Updates from Terri on Her Art Journey
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Merry Christmas! Today, I’m taking the day off from my blog (and the world) to celebrate the birth of my Lord and Saviour. If you’re looking to watch an amazing worship, I recommend:
https://www.youtube.com/live/eW63nWt2-dE?si=kAhU4rmWVaCkJLkl See you next year (actually next week), when my art journey continues.
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A couple of years ago, I became a member of City Lights Art Gallery in Henderson, Nevada, and it is one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. Not only has it become the best venue for me to exhibit and sell my paintings, it’s also been a marvelous place to meet fellow artists and forge some wonderful friendships.
If you are an artist of any skill level (I’m an absolute beginner!) and you live in the Las Vegas area, I urge you to join this little gallery. Here’s why: Located at 3 E Army Street in Henderson, City Lights Art Gallery (CLAG) is a 100% all-volunteer 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to artists and those who love art. The gallery typically has on display more than 100 pieces of original art by local artists. The entire gallery is refreshed on a quarterly basis, so the exhibits are constantly updated. CLAG hosts Juried Shows that are open to all artists, members and nonmembers about three times a year. And it costs only $40 a year to be a member! In addition to the community of inspired and talented artists, what I really like about this gallery is that part of the purchase of every artwork is used to support future art students through CLAG’s scholarship program designed to encourage and support the next generation of talent. This past weekend CLAG hosted our annual holiday party at the gallery and it was a blast! Not only were we treated to a potluck supper and live guitar music, we also had a drawing for door prizes (I actually won a portable easel!), and we voted for our favorite painting of the year. To my delight, the winner of this year’s “Member’s Best” competition is my good friend, Pat Gombarcik, for her lovely oil painting, entitled “Mossy Perch - Blue Tit.” Of course, we’re all winners for having Pat as a friend and for all the supportive members of City Lights. Every year since 1999, Pantone reveals its “color of the year” at about this time of year. And last week, it made its announcement for 2024.
Pantone is best known for its Pantone Matching System, a tool that began in 1963 and is used to provide consistent and accurate color anywhere in the world by using a numbering system and chip format. Pantone also runs the Pantone Color Institute, which selects the color of the year, forecasts global color trends and advises companies on color for brand identity and product development. So, what’s Pantone’s Color of the Year 2024? Drum roll, please . . . . PEACH FUZZ (PANTONE 13-1023), a light shade of pink described as “gentle, warm and cozy.” Pantone said Peach Fuzz is “a heartfelt peach hue bringing a feeling of tenderness and communicating a message of caring and sharing, community and collaboration.” They called it a “velvety gentle peach whose all-embracing spirit enriches mind, body, and heart.” So don’t be surprised if you see a lot of fashionable dressers donning a peach-colored wardrobe next year! I’m especially fond of the name because that was my Dad’s nickname when he served in the navy. He joined the military when he was just 17 years of age. The nickname (“Peaches” for short) was in reference to the fuzz he was able to grow on his chin. RIP, Dad.They named a color after you!! Last week, I completed Rod Moore’ figure painting challenge. This painting of a young man fishing was my final assignment.
I was so inspired by this challenge that I joined Rod’s Figure Painting Academy, which Rod created in order to teach Robert Hagan’s unique method of creating portraits. Probably the most significant lesson I’ve learned so far is that a successful painting should be story based. That fits in nicely with my motto (“A picture is worth a thousand words”), so I look forward to continuing on my art journey along this path. Using only what he calls his “mother colors” of cobalt blue, light red, yellow ochre and titanium white, and his favorite tool (a magnifier), Hagan paints his figures using models from photographs he’s taken. The trick is to get good shadow tones with light coming from the side, as well as a proper ratio of shadows to light (typically 70% in shadow and 30% in light). So to get just the right light, he takes his reference photos at either 10:00 in the morning or 3:00 in the afternoon. The basic idea in his paintings is to simplify the setting so that the figure is supported by the background and foreground. Hagan paints top down. That is, he starts with the sky and blocks in the setting; then he develops a story, establishing a scene within that setting by placing the figures (humans, animals, sailboats, etc.) imaginatively on the canvas. Hagan’s paintings are layered, nuanced and complex. And I look forward to adapting some of his techniques in my work. Now I just need to find some models to photograph and come up with a few storylines! Lord, help me imagine some interesting stories to paint. |
AuthorTerri Thompson is a journalist-turned-visual artist, who is on an "art journey" and exploring how to tell her stories through her watercolor and acrylic paintings and photographs. Categories |