The Best Color To Paint Your Art Studio Walls

When I committed 110% to my artwork, I sought out ways to set up the ideal art studio. As with anything else art related, finding answers to my many detailed questions were insanely difficult.

As I focused on working from life, I learned that working in a black studio was recommended. I cringed at the thought of painting a room in my house black. So I went to the paint store and got a gallon of the darkest brown I could find. It never photographed very brown, it was so dark it was more of a warm charcoal color.

My first art studio

I liked this studio, but when I moved, I decided to go for something a bit lighter in value. After more extensive research, I found that most portrait artists recommended Benjamin Moore Mohegan Sage. They say it is a pleasing color with skin tones. I never found out. Mohegan Sage is a much lighter value than what I was used to. At the last minute I panicked and chose the color two values darker. I didn't think it was going to be a big deal. It was.

I did not get this color

Bad color for a studio

I ended up with an awful dark muck green. To make it worse, I didn't have the time to change it. I was running a business and painting in what little spare time I had.

Fast forward to when I made the move to full time artist. One of the first things on the "to do" list was to paint the walls. I realized that having a color cast to the walls did not only potentially effect the color cast of the ambient light in the room, it was also distracting. I needed something I didn't pay any attention to.

As all the ready-made sample chips in the store were no where near neutral, I used a cut piece of neutral grey drawing paper to color match. Also, it is very important to have the flattest paint you can buy. I had planned on using Behr paint (as I loved it for painting my house) but when I bought a few color samples, I noticed that their "flat" was not very flat. It was more of an eggshell. So I made a trip to good ole WalMart. They say that their Colorplace paint is really Kilz. I don't know that for sure, but I do know it was the flattest paint I could find.

Now, the color I have on my studio walls now do seem a bit bluish to me, but, I don't pay any attention to them. And, best of all, it has made the studio a much more comfortable and productive work space.

Here is a short video of me talking about my studio wall color.

What is best for you may vary. But, if you work from life, neutral is best and the darker the better. What color has worked for you? Feel free to leave a comment and share.

How To Get The Hell Out Of Your Own Way, And Make Art

Since I've been making big changes in the way I approach my art, I've had to ask myself a lot of tough questions. Questions like, what am I so afraid of ? Why am I not making the art I want to make?

Why do we do that? Get in our own way?

I think, for me, it was trying to live up to some imagined ideal. For years I paid close attention when artists would discuss what is acceptable and what is not acceptable when creating art. Should one use photo references? Should one use a grid? Should one only use the magic painting medium?  I used to feel like I had to choose a side. My thought process was a little like this:

"Well, artist "x" is very skilled and highly educated. Than whatever he/she says to do must be the acceptable way to make art".

Even though I often questioned this artistic dogma, I feared if I didn't do things the "right" way, than my art would not be valid.

I know, it's dumb.

The self inflicted roadblocks don't end there.

I worried about painting works that were appealing to a wide audience. I worried about the paintings not selling. I worried that not gaining a following on social networking meant I wasn't any good.

So nearly four years into being a full time artist, I haven't gotten very far. I have looked at the paintings I have created and asked myself why did I paint that? I haven't been painting for me. I've been busy trying to live up to that damned imagined ideal.

Ok, it's not a total loss. I have spent a great deal of time striving to create skillful art. I have a few paintings that are pleasant.

Now it's time to make my art my way.

As bold as I may sound, I assure you, I am still terrified. I don't have unlimited resources. Very soon, if this artistic endeavor of  mine does not prove profitable, I'll have to go back to one of those soul killing, time-clock jobs. Let's not think about that right now.

Here is a study I finished yesterday.

Yellow Swallowtail Study, 6x6 Oil on Panel

High Res Detail Shot of Brushwork

I'm working on a new technique. The brushwork is more deliberate and it took way less time to create than my past work. Maybe I'll talk about it more in another post.

So, how can you get out of your own way? Make art that makes you happy. Make art that means something to no one else but you. Redefine what it is to be a successful artist.

That needs to be a future blog post. Redefining success as an artist.

