About This Painting:Title: Autumn ArrivesMedia: acrylicSize: 20 in X 20 in (50.8 cm X 50.8 cm) Price: $650,unframed plus $30 sh/h/ins in the USAHow to Purchase:send me an email
About This Painting:Title: Changing MarshMedia: acrylicSize: 16 in X 16 in (40.6 cm X 40.6 cm)Price: $400,unframed, FREE shipping in the USA, Int'l shipping addt'lPay safely and easily with a credit card through Paypal.How to Purchase:send me an email
About This Painting:Title: Spring WoodsMedia: acrylicSize: 8 in X 6 in (20.3 cm X 15.2 cm)Price:$100,unframed + $5.00 s/h in the USAPay safely and easily with a credit card through Paypal.How to Purchase:send me an email
There’s something quite rewarding about grabbing your paints and canvas and heading into the great outdoors. Nature has a way of making us feel connected and entrances us with her beauty. Perhaps that’s why landscape painting is so popular. With all that beauty surrounding you it’s hard not to produce a good painting. But just in case, here are some landscape painting tips for the beginner.Landscape painting allows the artist to capture the essence of what mother nature has to offer. No two pictures will ever be the same as mother nature’s panoramic view is ever changing. With a good landscape painting the viewer should almost be able to smell the fresh clean air and touch the trees. That might take some practice, but don’t give up you can do it!When you’ve mastered landscape painting your viewer will feel like they’ve just traveled through time and landed right in the midst of the forest, mountains, or ocean. For this to happen your painting needs to have clarity. Clarit
8x10 inchesoil on panelgold frame500.00Purchase HEREPainters TipMore about Painting on Location......Alla Prima is all about the light really, at least it is for me. It's not the time to dawdle along. You can take your alla prima paintings back to the studio to use as references for serious large format paintings. You must learn to think quickly and set up quickly in order to get the scene that attracted you to be there. I am always amazed to see painters who bring out their entire studio to paint on location, They have bags full of equipment, big chairs, huge umbrellas, food,coolers, etc. to do a painting for a couple of hours. By the time their equipment is arranged and they are finally ready to start painting, the scene is no longer what it was.This is the gear I take to the field:Pochade boxTripodFolding garden bench for sessions longer than two hours. I like to have it to sit for a spell when I get tired. If the painting session is less than two hours, I leave it in the car. Bott
30x40 inchesoil on deep gallery wrap canvas wired and ready to hang.unframed2300.00Purchase HEREPainters TipFraming is the worlds biggest pain and mystery. You can never satisfy buyers. I have gone through so many styles and widths of frames I can't even remember all of them. For most of my gallery paintings I use gold or silver metal leaf wide simple frames. Using frames which are not offensive is the best way to sell in galleries where the buyer has no choice but to purchase the painting as is. The KISS rule applies here. Don't go overboard with ornate frames or multicolored mats. Keep thing fairly neutral so that the framing will work with a variety of decorating styles in homes. For my studio patrons and commissioned paintings, I have the luxury of working with my client to allow them to choose a moulding and custom size for their painting. If they don't like the ones I have in stock, I put them online to see mouldings from the various frame companies I work with. I can
14x18 inchesoil on panelsilver frame1000.00Purchase HEREPainters TipI finally got to paint in my studio today, after having been on the road and getting the college kids sent on their way back to school.Yesterday I started using a new medium, Garrett Copal Medium Heavy. Yesterday, I was leaning toward the Gamblin Alkyd, but after having used the Garett medium all day, I am really starting to like it. For one thing the color is very rich with this medium, more jewel like , and the paint handling is fantastic. The paint sets up beautifully on both canvas and panels and you can work for a long time without any overworked areas. I am becoming a fan. I wasn't sure it was going to be worth the investment but I am sold.They are both excellent mediums.A word of caution here. Before you go out and order expensive products, wait until you are a competent painter and are able to put together a decent painting without anything but your solvent. You can buy the most expensive brushes, fine linen,
12x16 inchesoil on panel800.00gold framePurchase HEREPainters Tip I've been experimenting with a couple of mediums in the last couple of weeks. The first is Gamblin Alkyd Medium, supplied by my workshop sponsor Central Florida Office Plus in Gainesville, Florida. it is nice to get samples to try before you commit to a product. I really like this medium and will purchase some more when I run out.The other arrived today via USPS and it is fairly expensive but I've heard about it for years so I was ready to invest $40.00 for a large bottle . It is Garrett Copal Medium, made by Ron Garrett. I gave it a whirl this afternoon for a bit of painting and I like it. It is darker color than the Gamblin but works in a similar way, to set the paint up nicely and make it stay where you put it. it is a bit thicker than I prefer but I think it will work fine. I'm not really sure which one I will like the best but I am leaning toward the Gamblin because it is lighter in color and a bit thinner, ju
8x10 inchesoil on panelsilver frame500.00
purchase: HERE
Painters Tip
Evolving In Our Process
I believe that painters who are open to new ideas, will evolve in their painting process. I started out as a drawing major in art school and did many years of painstaking, photorealism drawings. I became bored with the process and progressed to fresh new drawing experiments, which were less fomulaic. I painted some large abstracts in art school which were quite bad of course. About 15 years ago, I did a period of very loose pastel paintings for a couple of years. They were primitive, primary colors, mostly palms, and I still run into people who wish I was still working that way. I then began playing around with oil landscapes, and became a plein air painter about 13 years ago. I did that exclusively for about three years. I was very much into the whole phenomenon of being a "plein Air snob". After a time, I felt the alla prima method of working lacked finesse and refinement. It
5x7 inchesacrylic on panelunframed115.00 includes shipping
Purchase at: www.lindablondheim.com
Painters Tip
More on Juried Exhibitions.....
