Setting Art Goals, ACHIEVING Art Goals

Day dreaming is fun. We get to make up our own version of what could be and get to go places that we might never really get to. Talking about our dreams and thinking about them feels good. It’s a happy place. But I need more than dreams. I need to be able to visualize my happy place as a physical location. An island, perhaps.

Art Lessons for mixed-media artists
Jane Davenport explains a variety of
colored pencil techniques in Art Lesson 12, which
is on sale for only $1.

Perhaps your “island” is the goal of becoming a better artist, like it is for so many of us. Practice often is a common bit of advice you’ll hear, and will help you get there. But learning the actual techniques takes practice and time. Artists such as Jane Davenport (whose artwork is featured here), Julie Fei-Fan Balzer, and Seth Apter have paved the way for you. Take time with these Art Lessons, for example, and you’ll likely make great strides.

Throughout the year I’ve shared with you highlights from Jane’s 2014 Art Lessons, and I’m thrilled to let you know that they’re on sale, as well as all of the 2013 Art Lessons, for only $1 each. Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn from Jane’s advice on mixed-media art supplies alone:

Colored pencils as paint: “Dissolve colored pencil marks with solvent, and turn those marks into a paint-like medium. Rubbing alcohol, Gamsol, Zest-it, and the colorless blending solution made to refill alcohol markers will all do the trick. I find the most convenient way to use colored pencils as paint is with a colorless blender alcohol marker. In this example (right) I simply added colored pencil to a pen sketch, and then used my colorless blender marker to liquefy the pencil.” (Art Lesson 12, December)

Paint Daubers for Mixed Media: The white dauber is a lovely creature. It is quite opaque and perfect for adding some light to dark areas. If you want a sheer, ghostly effect, apply the dauber without shaking the bottle. If you want a really solid dab of white, shake the bottle well, and then apply the Dauber. Let dry, and then apply another coat. I like to use it to make subjects stand out, highlighting the area within or around the subject in the same way I might use a darker color to create shadows.” (Art Lesson 10, October)

Gesso: Jane is devoted to gesso, which she explains can be used as a canvas primer, a glaze, stencil or modeling paste, and a cover-up (Art Lesson 7, July). The list goes on!

While I want to encourage you to start on the path toward your own island, know that it’s not an overnight road trip with a bunch of friends, when you don’t sleep at night and take turns driving to get there as fast as possible. Oh wait, that’s a different blog post. 😉 Seriously, take the steps, enjoy the journey, and keep moving forward. I know you have the motivation. That’s why we’re here, together.

Until next time,

Categories

Art Business, Blog, Mixed-Media Painting Techniques

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