But right now, it's time for me to get out of my own way. It's time to stop worrying about everything. Especially about being criticized. Besides, the critics have to find me first. Obscurity has its advantages ;)

Back To The Drawing Board, Quality Of Line

I have been overwhelmed with the outpouring of support after my last post. Don't worry everyone, I'm good. And I'll keep making art no matter what.

There are quite a few things that I want to change about my work. I figured it would be a good idea to start with the basics and spend more time with drawing.

Time to wipe the slate clean and start from the ground up.

Starting over has been scary. Spending time with the basics has helped a great deal. I can spend a few hours playing with the concept in pencil, instead of a few weeks (or months!) trying to get it to come together in paint. And since I see these drawings as experimental, I can mark up the paper all I want and not care about it looking "finished."

Untitled (cropped), Pencil and Chalk on Toned Paper.

Since I have announced that "everything is different now," only focusing on an accurate line drawing just won't do. Instead, the focus has shifted to quality of line.

Evelyn, Pencil and Chalk on Toned Paper

Quality of line can be summed up as simply as the thinness or thickness of a line. But I also think about whether the line is best represented dark or light, hard or soft, curved or straight,. (I'm finding that more and more I'm leaving curved lines as straight lines) And I'm pushing that further. Are there any lines I can change to better represent what it is that I want to see?

No more blindly following what I see in front of me.

While drawing, along with striving for accuracy and achieving a good likeness, I also pay close attention to how each line relates to the next. When finished, every line in the drawing should work together. Often there are lines that don't need to be there at all.

The more simple the drawing, the happier I've been with the finished work. And if you are wondering, no, this is not the beginning to my spiral into minimalism. Not going to happen. BUT, it does appear to be a transition into more contemporary art.

Until next time......

Restarting My Art Career

If you have been following along, you know I've had a very limited online presence since last November. Around that time I let a comment about my art question my entire career. One comment. Questioning my lifelong dream.

Are you wondering what was so awful that made me feel like years of my life were wasted? What horrible, terrible thing could have possibly been said? One word. One small word. "Boring."

I want to be this badass, confidant, artist that cares little about the opinion of others. But this comment was not said with anger, jealousy, or envy. This was genuine. And it came from someone high up within the representational art world.

I had a decision to make. Brush off the comment and continue down the road I was on, or, think very carefully about why I was referred to as "boring." I started thinking.

I ended up having a lot of time to think.

I won't go into all the negative emotions I went through. Like I said before, I'm not looking for sympathy. I'm writing this because someone else is out there questioning their creative path. I want them to know they are not alone.

This is how I worked it out.

I put all my paintings in one room and sat in front of them. Eight years ago I didn't think I would have been able to achieve this level of realism. And there they were, still lives, portraits, all looking like photographs.

Ok, there is nothing wrong with realism, or photo-realism. But I started to ask myself if these works were reflective of who I am, what I see AND feel. And the most difficult question of all: If I were an art collector, would I buy any of these paintings?

This post is me baring my soul. This is me going against everything I have come to learn about how to present myself in public. "Fake it until you make it." "Smile through the pain." "Never let them see you sweat."

I'm doing things my way now.

Instead of giving up, or continuing to make work that feels "safe" and worrying about whether or not my work will appeal to a large number of people, I'm starting over. I'm rebuilding my art career from the ground up. And from here forward I will no longer worry about looking arrogant or self-important. From now on, I do what I want.

Art is hard. Art is lonely. Art is life. Art is my life.

If it is your life too, keep going.

Portrait Painting Demo "On The Horizon"

Do you ever feel like there is just too much going on in life? Yeah, we all do. I've had this video on YouTube for over a week now and I'm just getting to posting it on my blog.

Portrait Painting In Oil Demo

This is a progression video of my latest painting "On The Horizon". My lovely model is my younger sister Emily. She didn't know I was going to paint her. I had made the bubble ear cuff and I asked her to try it on and sit while I take some test photos. I figured if I had formally asked her to model for me, she would have not been as relaxed. My little white lie worked as the photos turned out awesome.

