Peonies2008, oil, 24 x 30.

The dynamic-action line traces thefloral from the background throughthe flowers bursting into the light,before it diminishes in intensity asit trails off to end in the foregroundleaf. The spiral, or vortex, radiatesoutward from the center-most flower,which contains the brightest whitesof the painting. Once again the lightpattern relates to the overalldesign of the composition.In Hydrangeas and Roses

the dynamic action emanates

from the focus of light, which is alsoat the center of the piece. The leaves,stems, flowers, and twigs are all ar-ranged in a spiral to create a vibrantand lively motion. Here again, theprogression of shadow and light inthe background gives added power tothe design.In all of my paintings I use rich

coloration and backgroundsthat enhance the featuredbouquet by creating depththrough the progressions of



light and shadow. I also pay atten-tion to lost and found edges, whichare critical to conjuring atmosphereand a sense of space. As I paint, I layin the middle tones and local colors,and as the painting develops, I buildthe lights and the darks. I prefer touse the full range of the palette, re-serving the deepest darks as accentsfor the final touches-often found inthe center of a floral bouquet.Floral composition should not be

static, dull, or boring. The paintingconcepts I've outlined here allow theartist great freedoms in creating awork. Exploring different techniquesof paint application, such as usingthick or thin paint and differentbrush sizes, also gives the artist tre-mendous creative options that yieldresults as individual as handwrit-ing. And of course, all artists shouldpaint with a loaded brush! *

ABOVE

Action cycles from the center of this piece, yielding a livelycomposition.

TOP

Hydrangeas and Roses2004, oil, 18 x 24.

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Basket of Flowers2009, oil on panel, 24 x 30.



About the ArtistJAMES SULKOWSKI studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, in Philadelphia; Carnegie Mellon, inPittsburgh; and with Frank Mason at the Arts Students League of New York, in Manhattan. In 1994, Sulkowskiopened the Sulkowski Academy of Fine Arts, in Houston, Pennsylvania, where he taught classical painting; today heteaches national workshops. He has won many awards, including the Helen DeCozen Award for Best Floral Paintingin the American Artists Professional League 64th Grand National, and he is included in The Best of Flower Painting, byKathryn Kipp (North Light Books, Cincinnati, Ohio). For more information on Sulkowski, his workshop schedule, or topurchase his instructional DVDs, visit www.jamessulkowski.com.


http://www.jamessulkowski.com.


Painting FlowersComposed of

A LARGE GROUPING OFTHESE FLOWERS IS ACHALLENGE TO PAINT.LEARN HOW TO DISCERNTHE DIFFERENT SHAPESWITHIN THE FLOWERSAND STILL CREATE AUNIFIED COMPOSITION.

by Janet Walsh

he tiny shapes and shadowsmake flowers with small petalsa challenge, so I recommendpracticing the shapes and

learning to observe the setup closely. Ifyou are not familiar with a particulartype of flower, hold one in your non-painting hand against the paper anddraw the flower shapes from variousangles. When you are satisfied withyour shapes, try painting them. Pay par-ticular attention to the outside shapes,and try to vary the subtle colors whileyou paint them. After the paint hasdried, try adding some negative shapes.You have the liberty to change whateveryou want to. If you practice this exerciseoften, you will find you can use yourbrush more than the pencil to capturethe true feeling and character of yoursubject. I painted all the examples herefreehand.


OPEN

INDIVIDUALPETAL SHAPES

<.

GeraniumI painted this example from the leftto the right with a size 12 round.Notice the subtle change of shapes,color, and value, and the red mixtureflowing into the stem.

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NEGATIVESHAPES

SECOND WASH

INDIVIDUALPETAL SHAPES

Peegee HydrangeaHydrangeas consist of many varieties andcolors. I selected one variety that startsblooming in late spring with white shapesand changes to a muted red color as fallapproaches. To create a feeling of depth andto vary the colors, I applied different lightcolor washes, allowing the paint to dry com-pletely between these washes. I was carefulto look for the negative shapes in the flower.



WALSH'SMATERIALS

Palette• cadmium yellow pale• Indian yellow• quinacridone gold• cadmium orange• cadmium scarlet• cadmium red light• Winsor red• alizarin crimson• cobalt violet• Winsor violet• Winsor blue• cobalt blue• Winsor green• Skip's green• light yellow green• viridian

Brushes• sizes 10 and 12 rounds• V2" flat• size 4 inexpensive brush

to apply masking fluid

Surfaces• Kilimanjaro 140-lb

cold-pressed watercolorpaper

• Arches 140-lbcold-pressed watercolorpaper

Other Supplies• Incredible White Mask

PETAL SHAPES

TIPS If your paint has stripes, you need to add more water to your mix. If the color is pale, let thewash dry and then paint another coat on top. After everything has dried, add some small

washes of different colors and shapes here and there to create more texture. Throughout the entirepainting process you should stop often and look at the work from a distance, deciding where to adddarks or make some shapes lighter and where to soften edges. This is a good way to become familiarwith your subject matter. The more you experiment, the more confident you will become.