You have decided what your motivation is for entering. You have done your homework on the judge and the cost of shipping the paintings to and from the location, if applicable. Now you must read the brochure from cover to cover at least twice, highlighting the important information.
Why do I write this?
Once a few years ago, I entered a top regional show, coveted by all, and was accepted. I was so smug and proud of myself. My hubris knew no bounds until I realized that the painting I had submitted was two inches larger than their size restriction allowed. I was horrified. I called the director, begged and pleaded, even offered to send a substitute painting. Of course they said NO. My lack of attention to detail cost me a fine exhibit for my resume and possible prize money.
You must follow the directions to the letter if you are t
5x7 inchesacrylic on panelunframed115.00 includes shippingPurchase at: www.lindablondheim.com
Painters Tip
Juried Exhibitions
I don't do many juried exhibitions these days, preferring to do invitational exhibitions instead. There were many years that I did do juried exhibits. Why should an artist do them?
Resume Building-It is a good way to fill out your resume, especially if you are an emerging artist.
Exposure- If you are interested in moving into a market where you are not known, some folks will see your work.
Building Workshop Possibilities- If the exhibition is in an art center you may build some interest for teaching future workshops. Sometimes art center directors will take an interest in your work and ask you to teach at the center. Before you enter the competition, it would be smart to prime the pump by sending out your workshop brochures and resume to the director.
Sales- This is a remote possibility. Yes, people do sell at some juried exhibitions but they a
8x10 inchesoil on panel
500.00availale at Arceneaux Gallery, Birmingham, Alabama
Painters Tips
Mixed Media Fun
Using dual mediums can be a real blast. I love playing with colored pencil and pen together. They are perfect marriage for the cartooning I love to do. Other great combinations are watercolor and pastel. I love to put thin transparent oil glazes over acrylic but there have been several arguments back and forth about the archival problems of using oils over acrylics. I'm not going to take sides on that because I am no archivalist. Most of the time I keep the two as totally separate mediums. I also like acrylic with ink on top.
Have some fun playing with mediums together. Mixed media is a terrific and fresh approach to technique too.
10x10 inchesoil on Deep Gallery Wrap CanvasWired and ready to hang sides painted light blue.
550.00
Painters Tip
Live with it for awhile
I saw a discussion about where artists like to hang their work at an online forum recently. I think it made a good point that we need to have a stage for our paintings to hang for a bit. We need to be able to look at them in their glory, properly framed and hung in a furnished room. It's not always possible to keep them long enough for that, with sales taking priority, but I sometimes keep paintings in the studio for months just because I like them and want to live with them awhile.
Find a spot on your wall for the latest painting to hang and keep changing them out. Be sure to put a frame on them and enjoy them for a bit before they go to their new homes.
Palm Hammock5x7 inchesacrylic on panelunframed115.00 includes shipping
Painters Tip
Teach by Example
For artists who teach painting, the best advice I can give you is to teach good painting skills by example.
Are your materials clean and organized when you meet students? Do you have the right supplies? Is your working space reasonably tidy and comfortable with good lighting and climate controlled?
Are you on time and ready to paint when they arrive?
Do you use your own work to instruct? I always paint with students so that they can see my process as well as theirs. I stop at various stages of the painting to explain my choices of composition, palette, and the decisions I make as I process through the painting. I prefer to paint right along with them rather than to make them sit through demos. I want them engaged in the process as much as I am.
Do you use hand outs and written materials to enhance your lessons?
Do you study your subjects and themes? I try to study much mo
24x36 inchesoil on panelgold frame1900.00Purchase at: www.lindablondheim.com
Painters Tip
Pricing your work
This is a topic of endless debate among artists. Here is my take on it.
There are several factors which should go into pricing. The first being brand name recognition. Never underestimate the importance of that. Brand name isn't about skill, it's about brand. You can be a highly skilled painter with no brand name and your work will not sell for the prices that Joe or Sally can command because they are well known. Their work may not even be close to a good as yours but they will command much higher prices.
Another factor is location of your market. If you are living in an urban sophisticated market then the chances of higher prices goes up. If you live in a rural farm community you will have to market outside of that area or paint subjects which appeal to rural people. This is of course a generalization but true much of the time.
Do you want to wholesale your work or
Paynes Prairie18x24 inchesoil on canvas1500.00Purchase HEREPainters Tip Value- is the transition of color from light to dark or light tone to pure tone. In painting, it is captured by adding black (to capture the gradient of shadow), or white (to capture distance). Hue- is the purity of tone. A color that is innately pure is more intense, or more saturated. A pure tone that has been introduced to different colors, will become de-saturated, less intense, and sometimes muddy. These become alternative hues to the same tone. Color Temperature- Light, whether it's direct, reflected, or diffused, all has different color temperatures. These color characteristics are often referred to as being warm or cool. Color temperature can also be used to create depth in a painting. Warmer colors seem to advance to the viewer, while cooler colors recede.
5x7 inchesacrylic on panelunframed115.00 includes shippingPurchase: HEREArtist Journal I have to take a couple of days off from the blog because this weekend is my annual Dessert and Coffee Party. I will resume posting on Monday. I have been doing small painting this year and have framed them all to hang salon style in the studio for this party. It is a good show I think, all of them framed alike and hung together. That is the kind of alla prima work I enjoy, doing the little paintings. They are each a new adventure. They have improved my technical skill with acrylics too, and I believe for me, the small format is the only way to go with acylics. They are not as successful for me in large format as a medium. I will stick with oils for larger paintings than 12x16. The great thing about these studio parties is that it builds camaraderie between me,my patrons, and other artists, and I have an opportunity to make new friends. It is a festive atmosphere and a great way to interact wi