As simple as this painting appears, there is a lot going on. The glass bubbles symbolize fragile thoughts as she looks forward to the future. My main goal was capturing a complex expression showing hope and uncertainty.

I've been trying to work on more studio tip videos. I just painted my studio walls and am anxious to share what I learned about the ideal studio color. The video was a mess though! I need a little more practice in front of the camera, and I need to stop saying "um" every other word! Even if I don't get a decent edit from the video I took, I'm still going to do a blog post soon about it. Stay tuned ;)

A Weekend Of Planes, An Overpriced Rental Car, And Great Art

This past Saturday my husband and I made the eventful but short trip to Sag Harbor NY to attend the artist reception of the exhibition Women Painting Women The Tales We Tell Together, at RJD Gallery. Neither one of us could take much time away from work (I NEED to finish my latest painting!) so it was a one day deal. It had it's ups and downs (bad flying pun), but it was so worth attending.

Me with my painting "The Fall" at RJD Gallery

Now, I'm not much for flying. I'm more of a road trip gal. But not being able to make this a several day ordeal, I purchased the tickets and hoped for the best. I nearly overslept to catch my flight out, had a bit of an.....um....episode right before takeoff* (luckily for me my husband restrained me) and I got to briefly enjoy the morning sun reflecting off the Atlantic ocean before landing.

We stayed at a lovely little hotel in South Hampton and got to spend a little time sight seeing before getting ready to attend the reception. What an amazing show it was!

(from the left) Rebekah Bynum, Stephanie Deshpande, Sylvia Nitti, Candice Chovanec, Shana Levenson, Cindy Rizza, Rebecca Tait and Rae Whalen

Meeting and getting to know these hard working artists was a real treat. I love how when artists get together we somehow form an instant bond, like we have known each other forever.

I feel bad I didn't take photos of all the work because all the paintings were stellar. I was too in the moment and wanted to spend time really looking at the paintings. I feel we sometimes spend too much time adjusting the focus on our cameras and not enough time seeing the beauty right in front of us. If you like, you can take a look at all the works on RJD Gallery's website HERE.

If I could give a bit of advice to aspiring artists or artists trying to make it in this art world: Attend as many events like this as you can. You meet the most amazing people, get to see the work in person (no matter how good the photograph, I assure you, it is nothing like seeing it with your own eyes), and you can learn so much about other artists processes and inspirations.

I wish I could do this more often. Although, next time, I may skip the flight...... ROADTRIP!  :)

*A little aside about my anxiety involving air travel. When I started this blog I wanted to share more than just the fact that I paint. I want to share the good and bad about what it means to follow a creative path in life. It is not always a blissful effortless endeavor. No. It is full of rejection, being very unsure of yourself, difficult and lonely hours working alone, and often it means stepping WAY outside your comfort zone. I hope that by sharing my experiences, that someone out there feels a little less alone. Perhaps I'll talk about that more another time.

Look For Me At Women Painting Women 2015 RJD Gallery

Yesterday was one of those laid back Sundays where you leave the World Wide Web to fend for itself, and enjoy the day....unplugged. I finally got around to going to the Vintage Faire Market which is held on the last Sunday of the month. It's only a few miles from my house, but I always forget to pay attention to which Sunday is the last Sunday.  I found some stuff to include in upcoming paintings, so, well worth going.

In the afternoon I put together another miniature garden. I'm obsessed with miniature gardens.

Then, late in the afternoon I had some down time and decided to pick up my phone and see what was happening on Facebook. A short scroll down and I saw my friend Shana Levenson announced one of her works had been accepted to the Women Painting Women 2015 exhibition at RJD Gallery. I submitted to that exhibition. I had not checked my e-mail all day.

Whenever you need to open an e-mail right away it takes FOREVER, but I saw the subject line....."Congratulations". Now, I would like to say that I handled the news with restrain and dignity. But I did not. I let out a loud squeal. I may or may not have ran through the house screaming "YES!".  My painting "The Fall" has been accepted.

The Fall

The exhibition opens October 10th. For now the only info on the gallery's site is the call for entries here. I will be updating the blog as soon as I get more information. 

For now, if you will excuse me, I have a flight to schedule!