Wisteria and LilacsThese are popular flowers and look verysimilar; the difference is their shape and theway they cascade. The wisteria is a delicateflower that has an elegant droop. The lilac,by contrast, is more compact. The shapes ofthe ends of both of these flowers and theirnegative shapes are distinctly different.

PETAL SHAPES

OPEN



Step 1I lightly sketched the placement ofthe flowers, remembering to createdepth by overlapping the shapes,as well as to vary sizes and shapes.At the sketching stage I decided toshorten the flower stems to makethe arrangement look more like abouquet.

Step 2Starting with the color of the flow-ers, I mixed puddles of various reds(red-yellow, red-orange, red-violet,and so on). I mixed more paint thanI thought I would need because I didnot want to stop in the middle ofpainting and lose the rhythm. Usingboth the tip and the belly of mybrush, I was able to suggest an effectof texture and spontaneity.

DEMONSTRATIONGeranium in Full Bloom

The challenge with putting thissetup together was to get all theflowers to fit into the container. Iended up adding a small pottedplant in the back right-hand corner(not to be painted) and also addeda few strawberries onto the fore-ground fabric. This gave me a wayof connecting the flower colors andthe foreground fabric. Although theflowers in this setup were not exact-ly where I wanted them, I was ableto group them visually as I painted.I selected this arrangement of alarge grouping of the same flow-ers to demonstrate how to becomefamiliar with the various shapesand their busy leaves. The red floralshapes and strawberries seem toflow from one side of the arrange-ment to the other, moving the eyethrough the painting. The shadowshapes mirror the arrangement, andthe simple blue background providesa restful yet interesting shape.


Step 3(not pictured)Next, I mixed pools of various blues,yellows, and greens. I also added atouch of red into the green mixes as Ipainted. The mix of color ranged froma subtle warm to cool green.

Step 4(not pictured)To check the placement of nega-tive shapes, I laid tracing paper overthe top of my dried painting anddesigned the value shapes (at leasttwo or three values) with a pencil.I painted them after I was satisfied.After everything was dry, I startedpainting some of the various darker-value shapes in both the flowers andthe leaves, leaving a lot of the originalcolor.

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6

Step 5I drew the container, strawber-ries, shadow shapes, and fabric. Ichecked my drawing from a dis-tance. To create the small, roughwhite spots on the container, Iapplied Incredible White Mask withan inexpensive brush. I could thenpaint right over this mask as manytimes as necessary.

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THE COMPLETED DEMONSTRATION:

Geranium in Full Bloom2009, watercolor, 28Y2 x 22Y2. Collection the artist.

Step 6While the Incredible White Maskwas drying, I mixed all the colors Iwould need to paint the container.I kept these colors separate onthe palette. I began painting thecontainer from top to bottom,changing colors as I progressed tosuggest its old age. I made strokesacross the container-not up anddown-and the color value wasdarker at the midpoint of the con-tainer. To create shadows, as wellas the handles and lower half and

bottom of the container, I added adeeper color.

A small floodlight helped createa strong cast shadow behind theflowers. After painting the darkermidtone part of the shadow, I addedone or two washes of the shadowcolor. After all the paint dried, Ipainted the overall background. Insome areas I added another coat.To create the white fabric, I usedvery light washes of a pale yellow,blue, and violet. *



by Janet Walsh

fter learning how to paint a basic floral still life, you'lllikely want to try yourhand at a more involved arrangement. As I've suggested here, you might wantto practice drawing and painting the shapes of the flowers first, because theforms are more complicated. Doing this will help you paint with more confi-

dence, and you will be better able to capture the effects of light and shadow that will bringyour setup to life on the paper.

Exercise: Practice Painting Roses

PHOTOGRAPHSOF TWO ROSES


SMALL WHITESHAPES

Begin the exercise by painting the wholeshape of these roses without addingdetails. In my demo, the small white-tinted shapes usually designate the edgesof a petal. Both shapes were painted atthe same time-moving from the roseshape to the leaves. Note the variety ofthe outside-edge shapes. Most important,remember that you do not need to paintevery peta I!

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WATERCOLOR

GRAPHIC ROSE1. Begin by sketching the

rose petals.2. When you are satisfied

with your sketch,transfer it to thewatercolor paper.

3. Paint a base color.Allow the paint to dry.

4. Load a round brushwith a darker color thanthe rose. Startingat one of the insideedges, paint along itscurve, immediatelyswitch to your flatbrush, and pull thepaint away from thisedge toward theoutside of the petalshape. This suggestshow the form of thepetal turns .

•THE FINISHEDEXERCISE

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PENCILSKETCH

Exercise:PaintingDelphiniumsThe sinuous, multifloweredbranches of the delphiniumcan be somewhat befuddlingto paint. For this reason, takeyour time drawing and sim-plifying these shapes on yourpaper. Resist the temptationto paint everything you see.Begin at the top with violets,blues, and greens, changingcolors as you move from thesmall, delicate buds to thelarger shapes, finishing withthe stem.

THE VARIOUSSHAPES OFDELPHINIUMS



DEMONSTRATIONRoses and Delphiniums

ReferenceIn designing this setup I made the roses thefocal point and the delphinium and foliage lessimportant. Overlapping these shapes helps tocreate the feeling of dimension. I also decided touse the white of the paper as a background andnot add a container. Last, this arrangement wasdesigned to be a vignette, meaning the subjectmatter does not touch any of the edges of thepaper and has a balanced middle placement.

WALSH'SMATERIALS

Palette• cadmium yellow pale• Indian yellow• cerulean blue• cobalt blue• Winsor blue• French ultramarine• permanent alizarin

crimson

Surfaces• (anson Montval

140-lb cold-pressedwatercolor paper

• Kilimanjaro 140-lbcold-pressedwatercolor paper

• Fabriano Artistico140-lb cold-pressedwatercolor paper

Brushes• sizes 10 and 12 rounds• 3J4" flat


1

Step 1I lightly sketched the placement of the various subjects.The two roses were painted before the delphiniums.

Step 2Next, I went back into the rosebud and added too muchdetail. To correct this problem, I washed out a good part ofthis detail using a slightly wet natural sponge. I thenconsidered the painting at a distance.

2

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Step 3I added negative shapes to a few of thedelphinium buds, as well as a third rose.I started defining the rose petals (usingthe size 10 round brush) with paint thatwas slightly darker than the base color.Then I came in with the flat brush (nottoo wet) to move the paint to the edge,creating the rich and subtle colors andvalues in the rose. I considered the addi-tion of foliage under the single rose, soI laid some natural foliage on the spotto see how it would look. I decided toinclude it and other pieces as well.

Step 4At this stage I worked outthe design of the stems ontracing paper. To transfer thedrawing, I taped the tracingpaper directly on a window,then taped my paintingover the tracing paper usingmatte-finish Magic Tape. Ilightly traced the image ontothe watercolor paper.

Step 5I painted the stems using avariety of shapes and softgreens. *www.ArtistDaily.com

THE COMPLETED DEMONSTRATION:

Roses and Delphiniums2009, watercolor, 20V2x 16.Collection the artist.

4



t_ti

e eSettin

THIS MINNESOTA ARTIST IS KNOWN FOR REPRESENTATIONALGRAPHITE DRAWINGS THAT DEPICT CONVENTIONAL

SUBJECTS IN A WAY THAT'S ANYTHING BUT.

by Naomi Ekperigin



, , 've never really thought of myselfas a floral still life artist," saysSkip Steinworth, "but lookingback over the drawings I've done,

I realize that they increasingly fall intothat genre." For the last 20 years, theartist has drawn stilllifes exclusively ingraphite, and over the last decade, flow-ers have become the dominant subject."Most of my earlier stilllifes includedfloral arrangements, mainly as a tokennod to tradition in what were other-wise less traditional combinations ofobjects, such as cardboard boxes, cam-eras, and even lawn sprinklers," hesays. "Over time I realized that someof the images I most enjoyed drawingwere the plants and flowers." Heedinghis creative voice, Steinworth pareddown his compositions and now hasspent much of his career renderingthe subjects that provide him the mostpleasure, as well as endless creativeand technical challenges.It can be quite tempting to sum up

an artist's body of work in a word orsentence that makes it easily accessibleto viewers, readers, or collectors. Aglance at Steinworth's oeuvre givesthe impression of a draftsman whoseeks to explore simplicity-after all,what could be more straightforwardthan a black-and-white image of aflower? Using the most humble ofartistic tools and one of the mostclassic subjects, he creates meticulousrenderings that many viewersoften mistake for photographs. ButSteinworth's drawings are more thanthe average floral still life. "Perhaps

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the most appealing aspect of workingwith flowers is the amount of artisticlicense I can take with them," theartist says. "I'm not copying what Isee; I'm drawing a mood. I can getaway with far less adherence to theirliteral appearance than with mostother subjects-I can alter the sizes orshapes to fit my compositional needs."This flexibility is crucial, because

the artist's compositional needs aregreat. In his earlier work, he not onlycombined disparate objects but alsoutilized an array of tools to manipulatehis subjects. "Even in the initial

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Cuttings andBlack Vase2007, graphite onmat board,21 x 27. Allartwork thisarticle privatecollection unlessotherwiseindicated.

LEFTHangingFlower2008, graphite onmat board,31 x 18. CourtesyPismo Fine ArtGlass, Aspen,Colorado.

"I wanteda texturedbackgroundbecause it wasso large," theartist says ofthis drawing. "Iwanted it to bepart of the spaceitself. It was funto completelyinvent it and nothave to adhere toanything."

stages of setting up the arrangementsand taking reference photographs, Iregularly employ everything from hotglue to wire and alligator clips to propup, modify, or reposition objects inorder to achieve what I consider to bethe best composition." In other words,there's nothing simple about thesestilllifes. Each object-and in manycases, the shadows the objects cast-isa player in Steinworth's scenes. Heoften aims to create a sense of serenity,but the blank backgrounds take theimages out of context; with this senseof stillness comes a feeling brevity,



patience, and even loss. Flowersilluminated by unknown light sourcescould have been left to wilt on abedside table or just starting to bloomon a windowsill. Responses to thedrawings often reveal more about theviewer than about the artwork itself

While speaking with Steinworth,the word that comes up most oftenis "obsessive." "My artwork is what Icontrol the best," he says with a laugh."When I plan out a composition, I'llspend hours arrangingobjects." After he finds asetup that he's satisfiedwith, Steinworth thenmoves on to lighting."Lighting is anotherway to help medescribe these 0bjectsthoroughly," he says. "Iuse a combination ofnatural light, spotlights,baffles, and reflectorsfor both aesthetic effectand to define the subjectmatter."

Steinworth's drawingstake at least six weeksto complete, and inmany instances, severalmonths; his subjects arewilted long before he'sfinished drawing them.The artist overcomesthis challenge bytaking copious notes, hundreds ofphotographs, and creating severalsketches. "I get down as muchinformation as I can, as quickly as Ican," he says. "I also try to commit asmuch of it to memory as possible. Butwhat's so great about flowers is that Idon't need to make every petal exactlyperfect. If it's not what I rememberor what I see in the photograph, I canchange or invent what I need to makethe image fit my vision."

He first draws his composition usingdry-erase marker on tileboard that heconstructs himself ttl began doingthis when the size of my drawings

made it impractical to do life-sizelayouts on paper," he explains. "Withthis method I can do large-scale linedrawings and make changes quicldyand easily." After this initial drawingis firmly in place, Steinworth transfersit to his drawing surface. Althoughhe does leave himself room to makefurther refinements at this stage, herarely does. The hours spent getting toknow his 0bjects through arranging,rearranging, and photographing under

"I do shake things up a bit," hecontinues. ttl tend to start with mybackground first, usually bringingit close to completion before I drawthe objects." This is due, in part, tohis sure-handedness during the earlydrawing process. Because he carefullyconsiders each line before he puts itdown, Steinworth knows exactly whathe wants the background to look like inthe finished drawing. "If I'm workingon a black background, for instance,


ABOVE

"Peonies are my favorite flowers," Steinworth says."They're not that easy to find in Minnesota during thewinter, but we grow them and I round up a bunch ofthem in June and do all my recording."

myriad lighting conditions servethe artist well. He also credits thisdecisiveness to his early art training.During his graduate studies at St.Cloud State University, in Minnesota,he couldn't focus on drawing, so hemajored in lithography. "You can'teasily make changes with it," he saysof the printing medium. ttl had to dovery precise line drawings, and I'veretained a lot of the working process Ideveloped for that medium.

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Peonies in Fluted Jar2007, graphite on mat board, 27 x 22.

I'll bring that about 90 percent tocompletion and then do a bit of theforeground," he says. "That'll help mefigure out how much contrast I need toput into the objects themselves. Afterthat, I'll work on one area at a time-exactly the way they tell you not to workin art school. Mostly, this is because Ineed a place to rest my hand so that Idon't smudge the surface. I can put asheet of tracing paper under my hand,but it just isn't the same."

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